Well said and thanks for your comments Lilith and VillageElder.
Another approach is the LOAF programme especially for food though the principles can be adapted for most anything like wooden furniture.

L   Locally produced

O   Organically grown

A   Animal friendly

F   Fairly traded

I have always been astounded by how much the large food corporations spend and the effort they put in to to discredit the organic food movement, the anti obesity campaigns and even child health campaigns.
Face it a slim, healthy, non-smoking,breastfeeding, moderate drinking population would mean massive profit loses for some companies. Start small- plant a lemon tree or even a pot of herbs on the windowsill means one less thing to buy.

Where are all of the indignate libertarians on TV to condemn the federal intervention in the Bear Sterns/ JP Morgan Chase give-away. Chase, CitiGroup, et al, are the reason the market has become so shaky in the first place.

The term “Moral Hazzard” was thrown around so freely not two weeks ago for months by libertarians when any assistance to mortgage holders were proferred, but no substantive opposition by any significant group, except the half-ass one given by WSJ editors, about the Bear Sterns-to-Chase fiasco.

Class warfare works both ways, and when Republicans use the term, it’s sickening and self-serving as usual.

Let’s send the ‘financial Wizards’ , the Inc upper management and board members and ‘Public Servants’ to the countries they sold US out to. How much do you think Alan Greespan would go for on the Auction block, How about Dick?
No seriously they claimed our resources as their collateral- yet they were stolen assest. They lied to these foreign investors about the ability to repay THEIR debt. Therefore they should be held accountable by those who they Owe. They have not just spent Decades selling US on the international Auction block - but nearing a Century. Once the psuedo ‘agency’ called the ‘Federal reserve ’ was formed by Mega Banking industry- we were captured , shackled and led up the stairs to the ‘block’. Let China and UAE decide how they will get a return on their investment out of these deadbeat Gamblers.They have run amok in the World Casino wrapped in our Flag and waving Our Credentials- Identity Theft. either they pay for their Theft Here - or they pay for it over there.

VillegeElder,

Thanks for this. And, I wanna thank Lilith for her contribution as well, since that was sort of the point that I was trying to get at earlier. WHO KNOWS what the real unemployment rate is?

Meantime, I’m wondering what item the progressive community could choose to boycott, that is only ‘semi-necessary’ and thereby more likely to gain the participation of those who aren’t quite as committed. (or committed at all).

I suggested gasoline earlier, if only because that would seem to serve more than one purpose. It is more than semi-necessary I suppose, for those who are still employed, and need to rely on it to get to work. OTOH, how much of a ‘sacrifice’ would be involved in using public transportation instead, if it is available?

What else is only semi-necessary? Well, I might be run out of dodge for suggesting this, but…how about HOLLYWOOD and similar forms of entertainment?

Is that un-American? I mean, food and clothing are pretty necessary. But, could we do without going to the movies? (I can and have for years).

Or, how about booze? (humm, that might actually be a necessity for many these days).

Can anybody think of anything else?

The state employment services only count those who are “receiving services”.  Should an unemployed person lose confidence in the ability of the state ES to assist in the finding of a job, that person is no longer counted as unemployed since no services are being rendered.  This dates back to the Nixon years.  Unemployment was approaching 6%, perhaps 5.9% officially.  There came to pass the creation of a new underclass – those who were permanently unemployed .  It stood to reason that those who preferred permanent unemployment would abandon the services of the state ES after benefits ran out.  (At the time it was conservatively estimated that 6% of the eligible workforce was part of this perennial underclass.) 

Discussion of the underemployed and the working poor as those being on the brink of personal economic disaster with the attendant social and psychological problems sparked attempts to created new safety net programs.  Underemployment is the situation workers (blue collar or technical/professional) are working in positions paying far less then they would earn in a “full employment economy.  Given the stance of the repugs at the time new “entitlement” programs would not be considered.  Nixon did convert some of the entitlement funds into block grants to the states to use for social or economic development programs.

As David noted in the article the “trickle down” didn’t.  Tax credits and other incentives insured that the corporatists would be secure as tax dollars made that magical conversion to corporate profits.

Running away from rampant consumerism has been a “battle cry” for years now.  In this society a “battle whine” might be a better description.  Boycotts can have some success.  The problem always remains convincing people to participate.  Becoming a non-consumer, or limited consumer, is a decent life style which helps minimize the clutches of the corporate beasts.  Buy locally.  Support locally owned stores.  Buy used or in thrift stores.  Avoid consumer credit purchases.  At least you will sleep better – I do.

Can the progressive community agree upon an item to boycott.  One item that is only semi-necessary so those whose commitment is not as strong would still participate as a feel good excerise.

I’m still gainfully employed (For the time being, anyway), and I would be more than happy to lend myself to such boycotts. Consumerism is a plague, and I try my damnedest to convince people I know to stop spending so much.

It’s really odd trying to explain these ideas without being perceived as some weird conspiracy nut, though.

Hey now, one step at a time. I’m not opposed to a month, or even six months, of boycott. I think even the worst of the worst deserve an ultimatum first, though.

Aegrus - Sounds like you’ve given up. Don’t. Forget about a week - think months. Unless, of course, you’re perfectly comfortable and happy with things as they are.  A significant number of us aren’t.  And the only thing we have going for us is the power of our purses.

I’m with you here Felicity.

Actually, I’ve been doing this for several years now. At first, it was because I had absolutely no choice. (being among the first group to fall after 9/11 - which actually put far more Americans out of work than anything since).

Once I recovered enough to be able to obtain the very bare necessities, I’ve made it a point to ONLY purchase those things, while admittedly, I still haven’t recovered enough to purchase anything more, even if I wanted to.

Still, it serves as great preparation (weaning from and training for) even more difficult times ahead.

I was noticing the statistic here in the article…

“Roughly 2.8 million workers currently receive unemployment benefits.”

That’s CURRENTLY, and I think that’s an important distinction, because it DOESN’T include those who lost their jobs over the past 7 years, and may or may not have been able to collect unemployment.

More importantly, even for those who COULD, and DID, that only happens for 6 months, and even that depends on the local laws of the particular state. How many of those who ‘run out’ of their unemployment compensation ever manage to return to full employment? The reality is, not even 50%, though I don’t have any recent stats handy.

Those who DO find alternate work, rarely (if ever) manage to earn what they were earning before. (which is why so many Americans now work more than one job).

And yet, not only the credit card companies, and the banks, continue to profit from consumer spending, we see that other major industries do as well.

Now if we could boycott the gasoline the way we were able to boycott grapes, I think that would get the most punch for the effort. Hit the major offenders.

Of course boycotting grapes was one thing. Boycotting gas is more difficult for the average American, (especially those who DO still have jobs).

Still, if Americans would do a bit of sacrificing, (like using public transportation in place of their vehicles) it could put a major dent in THOSE profits.

Absolutely. I vote we have a buy nothing week. Hemorrhage these bastard corporate institutions, and lets see how many our government decides to bail out.

That’s a real moral hazard for ya.

In solidarity with those who are jobless, we who are still able to shop ‘til we drop, quit shopping for anything but serious necessities. 

Our consumer economy depends on our consumption and that defines our clout. Example - credit card companies don’t like it when we don’t allow them to charge us 25% interest because we don’t use our credit cards.

Way back when, we boycotted grapes in solidarity with farm workers.  We boycotted beef - a move from which the beef industry has never fully recovered. The big guys who think they can bleed us dry will only sit up and take notice when our behavior cuts into their profits.

Thank you for another unsubstantiated claim with no evidence to support your theory. If you thought Hillary or McCain were vetted before, you have no friggin idea what’s going to happen to them in the next few weeks.

Silly, silly surrogate.

hahaha, you are actually going to talk about Rezko? The issue Obama has been vetted on the most this campaign season? The issue Barack has more than successfully proved is based on really, really thin non-logic?

Sorry, Barack Obama is still the best candidate we have to choose from at this point in time.

Bush survey says: America’s doing great.

Do you really think John McCain can win on a Republican economic policy while jobs continue to get shipped over seas or downsized? Wake up, fear mongers. The recession is here, and we need someone who can face these problems boldly and challenge established thought.

That person is Barack Obama.