I know, I’m silent for months and then I start putting out multiple posts in a week. It’s all part of the fits and starts with me. Sometimes I can’t put things together for months and then it’s a big blaze of posts all at once. Just bear with me on this one, as I try to work through my thoughts.
I have some difficulty with recent events regarding the ‘outing’ if you will of Mozilla’s CEO (he gave $1,000 in 2008 to a group which did not want California to have same-sex marriage) and the subsequent reaction by both sides before and after his resignation. It’s not whether or not I agree with his opinion (he is more than welcome to it), or his choice to resign (if you’re becoming the focus instead of the company, than maybe you need to remove yourself from the situation). I have an issue with this concept of ‘boycotting’ a product or company seemingly for almost no reason.
Here is what gets to me. Calling for a boycott of Mozilla products (or Chik-fil-A as another example) for whatever reason says to me that you don’t believe simply telling your friends, family, neighbors, and acquaintances that you will no longer use said product is not enough to achieve your desired result. Or, more specifically, you don’t believe your position is in the majority (aren’t we supposed to be under the rule of the majority?) and so you intend to force your position through coercion rather than reason.
Allow me to give an example of what I mean: I do not like Rite Aid. I have used them in the past, and their customer service has left much to be desired. As a result, I do not get my prescriptions from them and avoid shopping there for anything. I also let people know (when an appropriate situation comes up) that I will not shop there and why. Is that a boycott? No. In my mind, it is a choice. I have ‘voted’ if you will with my feet and my wallet. Now, if enough people follow my lead (or maybe I’m following someone else’s lead, who knows?) then their bottom line will suffer to the point they will either change (feedback is important) or go out of business.
To summarize, I believe screaming ‘boycott!!!’ because a business does,or doesn’t do something you think is right is ‘quitting the field’ of persuasion because you either can’t be bothered to try and persuade others, or you’re just being selfish and throwing a tantrum to get what you want. Either way, to the adults of the world you end up looking and sounding childish.
