Lets Hit Them Where It Hurts

by kokomero Mon Feb 24, 2003 17:21

The boycott of South African produce worked very well during the 1980s as I remember from my college days, I have continued boycotting Israeli produce since then because of their appaling record on a variety of fronts.

The Israelis are driving much of the US policy in the middle-east and are a lot softer target in terms of making an impact than the US ... let's make an example of them by boycotting their fruit and veg. etc. They are also very reliant on exports to the EU as they have poor relations with all of their neighbours. The country of origin is usually clearly marked on containers these days so it takes only a little effort to buy an alternate product. Ask your local shop/supermartket to stop stocking Israeli produce!

The Israelis have a particularly nasty little regieme which should be the subject of a prolonged boycott until they come into line by complying with UN resolutions, getting rid of their nuclear, chemical and biological weapons, ending torture, assassination and ethnic cleansing, returning captured territory and make peace with their neighbours.

by Gaillimhed Mon Feb 24, 2003 17:24

This is exactly the core of the whole problem ...we are so hooked on american culture, CONSUMERISM. If we could shake off consumerism we would have made a start at building a better future. That is where the challenge for the world lies.. US imperialism is enforced in Ireland, not by the cruise missile but by the bigMac and the mobile phone, Intel chips and CocaCola, MTV and Nike. As long as we choose to abdicate our better judgement and indulge in the consumerist feeding frenzy we condemn ourselves and the rest of the world to some sort of slavery to the US, whether that be in the form of indonesian sweatshops or our own style of middle class slavery to the us corporate structure. We have the power to choose. We have always had the power to choose.

by Alan MacSimoin - WSM (personal capacity) Mon Feb 24, 2003 17:41

It's good that folk want to do something effective, as opposed to just 'making a point'. However I don't agree with the proposal for boycott of US goods and services.

An effective boycott would mean less sales, and that would mean layoffs and redundancies for American workers. We would be saying that all Americans are in some way responsible for what 'their' government does, and all of them should be made to pay a price.

Where does this leave the hundreds of thousands who have taken to the streets of US cities and towns to oppose the war?

Where does this leave the US trade unions like - to give just one example - the 40 local unions, 16 Regional Union Bodies, 5 national unions and 3 Central Labor Councils who met in Chicago on January 11th to set up U.S. Labor Against the War (USLAW)?

The enemy is not 'America' or 'Americans', it is the Bush/Blair section of the ruling class. This includes our own Fianna Fail/PD government. And we wouldn't suggest a campaign to boycott Irish goods because of Shannon, would we?

In apartheid South Africa the call for a boycott came from mass organisations like the Congress of South African Trade Unions, United Democratic Front, ANC, etc. We responded by supporting THEIR call.

And that's a very different situation. IMHO the best thing we can do right now is to get as many people as possible to Shannon this Saturday and - by force of numbers - non-violently stop the refueling of US warplanes.

by Eoin O'M Mon Feb 24, 2003 17:43

...is is not a little pointless boycotting American-made produce in the event of a war or pre-emptively? Where will the boycott extend to? Sure, we can all pick the most obvious ones, i.e. Coke, McDonald's, Marlboro, Nabisco but where do you draw a line? Am I to stop using my Nokia phone because it has American investment money in its design and research? Do I not post here any more because my Dell was made in Limerick by a US multinational? I am not here taking a "don't hurt the America that's kind to us line", I am merely seeking some clarification on this one. Advice anyone?

Being hooked on American culture is one thing, being aware of it ant being able to do all within our power to realise a boycott is quite something else. I'll be at Shannon this Saturday but I fail to see the logic of boycotting American models of consumerism. And yes, I have read No Logo and several other notable critiques of capitalism. I try not to fall for it by avoiding products I know to be exploitative but we must be strategic here.

by Hans B Mon Feb 24, 2003 18:01

Do you think that a boycott of goods by a bunch of leftists will make a difference? Do you think that such a thing will make a point? We can also boycott british goods as well. You will end up drinking french wine smoking Gitanes or Gauloises and eating german sausages. Or maybe we should boycott them cos of the french involvement in african civil wars (most recently in Ivory Coast) adn the german government attitude towards refugees. Then, you will just eat colcannon (make sure where the cabbagee comes from).
This ignores the american working class (thanx for your comments Allen).
It will hurt the US economy and the government when they will refuse to work for them. The same way the scottish train drivers refused to bring the ammunitions to the base, the same way the italian train driver refused to drive in solidarity with the blockade.
These are inspirering tactics and it not only hurt them but it also stop them.
So stop being a middle class lifestyler and get real.

An unknown proletarian

by mr jinks Mon Feb 24, 2003 18:10

get real, if ye fools are to boycott all that is american ye arent leaving much to sustain yere present miserable existence.
get a life..
and as for the shannon airport costing the tax payers 44,000 a week, who do you think has to foot the bill for the 500,000 worth of damage to military plane those 5 imbeciles attacked?

by kokomero Mon Feb 24, 2003 18:11

Whereas I can understand some of the arguments against a boycott of the US and allies and we can discuss their relative merits this does not obviate the need for a boycott, even a personal one.

Not everyone can uproot their whole lives and move to a camp in Shannon, admirable and all as this sacrifice is, nobody can argue that boycotts have been an effective tool historically.

They also have the advantage of involving people in issues on an ongoing basis rather than just attending a few marches and promptly forgetting about it. Most fundamental changes take decades, just look at the South African example!

by Tom Morse Mon Feb 24, 2003 18:12

There is not, and will not be, a 'U.N. mandate'. A coalition of the bribed will back the Anglo-American resolution. According to Labour leader Rabbitte, the war becomes justified, moral and legitimate once the bought and the bribed back the U.S.K. resolution. Horseshit!

by kokomero Mon Feb 24, 2003 18:15

500k is it now? All we have to do to pay that is to knock a decimal point off what the tribunals pay barristers ... at least we'll see some value for money from it!

by Clar Ni Mhorain Mon Feb 24, 2003 22:08

Of course we can't boycott everything but if we could get some momentum behind the boycott and knock a dint in the monthly profit of such symbolic American products as Coca Cola, Pepsi, Nike and reduce the numbers going to Mc Donald's we would send an effective message to American capitalism. These companies represent the American fat cats not the working classes.

by Rob Tue Feb 25, 2003 13:03

Capitalism is inherently a problem that exists without boundaries. Although the american sytem is based on a three tier sysem involving - (summarised greatly) - the profiteering of a controlling upper class from the suppressing and exploitation of the lower class with the bibed support and deluded middle class offering righteousness, it remains essentially a microcosm of the distribution of power and wealth throughout the whole world. Capitalism uses patriotism as a mask but essentially exists with out national borders. Symbolic boycotting of those who have most destructively hijacked and exploited our cultures is all well and good but it will not affect the hardcore, hidden, faceless capitalists who fuel war and deal in raw materials. The fact remains that boycotting macdonalds would achieve nothing for peace save annoying a few fat 10 year olds who want a greasy burger without having to be handed something to read on the way in.

by The Clown Tue Feb 25, 2003 13:27

on 16th october? Where are you when there are global days of actions against corporations?