My Own Invisible Hand

I've been a bit more observant the past couple of months about the convergence of personal morality and consumerism.

I don't boycott specific companies if I disagree with their management policies or don't share the same corporate public policies. I also can't say that I actively avoid products manufactured in countries whose government or politics I don't agree with. As a consumer, I primarily look at quality of product compared to cost.

For instance, a large national discount store has taken some bad hits because of their management policies. From accusations of price under-cutting to inadequate health-care coverage to anti-union policies to corporate censorship to avoidance of immigration laws, there is something that almost anybody could find objectionable and provide sufficient reason not to spend their dollars there.

Not me. Were I ever to need a item from their store, I'd think little of purchasing it from a sickly illegal alien working through his lunch break. Why? Because it cost less. That's why.

A few years ago, two North Texas pharmacists refused to fill prescriptions for birth-control on the grounds their religion places that practice with the same moral standing as murder.

While I don't share that same philosophy, I'm not going to boycott their chain because of their social activism. There's a reason their outlet is labeled a convenience store - because it's convenient.

I can only think of one chain that I will not patron due to their corporate policy.

To set it up, 7-Eleven recently announced its disassociation with a Venezuelan state-owned petroleum company under the puppetry of Hugo Chavez. Profits from this company are funnelled into an state-managed account and expended at Chavez's sole discretion.

In the past year, Chavez has called the U.S. President "the devil", denied the Holocaust, likened modern-day Israel to WWII-era Germany, and "won" re-election in a contest where more votes were cast that eligible voters.

In fact, I can't even say that I take a hard line on those issues alone.

The U.S. is not a neutral bystander when it comes to the backing of foreign leaders; we have certainly instigated more coups than we can ever take credit for.

And while I believe European Jews were designated for extinction based on the overwhelming evidence, others have their intellectual freedom to explore their own beliefs.

And I can name dozens of democratically-elected politicians, many from this state, who won elections through less than democratically-accepted means. I think they're still stuffing Box 13 for ya, Lyndon.

The primary difference is that the illegal alien down at Wal-Mart and the anti-abortion pharmacist down at CVS don't hate America; Chavez does.

He wants to hurt America and Americans. He closely associates with those who want to hurt America and Americans.

Since 7-Eleven's announcement of their disassociation, I've chosen to fill my gas tank at their outlets. Likewise, I've chosen not to fill my gas tank at outlets who have not made similar policies of disassociation.

Realistically, I understand this is a line drawn in the sand that will never appear on any economic flow-chart. My eleven-gallon gas tank certainly doesn't change the tide of Citgo's or Valero's profit margin.

And logistically, I couldn't care less if anybody else boycotts any of the companies I've named for any of the reasons I've mentioned. Your consumerism is your own.

That's the free market. Wouldn't Adam Smith be proud...