Corporate Power

by Matt DeNoto

According to economists, one ingredient crucial to a stable, capitalistic society is a strong set of property laws.  If consumers don’t feel confident that they own what they buy, they won’t bother buying at all.

This was somewhat interestingly demonstrated recently when Amazon started messing with its customers’ Kindle e-book readers without their knowledge or permission.  When a publisher decided to pull a couple of books off the virtual shelves (George Orwell’s Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four, appropriately enough), Amazon deleted the books even from customers who had already bought them, refundin g the money that had been paid.

While this is clearly an example of a corporation overstepping its bounds, it does provide a somewhat stumbling segue into how the Green Revolution must make us re-evaluate the concept of what we ‘own.’  Just because we’re paying for the water that comes out of our kitchen faucet, that doesn’t make it okay to leave the faucet on all night, regardless of whether or not we can afford it.  We are, at best, renting or borrowing much from the Earth, and we will have to reorient our thinking to reflect that.

This goes double for large corporations, who seem to be in the habit of assuming they own pretty much everything except the waste that they dump into your backyard.  That’s your problem.

But even that may be changing.  Wal-Mart, that paragon of consumerism, has been making small but significant strides towards becoming a more responsible company, at least insofar as its carbon footprint is concerned.  It looks like it is getting ready to take a much bigger stride.  Starting soon, products on Wal-Mart’s shelves will begin appearing with ‘sustainability scores,’ which will take into account all parts of a product’s manufacturing, transportation, etc.  This will give customers more information on which to base their shopping decisions.  It’s a great, bold move, and we can only hope other retailers follow Wal-Mart’s lead.

See?  Corporate power can be used for good.

wrap rage

I have to say that I find myself conflicted at times between buying from Amazon versus buying from my local family owned bookstore. I know, on the surface, it seems like a no-brainer, but there really are benefits to both, economically and environmentally. And, I have not yet come to any conclusions, so sometimes I just find myself toggling between the two.

Amazon really is a great company. One fundamental reason, for me, is their concern about the environment. First, they cam out with the Kindle, which I have had the pleasure of experimenting with over the last few days, and it is GREAT! But now, Amazon is piloting a new program.

If you go to their website, you can read more about it. A new policy has been created to lessen packaging. They say it is because of wrap rage, and I TOTALLY get that. But the added benefit is the reduction of crap in the trash, therefore in our landfills.

This is very innovative and forward thinking on the part of a corporation. I whole-heartedly commend and thank them for making a difference!

Thank you, Oprah

Well, well, well… the queen of all media is doing something right!

Apparently, she LOVES the Kindle. I have raved about it in the past and its benefits toward the environment. She seems to agree. She seems to agree so much that she is offering every single person in the world a way to get one $50 cheaper.

Please go to her website HERE and learn more about how you can get yours!

You can go to AMAZON to learn more about the Kindle.