Forum Post: Boycott Christmas Shopping
Posted 13 years ago on Nov. 17, 2011, 8:25 p.m. EST by nick89
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I think their should be a boycott of Chrismas shopping, many retail stores depend on the christmas season. Don't make the rich richer by spending money on meaningless items. If gifts are necessary ask and give one small gift, not many pricey gifts.
I agree the holidays should be about spending quality time with loved ones, friends and family and having a nice meal together and conversations--and shut the TV off for a change--god forbid. I agree gifts are for kids we have become so commercialized its ridiculous and there was no need to say Bah Humbug, you are only being practical. Last year my parents and I stopped exchanging gifts (I'm 39) for anything, only cards now because neither of us really want anything but each others love and quality time spent with one another. I wish I could teach that to the world. Maybe they should protest about that?!
I agreed. Any powerful gesture comes with some sacrifice but the impact is important and the message is clear to our government and corporates. Immediately they will feel it and fear we will do something similar furtherly. It is a warning to them and show we what WE CAN ACHIEVE and how far we can go by doing this in UNITY.
Occupy Christmas! http://churchofatheism.webs.com
By buying stuff you are helping the economy grow. We need the economy to grow.
Bah humbug.
Christmas is for kids. Get your kids some presents, and have a get together for the adults. Spend your money with local food suppliers.
Get back to basics.
I agree the holidays should be about spending quality time with loved ones, friends and family and having a nice meal together and conversations--and shut the TV off for a change--god forbid. I agree gifts are for kids we have become so commercialized its ridiculous and there was no need to say Bah Humbug, you are only being practical. Last year my parents and I stopped exchanging gifts (I'm 39) for anything, only cards now because neither of us really want anything but each others love and quality time spent with one another. I wish I could teach that to the world. Maybe they should protest about that?!
Yeah, all good. Six siblings and I, and some of our kids have kids as well.
We make it a rule that any kid under 14 gets a gift, and everyone else gets a hug, and some good company.
Christmas is far too commercial, and most of the advertising and format movies are trying to make us feel guilty for not running up a debt just to appear to be playing our part.
Family first.
BOYCOTT CHRISTMAS!! It's all just a show, but it's one that we enjoy... don't sweat the small stuff, look at the big picture. http://dreywrites.blogspot.com/
If you do that, you hurt the 99% more than anyone. How about we use our consumer power to change America and help the 99% rather than just walk away ?
I have compiled the Christmas shopping guidelines I developed with help from others in these forums, cleaned them up, and posted them on an external site at http://bit.ly/vof9WH where they can be shared via social media. The guidelines educate shoppers how they can help the 99% while denying profits to the bankers and mega-corporations. It also includes links to sites where literally thousands of American made products can be purchased.
Please visit the site, and if you like what you see, spread the http://bit.ly/vof9WH link as far and wide as possible via e-mail, twitter, face-book, etc... ALL your social media tools. If enough people adopt these guidelines, we will change the face of Corporate America though our control of the one thing they want most; our money. Based on the hit-counts and feedback I'm seeing, we might have a real impact.
I believe in the short run, you may hurt the 99% by this action, but we need to do something, that they will feel. It isn't going to bother them one bit if we get pepper sprayed, have our heads bashed in or spend the night in jail.
Sigh, so yet another demonstration of our awesome power ! Only problem is, what do we WANT ? What is it that would make us stop disrupting things and who has the power to give us that ? Just how long do you think America is going to tolerate us if we keep disrupting things without every stating what it will take to make us stop ?
That is why we need a list of reforms that most of the 99% will agree with. Then we take this list to the corporations we have stopped buying from and we say" this is what we need.You get your lobbyists to work for us and we will support you." I am a business person. I know if we put enough pressure on their bottom line, they will support us. There are too many problems in our democracy. We need election reform.We need to overturn the Supreme Court decision to treat corporations as individuals. Our children need a better public education, We need regulations in our banking institutions and on Wall Street so that what happened in 2008 will never happen again. If we can come up with a list and keep our solidarity on this issue, I believe we can prevail.
It has to be a "list" that has wide appeal. So far, I haven't seen any ideas in these forums with wide appeal except for getting the money out of government.
People here don't seem to understand that, for the majority of Americans, the 2008 events are ancient history. There are a lot more people employed than there are unemployed, and we have a very short attention span.
I'm becoming increasingly depressed.
Didn't you like any of the issues on my list? I too have gone to a few occupy meetings in my city and they were hardly talking about the real issues. There was a lot of minutia about pop up tents and such. I don't know why they were concentrating on that because you can't get very passionate about pop up tents and we need more passion to get more people into the movement.. It almost seemed like the people who were leading the meeting didn't want it to work. Then I start thinking the other side has infiltrated, and they are trying to water down the message. However, I believe most Amnericans would agree with my short list, don't you?
You can't be for motherhood, and you can't just stand up and say "we're going to make things better." All but one of the issues you have identified is complex and the details are contentious. The one issue that is the exception is getting money out of politics; It's actually pretty easy to do, Americans are fed up over it, and most will support it.
OK we have one issue,.election reform and getting big money out of politics.
Now, I don 't know specifically what banking regulations we need, but the fraudulent loans that were given out, shouldn't have been given to people who couldn't afford them. Also, those loans should not have been bundled up and rated as AAA investments and sold to unsuspecting investors. Regulations would have to be put in place so that something like this will never happen again.
Did the banks and companies, that the tax payers bailed out, pay interest on their money? If not,we could charge them interest and use it for our public schools.
We need a Constitutional Convention to overturn the decision to treat corporations as people..
We need to tax the rich.
All of these issues may seem complex, but how much more complex would our lives be if we have a revolution.We need to stop the polarization of the political parties and find some common ground. I don't believe the super rich will be very happy if they feel threatened to even go outside? We all know, that sometimes desperate people, do desperate things.
1) Agree. 2a) We have passed regulations. So has the international bank (see Basel III). What more is needed in your opinion ? 2b) Banks aren't lending to people who can't afford it anymore... much to many politician's frustration, and the rating agencies are now sho "honest" they're downgrading the US debt. 3) Yes, they did. We haven't been paid back ALL our money yet, but it's close, and what payments we have received included enough interest that we've made a tidy profit. 4) Corporations are people so they can enter into contracts. The same law applies to Unions and "associations." See the post and discussion under http://occupywallst.org/forum/coporations-have-been-people-for-between-63-and-16/ 5) How much should we tax the rich ?
it wouldnt hurt the 99% to look into their spiritual realm...ceremony and ritual stand for good...I do love the work you are presenting here but I feel first one has learn to live with the self before fixing the world.
What is your take on the port actions to take place in Oakland, is this disruption of commerce not condoned by OWS
We are consistently getting caught up in showing off how much power we have, but we have yet to stand up and say what we want. The public grows tired of us, and our people are becoming frustrated and disillusioned.
Power, properly wielded is seldom even visible, things that the wielder wants done just seem to happen. In contrast, we constantly show off how much power we have, but we don't what we want done.
We never had the conservatives and we are losing the independents who are agreeing with the mayors, "you've had plenty of time to speak, now you need to go home." I was in the grocery store just yesterday when a small child threw a temper tantrum. Someone said "He's occupying Safeway!" Everyone laughed and started throwing in more derisive comments about us. We've lost them.
Without the independents, we have no real power to effect change. We're just a mob of unhappy people who don't know what they want rejoicing in all the disruption we can cause. America tires of us, we better get our act together.
but we want life, liberty and justice,,,these things can not be stood up and achieved through a list...lists are good but it seems...this movement has very little power as of yet...break down some tents and erect some wiki-ups and tipi and maybe even a earth lodge.. this movement is a beautiful series of what needs to be done in your backyard, from one backward to the next... Big Ups to Occupy Oakland as a great example of getting shit done it seems....by no means am I following to the tee or anything but from the Education disobedience practices to the balls to close the ports this 12/12...to me they are leading the charge looking at the array of issues and tackling them the best we can... OWS, stop the flow of NY...these weeks are crucial it may seem! Be flexible to your objectives enough to see room for a shift with dramatic effects.
What exactly do you think Occupy Oakland has done ? Have they said "give us this or we'll do that" ? Nope. All they've said is "We are the People, watch us disrupt things!"
Have you noticed how all the politicians are jumping in to support us ? Right. They see what's happening, and they're keeping their distance. Nobody can stand with us because WE do stand for anything. We're just an unruly mod of malcontents disrupting people's lives, and that's REALLY easy to stand AGAINST.
Sadly, I fear this movement is over. We had our chance, we blew it.
What they have done? I am looking at what they are doing? I expect nothing... OCCUPY move into your places, be prepared for a long haul...if democracy is only as good as its citizens we have got a lot of catching up to do, millions of town hall meetings to make up for, and thousands of stances to take as united fronts before we should allow our achievements to guide our search... I can not name any politician I would want to support this movement, OCCUPY needs to generate its own politically diverse races in the areas/cities it is blossoming in...2012 Elections, get the money out BUT get good in as well Rico-keep the faith the movement is only as dead as the faith each individual holds in it Long Life, Honey inthe Heart
It dawned on me this morning, by the way, that if I were Karl Rove and I saw a group making demands of politicians under the threat of disrupting our cities and economy, I'd accuse any politician who dealt with us of negotiating with terrorists.
and FAST for thanksgiving!
I like your idea....Many people who are truly afraid of this idea will try to discourage it by saying you are going to put people out of work. That is what the corporations will say as well. However, they are actually more worried about going out of business. I say, we should help our fellow man and stand in solidarity. Tell the corporations, if you don't support us, we will not buy from you. You can see my post entitled: "Stop shopping chain stores and corporations" The right and the rich are really scared of this idea!
Why ruin things for kids though? They didn't do anything wrong. Kids love getting presents and look forward to it all year. Let kids be kids.
Let them shop for their kids. There are plenty of small businesses that they could buy from. If a child really wants a certain toy, that they see on TV then the parents should get it for them. Or better yet, maybe they should turn off the TV. Cut down on the shopping at the chain stores and they will be feel it. I don't want to put them out of business, I want them to help us.
make gifts out of natural objects...widel a horse for you daughter and make a bow and arrow for your son...u should have been growing flowers for your wife or getting her a new goat
I just got her a goat last year. I haven't reviewed the wish lists for the kids yet this year but I doubt homemade wood objects are on it.
well u know...deliver anything with love and overtime they will learn to love it. Breaking our childrens hearts by not being able to provide the right thing they want is an option...how else are they to learn. father of 3 We just got our goats...what breeds ya milkn
We actually milk our cat. As Ben Stiller said, you can milk anything with nipples.
The economy needs to be destroyed because it doesn't work. It's a massive game where the ueber-rich hold all the cards and we're forced to either play the game or starve. Wrecking the economy is the only way we will break the chains of bondage and the cycle of debt slavery that the banks and financiers depend upon to control governments and nations.
Don't tell me: yes, you are employed but you're just plain cheap.
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I notice that powerful ideas bring out the rudeness in people who fear them. Believe me , it wouldn't take long. if we as the consumer apply enough pressure by not shopping and get the big corporations to get their lobbyists working for us, we have a good chance of getting the reforms we need. We just need to gather together and take care of our brothers and sisters if they are out of work. Remember, if corporations are laying people off, they are also in jeopardy of going out of business.
HA HA HA, right. that's just what you need, ruin companies and then decrease the available jobs. good idea!
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ha ha looks like people don't like my comment, well it is true. You wanna brake companies? It is your so called 1% that are employed by those companies.
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That would be a terrific way of creating mass unemployment and hardship, and destroying what's left of the economy. Gosh, you're really thinking. Well done.
Wow, you really don't sound as nice as someone who is truly involved in this movement. I think you might be a right winger. I find that they like to try and intimidate people and they get particularly vicious when someone comes up with a powerful idea.
right winger? why support the duality?
It was the tone of your comment. You seemed rather rude and it reminded me of the tone that I have heard coming from the right. I am very aware that they have infiltrated into this movement, to stop it.I wish we didn't have such duality in this country but we do.
Yes, because everyone that disagrees with someone is a right-winger.
Look at the response below.It was meant for you.
Everyone has a right to their opinion. It is the tone that you used that makes it seem like you are not someone who would be involved in this movement. As I said in another comment, I have heard that same sarcastic and rude tone coming from people who are not sympathetic with this movement.
Oh it wasn't me in that last post, I was just commenting on your post. And I think that a lot of people on this forum, both OWS supporters and non-supporters, are indeed very rude and classless.
I think this is a big problem with our society. You see this bullying on TV that is disguised as being quick and witty, when actually it's just rude.
What we should do is create our own Christmas company; market it nationwide as the all American, official Christmas Co of OWS, and take our capitalism to the bank.
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