Back in the 80's and 90's I knew a guy I will call Felix. Felix devoted a large part of his life to boycotting products. He subscribed to a boycott newsletter whose name I cannot recall.
Unlike most Leftists, Felix had a good sense of humor. He was a walking stereotype, but he was OK with his sense of self and you could tease him about who he was and what he did and there were no hard feelings. Felix was a conscientious objector during the Vietnam War and he would let you know shortly after meeting him all about the bold stand he had taken against the war machine a long time ago.
Felix enjoyed political activism and fulfilled himself by protesting nuclear power and state budget cuts. When he wasn't protesting, Felix was boycotting. He did not own a TV set. He boycotted McDonald's because of their styrofoam packaging and General Electric because in addition to light bulbs, GE made weapons. Years later, I would find it ironic that GE, being the parent company of NBC and by extension, MSNBC, would become the Left's biggest megaphone. And Felix boycotted his comrades all those years ago. Irony abounds.
Felix might not have been universally loved or respected but I repeat myself in saying many of his found him likable and amusing. But even Felix's allies thought he was full of something or nother. We recognized what would later be called virtue signalling and his Lefter Than Thou one upmanship. Above all else, we questioned the efficacy of orchestrated boycotts.
Earlier today I posted a list someone compiled of CNN sponsors. We should let the sponsors know how we feel about CNN's overt dishonesty--as well as other news outlets who promote falsity--but I will stop short of calling for any sort of choreographed collective action.
We are not the "please tell me what to believe" Lefties. We judge independently and we judge as sovereign individuals. We don't need some propped up leader telling us to stop eating at Boston Market. And if Geico offers you a better deal than Brand X, far from me to tell you to pay a few hundred more for your auto insurance.
Looking over the CNN sponsor list, I believe Geico is the only company with whom I do business. Does it not matter that they advertise just about everywhere, not just CNN? I am aware of their ties to Warren Buffet and they fired a Geico voice over professional for leaving vicious messages to a Tea party activist almost a decade ago. But I have also gotten emails regarding Progressive scion nogoodnicks and my name is not Felix and I do not have time to weigh a company's moral values to the nth degree.
I do business with Google, Amazon and Apple to name but a few rogues. Jeff Bezos uses "The Washington Post" to advance lies about the Trump Administration. Google is a consistent bad actor, screwing with searches and Youtube exposure to help Obama and his band of thugs. If Sean Hannity can match Amazon for two-day free shipping, I will gladly consider his offer. In the meantime, Bezos is making me offers I cannot refuse.
Spontaneous boycotts seem to work better than megaphone commands. I am not boycotting Fox News but I rarely see it with each succeeding decline at that once great beacon of truth. I am more put off by the inanity and superficiality (The Five, Outnumbered, Greg Gutfeld's 17th show) than I am put off by the parade of Never-Trumpers, Hillary Hacks and Obots. Apparently a lot of other people have exercised their own one-viewer boycotts to make a difference. 2017 would mark the first time this century that Fox News fell from its status as leader in cable news ratings. If they upgrade, I might return. If not, well, I can't say I miss Meghan McCain or yet another return of the oracle named Bob Beckle.
We can also use the NFL and ESPN as examples of the power of spontaneous boycott. When pampered and privileged millionaires contrived some sort of horse shit grievance that compelled them to sit out The National Anthem, viewers left in droves. The exodus could have been nipped in the bud but the NFL bowed down to the PC gods, including the neo-pompous jackasses at ESPN.
We have highlighted elsewhere, the hyper-politics of the Left and their unique ability to ruin things like news, sports, weather and pop culture in all its myriad forms. It was not that long ago that one could catch a weather report without being assaulted with climate disruption propaganda. One could also watch spectator sports for pure, unadulterated escape. Times change and ESPN lectures us on everything from Y-chromosones using women's bathrooms, to "gun violence" to dissing "The Star Spangled Banner" to the unique evil presented by Donald Trump and the vile and stupid people who voted for him (previously referred to as core audience or viewers.)
As of about a month ago, ESPN had announced that it had lost 12 million subscribers. That's subscribers, not viewers. And you can insert here the excuses of Millennials access differently, cross-platform viewing, social media, blah blah blah. ESPN insulted a hell of a lot of people and Disney's bottom line ain't what it used to be.
I might continue with Geico but I have a few months to finalize that decision. For now, I will continue with Amazon but I keep an eye out for Walmart's innovations and the sleeping giant known as Alibaba. I will take notice if anyone pushes Kindle aside.This blog is brought to you by Google as are my hundreds of Youtube videos. I will talk on an Iphone despite the many disagreements I have with Tim Cook.
In summary, I believe that spontaneous boycotts are more powerful than top down boycotts. And if we already ignore CNN, Stephen Colbert and Kathy Griffin, our threats of abandonment don't mean very much. But desperate times do call for desperate measures and maybe it is time that we singled out a few bad actors to vent our frustration. Stay tuned.
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