Strategic Shopping

[snot]

Just got this from an acquaintance--can't vouch for the data, but love the concept. At your request, re-worked so as to divide lists betw Dems and Repubs.

Here's something USEFUL- a way to vent your political frustrations through strategic shopping. Sigh- I will miss Home Depot and the Waffle House. Please share this with others.

With the holidays upon us, some of us might wish to be mindful of whom we patronize relative to their 2000-2004 Election Cycle political donations,
as reported by the Center for Responsive Politics.

Pro-Dem Shopping:
*Price Club/Costco donated $225K, of which 99% went to democrats
*Rite Aid, $517K, 60% to democrats
*Magla Products (Stanley tools, Mr. Clean), $22K, 100% to democrats
*Warnaco (undergarments), $55K, 73% to democrats
*Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, $153K, 99% to democrats
*Estee Lauder, $448K, 95% to democrats
*Guess ? Inc., $145K, 98% to democrats
*Calvin Klein, $78K, 100% to democrats
*Liz Claiborne, Inc., $34K, 97% to democrats
*Levi Straus, $26K, 97% to democrats
*Olan Mills, $175K, 99% to democrats

Pro-Dem Spirits:
*Gallo Winery, $337K, 95% to democrats
*Southern Wine &Spirits, $213K, 73% to democrats
*Joseph E. Seagrams &Sons (includes beverage business, plus
considerable media interests), $2M+, 67% democratic

Pro-Dem Restaurants/food companies:
*Sonic Corporation, $83K, 98% democrat
*Triarc Companies (Arby's, T.J. Cinnamon's, Pasta Connections), $112K,
96% democrats

Pro Dem Hotels:
Hyatt Corporation, $187K, 80% to democrats

Repub Shopping:
WalMart, $467K, 97% to republicans
K-Mart, $524K, 86% to republicans
Home Depot, $298K, 89% to republicans
Target, $226K, 70% to republicans
Circuit City Stores, $261K, 95% to republicans
3M Co., $281K, 87% to republicans
Hallmark Cards, $319K, 92% to republicans
Amway, $391K, 100% republican
Kohler Co. (plumbing fixtures), $283K, 100% republicans
B.F. Goodrich (tires), $215K, 97% to republicans
Proctor &Gamble, $243K, 79% to republicans

Repub Spirits:
Coors, $174K, 92% to republicans; (also Budweiser - sd)
Brown-Forman Corp. (Southern Comfort, Jack Daniels, Bushmills, Korbel
wines - as well as Lennox China, Dansk, Gorham Silver), $644K, 80% to
republicans

Repub Restaurants/food companies:
Pilgrim's Pride Corp. (chicken), $366K, 100% republican
Outback Steakhouse, $641K, 95% republican
Tricon Global Restaurants (KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell), $133K, 87%
republican
Brinker International (Maggiano's, Brinker Cafe, Chili's, On the Border,
Macaroni Grill, Crazymel's, Corner Baker, EatZis), $242K, 83%
republican
Waffle House, $279K, 100% republican
McDonald's Corp., $197K, 86% republican
Darden Restaurants (Red Lobster, Olive Garden, Smokey Bones, Bahama
Breeze), $121K, 89% republican

Repub Hotels:
Mariott International, $323K, 81% to republicans;
Holiday Inns, $38K, 71% to republicans

Choose Blue
Shop locally and shop BLUE
Use the US Post Office, not Fedex or UPS
Use the corner hardware store- Home Depot is a huge contributer to the
GOP.
Please send to like minded friends...
You can make a difference: 80% of annual retail business is
done in the next three weeks!


"Every weirdo in the world is on my wavelength." -Thomas Pynchon

[PROGRESSIVE1]

1. kick

[Democrat Dragon]

2. TARGET? 3M? NOOO!!!

Oh well, I'd rather pay more for stuff at Rite Aid than finacially support der Shrubbenfuher.

[Griffy]

3. Can you rework list seperating dem and rep...

possibly from most given to lest and inverted for reps.?

[seito]

4. Thanks n/t

[ValleyGirl]

5. Buy Blue

There's a new website about this too...I like having this type of knowledge, it will help me out a lot. I am a bit of a shopaholic, so the GOP-loving retailers are in for a rude awakening when ValleyGirl starts buying only Blue! (or as much as I possibly can):P ;)

http://www.buyblue.org/

[ever_green]

6. kick

don't ignore this guys, if you really want to make a difference!

[marions ghost]

7. Dem restaurant chains or food suppliers?

Does anyone know some food companies or restaurants that support Democrats? That's an area we could make a big dif. No matter how much we cut back on gifts, food is still a huge industry.

A friend of mine is giving gifts of small donations--to the recipient's favorite charity or political/cultural organization for Xmas. That's a big step away from the mall! Creative. I'd like to see a book on alternative gift suggestions.

Thanks for this list.
Shopaholics among us might do a little (downloadable) handbook on this, since they are familiar with the territory. Do it with online self-publishing. So we could order one direct.

[Higans]

8. Kick this administration. We are keeping our hard earned

money for our selves this year. why should we give you our blood, sweet, and tears? donate to charity? screw that. instead, I am going to give food to the homeless in my community. You know, those people that you refuse to take care of........ I'm tired of helping you get richer, I am going to help the poor for a change. How is that for values Doofus.

[sepia_steel]

9. Instead of wasting money

on presents, I'm helping a poor family have a Christmas this year. A family who probably lost their jobs when * sent their jobs to some other country.

[sepia_steel]

10. Awesome.

I love Sonic. I'm really pleasantly surprised to find out they support Dems. I stopped shopping at wal-mart 2 years ago.

It's time to hit 'em where it hurts, people! All their money is what helped them stealthe WH, and it's the reason no one dares speak up.

[alittlelark]

22. Large vanilla coke....yum

Frito pies, double green chili burgers.... none out here, I'll hit my 1st one mid-day Sat, on my road trip to Alb. for the holidays!

[sepia_steel]

11. Don't forget to Follow Your Money

http://www.followyourmoney.com/

[GreenPartyVoter]

12. Try these links for shopping purposes

http://timeforachange.bluelemur.com/index.htm#shopping

[dray178355]

13. Hi Guys!

I've been doing some research on "blue" shopping for our local DFA group. Here are some great links I sent out in my e-mail this morning.

By far my favorite link is:

http://www.pathtofreedom.com

Urban homesteading. When Bush's economy collapses it will be an excellent resource. Cheesemaking, vinegarmaking, make your own ink, sew your own diapers....hey, you can even grow your own roof. No kidding! Actually a very nice site and a great resource for classroom project ideas so tell all the teachers you know!


BOOKS
http://www.powells.com
Excellent site. I've subscribed to their newsletter for a couple of years. They even have a house cat. Bestsellers, used and rare books, quirky books..... all kinds of neat stuff.

http://www.booksense.com
is a family of 1100 independent-bookseller websites. (And it's the e-commerce arm of the American Booksellers Association's Book Sense program.) You can enter your zip code so that you can shop online with your favorite local bookstore.

INFO, JOBS AND INVESTING
http://www.responsibleshopper.org/
This link allows you to search by category (food, apparel, etc) or company and provides a detailed profile on each company's social responsibility ranking. "General Foods", for example, has an exceptional ranking for diversity and women's issues and a non-discrimination policy that includes sexual orientation. Kind of a fun site to check out.

http://www.greenmoneyjournal.com/page.mpl/links.html
Great info on responsible investing and companies, mutual funds, and sustainable businesses that specialize in community investment and responsible shopping.

http://www.ecobusinesslinks.com/
Environmental jobs, Eco-villages, sustainable energy, fuel efficient vehicles....the "first green directory". Good stuff, Maynard.


GIFTS, and ETC.
http://store.gxonlinestore.org/
Global Exchange Online Store implements the principles of socially and economically responsible business by operating according to Fair Trade Criteria. Some really cool gifts and articles on fair trade, etc.

http://www.goodhumans.com/Shopping/
Let GoodHumans be your general store for natural, sustainable products for your home and body! Select from hundreds of eco-products at competitive prices. Enjoy their one-stop shop for all things hemp, organic cotton clothing, Cute logo too!

http://www.naturalspaces.com/about.html
Their MISSION:
We contribute to the preservation of a healthy planet for future generations by offering products that are environmentally gentle. We sell only products made from recycled or natural and sustainable materials. We set an example by living our beliefs in our personal and business lives. We take every opportunity to educate our customers, our suppliers and our community about the value of supporting efforts to improve the quality of our planet. Some really nice stuff....beautiful linens, cards, garden accessories.


http://www.greenpeople.org/
over 4,000 eco friendly businesses.

http://www.happyhippie.com
hemp hoodies, hemp diapers, hemp jewelry, hemp cars......um, just kidding on the cars.

I've been trying to find grocery brands that support Dems or progressives and have had a little luck finally. Next time you're at the grocery store remember these brands from Campbell's Soup. They contributed most of their money to Democrats. Campbells, of course, Pace foods, Pepperidge Farms, Prego, Swanson and V8 juices. If you go to the Campbell's website http://www.cambellsoup.com you can check out the brands and various and sundry product info. Please share this with your friends and neighbors. It's a positive action we can take every time we shop.

[sepia_steel]

14. Thank you!

Food is something that's hard to as far as NOT DONATING TO REPUKES.

[dray178355]

15. Is there a...

Permanent thread for "blue shopping" in one of the forums?

[sepia_steel]

16. Good idea; there isn't as far as i know n/t

[mulethree]

17. aarg! my tires, tv, bathtub and roof are all repubs! n/t

[walkbyfaith7]

18. Thanks for this. Will use and email to friends.

[Horse with no Name]

19. Would also like to point out

that you may want to try learning to "Freecycle".

www.freecycle.org

Then you choose your area.

You can put stuff you don't want on it and pick up stuff you do want.
The only stipulation is that it is 100% free. Depending on your area--they have alot of cool stuff. My friend in Portland loves it for getting stuff. I personally am cleaning out my garage and listed a couch, loveseat, satellite dish and receiver, artificial christmas tree....etc.. to make room for what I would really like to do in my garage.
It can keep money out of the economy...and it is environmentally smart.
~~Happy Holidays~~

[dray178355]

21. Thank you Horse,

I saw that link here a couple of weeks ago and lost it. I've been looking for it and couldn't remember what it was called.

[Digit]

20. Huge list mentioning some grocery brands to avoid (link).

I have already changed many of the brands I used to buy on a regular basis. I even switched cigarette brands. It feels good!

Here is the link. You may want to bookmark it.
http://www.boycottbush.net/consumers.htm