"boycotts and protests are pointless and never change anything, so don’t even bother trying”
First lets separate boycott from protest, because they differ quite a lot (specifically, in a protest you are using your body and putting yourself at risk which isn’t the case in a boycott), and we’re talking about one, not the other. As for the rest - yeah, that’s pretty much my position.
I’m glad to have more clarification on yours, but I don’t think my answer would change much (and to be clear, I’m not trying to be argumentative, I just think you can and should look deeper)
Once a person takes that step to say “I don’t need this.”, they are more inclined to look at other things in their life that they don’t like and find ways to remove them from their lives as well.
the problem, as has been demonstrated all over this thread, is that there are many people who simply can’t afford to do that (in money, or time, or for medical reasons or all of the above). They need essentials, and only shitty companies will sell them these essentials, they’re often not in a position to be dropping things completely, or even shopping around for other brands (99% of which are owned by companies just as bad as nestle anyway) because they’re already struggling to maintain the bare minimum and are too busy working however many jobs or struggling in other ways (like living in a food desert).
There is also the fact that outrage and activism “fatigues” are a real thing that is happening (or being deliberately caused), and the more individual companies or practices you ask people to consciously avoid, the less they will be able to take on and eventually (or sometimes immediately), with none at all (again - this is by design, it’s another method of distraction and divide and conquer. While people fight this one company and end up getting frustrated and put off because it doesn’t achieve anything, or while they’re busy criticising other working class people for what they buy and eat and throw away, they’re not fighting the root of the problem, so more shit will just keep coming). It isn’t about not bothering at all though, it’s about focusing on the big picture and the actual source of the problems, rather than only dealing with some of the mildest symptoms of that system. It’s the difference between liberalism and leftism (I’ve only skimmed this, but it seems like a good piece that relates to all this in a little more depth).
If you’re going to use nestle’s atrocities, and by all means do, add them to a list of other atrocities companies committed for profit too, and use them all together to make the case against capitalism itself.
There is no reforming it, there is no asking for change, there is no way to play by their rules (“free market”) that will achieve change. It’s not a bug, it’s a feature, and the sooner you realise that pretty much all the shit we’re experiencing is by design, and not accidental, the closer you’ll be to actually being free of it.
As for the other topics you’ve suggested, in brief, on both - I think large societies aren’t the problem, nor is individual greed, but I think they both become a problem when we live under a system that rewards that greed, and manipulates big societies to serve a small few.
First lets separate boycott from protest, because they differ quite a lot (specifically, in a protest you are using your body and putting yourself at risk which isn’t the case in a boycott), and we’re talking about one, not the other. As for the rest - yeah, that’s pretty much my position.
I’m glad to have more clarification on yours, but I don’t think my answer would change much (and to be clear, I’m not trying to be argumentative, I just think you can and should look deeper)
the problem, as has been demonstrated all over this thread, is that there are many people who simply can’t afford to do that (in money, or time, or for medical reasons or all of the above). They need essentials, and only shitty companies will sell them these essentials, they’re often not in a position to be dropping things completely, or even shopping around for other brands (99% of which are owned by companies just as bad as nestle anyway) because they’re already struggling to maintain the bare minimum and are too busy working however many jobs or struggling in other ways (like living in a food desert).
There is also the fact that outrage and activism “fatigues” are a real thing that is happening (or being deliberately caused), and the more individual companies or practices you ask people to consciously avoid, the less they will be able to take on and eventually (or sometimes immediately), with none at all (again - this is by design, it’s another method of distraction and divide and conquer. While people fight this one company and end up getting frustrated and put off because it doesn’t achieve anything, or while they’re busy criticising other working class people for what they buy and eat and throw away, they’re not fighting the root of the problem, so more shit will just keep coming). It isn’t about not bothering at all though, it’s about focusing on the big picture and the actual source of the problems, rather than only dealing with some of the mildest symptoms of that system. It’s the difference between liberalism and leftism (I’ve only skimmed this, but it seems like a good piece that relates to all this in a little more depth).
If you’re going to use nestle’s atrocities, and by all means do, add them to a list of other atrocities companies committed for profit too, and use them all together to make the case against capitalism itself.
There is no reforming it, there is no asking for change, there is no way to play by their rules (“free market”) that will achieve change. It’s not a bug, it’s a feature, and the sooner you realise that pretty much all the shit we’re experiencing is by design, and not accidental, the closer you’ll be to actually being free of it.
As for the other topics you’ve suggested, in brief, on both - I think large societies aren’t the problem, nor is individual greed, but I think they both become a problem when we live under a system that rewards that greed, and manipulates big societies to serve a small few.