Boycott THIS!

vanity | March 16, 2003 | southernnorthcarolina

[southernnorthcarolina]

Boycotts, it seems to me, are more a province of the political left than of the right. I have no way of knowing whether boycotts led by liberals are more successful than those led by conservatives, but there sure seem to be more of them; or at least, they get more publicity.

Boycotts led by or on behalf of unions, enviro-wackos, peace activists, human rights groups, animal rights groups, gay groups, civil rights groups (remember, the whole STATE of South Carolina is being boycotted, albeit to no discernable effect), womens' groups, the religious left, and so forth -- seemingly, there's no end to it.

On the other hand, boycotts rarely seem to get organized on the political right. I expect that's because we are, by and large, more "grown up," and tend to harbor the impression that boycotts are a little silly, if not childish. We are reluctant to "cut off our nose to spite our face," as the old saying goes. And I will admit to having purchased ice cream made by socialists, albums performed by anarchists and produced by sociopathic radicals, novels written by gays, beer brewed by union thugs, and boxer shorts imported from Communist countries, among many other sins.

Up till now, I haven't spent much time worrying about what kind of people made the goods I was buying. One can argue that I should have, but in fact, I've been lax in this regard, as have most conservatives, I suspect. But everyone has his limit. I've reached mine.

My gut feel is that the DIXIE CHICKS and the whole damn country of FRANCE will soon feel significant effects on their bottom lines in reaction to recent events.

I can't do much about the Chicks. You can't boycott what you don't use in the first place, and country music makes my skin crawl. But I can, and will, refrain from buying products produced by their concert tour sponsors. It's my understanding that they're beginning a big U.S. tour on May 1 in Greenville, SC, about 95 miles from me. I can't imagine a more unfortuitous (for the Chicks) beginning venue. It'll be interesting to see ticket sales, actual admission counts, and -- maybe -- some tour stop cancellations.

If I can't do much with regard to the Dixie Chicks, I can by damn put a hurting on France, all by myself. I went to my friendly wine merchant yesterday, and purchased three cases for my sadly depleted cellar. A few months ago, perhaps 18 to 24 of those 36 bottles would have been French. No more. Zero. I've been to France -- Provence and Paris -- only once, enjoyed it, and hoped to return some day in the not-too-distant future. Today, you couldn't drag me. Not if it were free. France's decision not only to veto our motion in the UN, but to send diplomats to various African capitals to round up votes against us, was all it took for me to arrive at this decision.

If we conservatives boycott less than do liberals, my guess is that we boycott better. Our efforts will be more focused, rather than spread over dozens of "causes." I think we can make a real economic impact here.

[TruthShallSetYouFree]

Boycottting French restaurants located within the United States might be overkill. It's quite possible the owners were born here and most of the staff, including the chef, could easily be Americans. (Okay, the dishwashers and busboys have to be from Latin America, by law.) I sometimes go to a French restaurant of this description, and will probably do so in the future. I will make sure I order a bottle of wine from somewhere other than France. It's not fair to boycott Americans who prepare food that originates in a particular area of the world. I've been eating Chinese food once a week since I was born (I'm Jewish--that's also a law.) I won't drink their Tsingtao Beer, however.

[fight_truth_decay]

I am so tired of hearing about the Dixie Chicks I want to puke!

[GoreNoMore]

I e-mailed to Lipton the following

Your advertisement campaign with the Dixie Chicks have just put you on a boycott campaign.

I will not be purchasing from organizations that afford individuals the platform to promote anti-american comments, especially of foreign soil when that is the only voice representing Americans. Thank you for your understanding, this is the beauty of America. I just believe that all of us are not afforded the same platforms to express our freedoms such as the Dixie Chicks have. Therefore the smaller guys with the common ground need to unify to get our freedom of speech heard.

Should we see your products advertised by this band, we assume that your corporate objective is to continue to provide a platform for such tasteless remarks and therefore we will exercise our freedoms to the same extent, using our wallets. Please understand your market share includes a dramatic number of southerns. Lipton has been a family tea as long as I can remember out of loyality. Your loyality is now in question.

Thank you for your time

[Libertina]

Nicely done, southernnorthcarolina!

[wolficatZ]

Try some AUSTRALIAN wine soon!
http://www.winetitles.com.au/awol/

[southernnorthcarolina]

Well believe it or not, NASCAR and country music are getting big up here in Boston.

Oh, I know. Big stock car track in New Hampshire, of all places.

Ya'll now have stock car racin', country music, Jack Daniels, and Krispy Kremes. Meanwhile, we-uns down here now have ice hockey, toe-dancin' in tutus, $10 martinis, and bagels. It somehow don't seem right. 'Tain't nacherl.

[Ciexyz]

Yikes, the makeup I use, Lancome, advertises itself as "Lancome-Paris". Guess that means it's imported. I wonder if "Elizabeth Arden" is American made. I may look into switching, but I'd feel sorry for the girls at the Lancome counter at my local mall, if people stop buying and one or more of them get laid off.

[southernnorthcarolina]

Meanwhile, we-uns down here now have ice hockey, toe-dancin' in tutus, $10 martinis, and bagels.

And speaking of those $10 martinis...

Former recipe: 3 oz. Bombay Sapphire Gin, 0.5 oz. French Vermouth.

Revised recipe: 3.5 oz. Bombay Sapphire Gin.

The sacrifices I will make for my country's honor know no bounds. :-)

[blondee123]

I emailed Lipton & here is the reply I received:

Dear:

Thanks so much for writing!

We are writing in response to your comments regarding our sponsorship of the Dixie Chicks, "Top of the World Tour".

We certainly apologize and are grateful you have chosen to share your thoughts.

As a manufacturer we feel it is a major responsibility to provide our friends and consumers with the most creative and entertaining means of sponsorship possible.

We have a long history of presenting "tasteful" advertising, promotional, and sponsorship efforts to the public. We certainly do not wish to offend anyone. In developing our promotional efforts, Unilever and its agencies may not always anticipate all possible implications of a specific campaign.

We will certainly forward your comments to the Marketing staff. Consumer comments are very important and evaluated on a regular basis.

We do thank you for your interest! Your friends at Unilever Bestfoods North America

[InABunkerUnderSF]

Was that written by a computer or a human being who just can't compose an English sentence? Thanks to blondee123 (aka {blank}) for posting.

[fightinJAG]

Good analysis.

The conservative boycott of K-Mart (started back in the early 1990's because they refused to remove porn mags from kid-reachable shelves) seems to have worked pretty well.

The key to boycott effectiveness is long-term change in consumer buying habits.

My sister stopped going to K-Mart back when the boycott started. Well, then she discovered Wal-Mart and NEVER went back to K-Mart. Why should she?

Same can happen here. Consumers will discover there are other delightful wines in the world and find they never feel the need to go back to French wines. Consumers will discover there are other great bands and loads of great music and find they never feel the need to go back to the Vichy Chicks.

That's the real risk sellers of any product face when they are boycotted: they could very well lose those customers forever.

[fightinJAG]

Australian wines---go fer it, mate!

Many states have fine local wine industries. We could change the face of American winemaking by stocking local vintage in place of frog juice.

Of course, I live in Virginia's wine country, so I'm truly blessed.

[fightinJAG]

President cheese was -- emphasize past tense -- a staple in the fightinJAG household.

I think the Danes make a good camembert. In any event, out it goes.

[rrrod]

while i agree with the concept , after all france is a scum bag country, i am dissapointed in the lack of response to german behavior...and germany is telling france what to do!

[fightinJAG]

Sounds like a major league baseball freep is needed.

[fightinJAG]

"Wine country is mostly Reagan country"

That makes sense.

[XBob]

well, the yankees will never make great 'southern fried chicken', and we southerners will never make great 'NY' pizza.

[fightinJAG]

Saw someone on H & C the other night who said France is the number one tourist destination for Americans.

That didn't sound correct, but I am sure France is a very major destination, at the least. Guest said the true way to stick it to France was to STOP GOING THERE.

OTOH, I wish bunches of French young people would come here on vacation and see that we are the opposite of what the frog-imans are ranting about us.

[fightinJAG]

www.pepsi.com

Don't forget the Lipton Corporation as in the Vichy Chicks Lipton Tea Tour (after they finish the "Bill Clinton Apology Tour" in Europe).

[fightinJAG]

Well, as someone said previously, it doesn't do anything to France to get rid of stuff you already have (although if you do it publically, that might be another matter).

But continuing to buy French stuff, or going to France, that is a line that must be drawn.