I'm a big fan of collective bargaining... when it is necessary and not exploitive. Now, I would say that most of the union striking that happens now is exploitive - to the point of extortion. Unions were a good idea to start off with because they acted in defense of workers who didn't have a voice, yet were forced to work in conditions that were not safe or fair. In many ways though, the pendulum has swung in the opposite direction and it ends up being the unions that have been not only taking advantage of the companies, but employees as well... in other words, something akin to organized crime.
I'm not here to talk about unions, since currently they disgust me. I am here to talk about a different form of collective bargaining that often isn't publicized as such: boycotting. It's the power of the masses... and everybody can participate!
I read in the news today about how some advertising companies are boycotting certain conservative commentators because they believe that advertising on their shows was bad for their image. The one commentator named was Rush Limbaugh and the incident in question was when he called an openly sexually active Georgetown University student who was protesting because she wasn't getting a break on contraceptives a "slut." Now, personally I believe the language was harsh and strong and I wouldn't have used it - HOWEVER... I wonder if advertisers will dare boycott in droves, the likes of David Letterman, Bill Maher and John Stewart? Certainly they are guilty of some blatantly rude and unsavory comments that are equal, if not worse, to those used by the outspoken Rush Limbaugh. I'm sure Limbaugh has insulted his fair share of people using what Libbies like to refer to as "protected free speech" - or our First Amendment rights. We can say anything or express ourselves in any way we like, no matter how offensive it is to anyone else, as long as what we have done cannot be proven to harm anybody else... right? I mean, this is why even the most depraved of media can be portrayed as expressing our constitutional rights, am I not correct? So why single out Rush Limbaugh then? The other person of interest whom the media have targeted is Glenn Beck. Nobody can even give a straight answer as to why he is being boycotted or where the breakdown is, but I suppose that just because he is an outspoken Conservative commentator, he must have said something along the line that is offensive to someone.
So let the advertisers boycott. It's their right. On the other hand, it is our right to boycott the advertisers who have taken it upon themselves to take an other than neutral stand. If we don't agree with a company's political stance, let's boycott them. If we agree with them, then by all means let's patronize them. It worked for Chick-fil-a... or it did for awhile anyway. I don't know if that little boost they had because of their political stance supporting "traditional families" has built the stamina that they need to keep their business afloat or not, but at least it likely got them through until the next major media debacle targeting some other business or individual the Leftists and the politically persuasive disagree with. This is why the masses that follow media trends have such a short memory for these things. But we can use these trends to work towards our advantage as well. Why should it be so one-sided? Why should we be at the mercy of those we don't even agree with... or worse, why should we be the ones paying their paychecks through our patronage?
So, here's what we can do: we find out which companies boycotted the Conservative commentators and boycott them. But don't stop there. If there are businesses that have openly demonstrated family values (especially those that have done so with their donations), patronize them instead! Do a little (okay maybe a lot) more research and find those businesses or organizations that do not promote wholesome family values and trying to build a safe, moral, ethical and/or God-centered society and boycott them. I do it personally (whenever possible). Imagine how much we could clean up the trash in our society by not patronizing their businesses? In this highly competitive world of business, the consumers can have more power over big business than what they realize... much more power than illegally camping out in a park and chanting annoying mindless slogans while waving signs and banners.
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