Your barista, beauty blogger and fantasy author don t vote the same way you do. So what?
Despite our politicization of everything, not every purchase is fraught with moral weight. Relax, and let the best products win your dollars.
Hadley Heath Manning
Opinion contributor
When I go to a farmer’s market or shopping mall, I generally don’t ask vendors 20 questions about their background or political opinion before buying their product. I want to know: Is the product good quality? Is it worth the price?
Now, there are caveats to this: Generally, I don’t want to do business with people who I know are dishonest, immoral, or who are using their business toward ends I find reprehensible. That’s where boycotts come in (or, in another context, where tariffs and trade embargoes come in). Consumers are free to pressure companies to act a certain way. That’s always been the case.
Against a Politicized Economy
Your barista, beauty blogger and fantasy author don t vote the same way you do. So what? Min
When I go to a farmer’s market or shopping mall, I generally don’t ask vendors 20 questions about their background or political opinion before buying their product. I want to know: Is the product good quality? Is it worth the price?
Now, there are caveats to this: Generally, I don’t want to do business with people who I know are dishonest, immoral, or who are using their business toward ends I find reprehensible. That’s where boycotts come in (or, in another context, where tariffs and trade embargoes come in). Consumers are free to pressure companies to act a certain way. That’s always been the case.