Tuesday, February 17, 2015

To Boycott or Not - That is the Question



As I was doing my quick scan of what silly items that had been posted on my Facebook page - I noted one asking me to boycott Nestlé. I almost ignored the "news item" on the assumption that it was a continuation of the long standing protest objecting to Nestlé's offensive insistence that its baby formula is better than mother's milk. However, it was not about that. It was about the fact that Nestlé had negotiated a deal to buy millions of litres of water from the B.C. government for $2.25 for every million litres (sumofus). The request on Facebook was to follow the link to sign a petition.

I need to believe that except for either the most hard core conservative or for the most rabid fans of Ayn Rand that Canadians understand that selling public water for a minuscule fraction of what its market value is - is absurd. In fact the selling off of our water to anyone for any cost is absurd. It clearly makes no sense to allow a corporation to take water out of the ground so that they can make a huge profit on it.  The only question should be how to stop it.

Companies such Nestlé have withstood boycotting for decades. I doubt if their bottom line has been significantly affected in any measurable way. It certainly has not radically changed its operational stance or long term business plan.  It is hard to think of a single company that has changed how it does business solely because a relatively small handful of individuals have said they won't buy a specific product. Boycotting is a way of making folks who have a choice as to what to buy or use feel like they are doing something. People can now buy a bottle of water for the same price from some other company and say - "I am doing something for the environment". Bull crap!!!! Similarly signing an on-line petition will have little or no affect upon any Canadian government, all of whom have shown no interest in listening to the public. Signing an on-line petition will have exactly the same effect as me writing to Stephen Harper... it makes me feel good for a few hours.

Buying bottled for most people, for most of the time is wrong. In Canada we are blessed in most communities (unless you live in a Native community) with drinkable water. Use it.

Boycotting is a process by which we expect to manipulate corporations to act in an ethical fashion in spite of the fact that we as individuals frequently do not. Why are we surprised when large (and small) corporations look for ways of making money? Do people really expect companies to make ethical decisions that will cost them money? If there is a market for products or services (even if those same companies have created that market) why are we surprised that some multinational rushes in to fill that void? How can we have any of those expectations when we, as private citizens, do not demonstrate at least a hint of ethical behaviour? There is only one way to stop the extraordinary depletion of good, clean water sold in plastic bottles. Stop buying it. Not just from Nestlé but from every company. We should not expect them to change their ways unless we are prepared to do it as well. And do it first!

 People seem to spend a lot of energy moaning about how terrible the multinationals are. But we continue to use their products. Whether it is people driving their near empty mid-sized SUVs (see they say - "I am not driving a full size SUV") while complaining about the horrendous scar upon landscape that is Fort Mac, or people who use all kinds of paper products and live in houses constructed of wood (including exotic woods from soon-to-be denuded tropical forests) complaining both about the cost of lumber and about clear cutting or those who moan about the lack of decent jobs while shopping at the Wal-Mart or the Dollar Store, we expect someone else to make the difficult decisions.

It is time we stepped up to the plate and took responsibility for our own actions. We need to stop blaming companies for the choices that we make.

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