We laughed when President Bush told us to go shopping as a response to 911, but it turns out, he was right. One of the most political things we do is shop. Where we spend our money determines who has wealth, success, and political power.
If you want to exercise this political muscle, choose carefully when you spend. It takes work, but it’s worth it.
Everything we buy, from soda to cable TV, has an economic, political, and legislative story behind it. If you take the time to find out about the companies who get your money—their business practices, their compensation packages, their personnel policies—you might make significant changes to your consumer habits.
A lot of us have already made changes to avoid destructive environmental impacts. But there are broader political issues to consider. Naomi Klein, in her book The Shock Doctrine, describes how governments and corporations create and exploit chaos in order to secure economic resources.
And there’s a positive side. Local economies benefit our communities, spread economic prosperity, promote diversity, and limit environmental degradation. The more we funnel money back into our local areas, the more we support our neighbors and ourselves.
Why shop locally?
Buy Local slideshow
The Hometown Advantage
Business Alliance for Local Living Economies
Local Harvest
No Logo
Only One Reason to Grant a Corporate Charter
The Price of Freedom: Naomi Klein’s ‘Shock Doctrine’
Filed under: power of shopping, powershop
