Shopping ethics

So let me get this right...he doesn't sell to fruit?

I hesitate to talk re this and that with my grocery store pals. They'd probably crucify me if it came to that. On the other hand, I may be assuming wrong.

Interesting question (as usual, from you), boomer.

Seriously, ethics do matter. If that is the truth about this farmer's political views (and it's verifiable that the FB is really them), I'd never shop there. Furthermore, I'd do whatever I could to spread the word (ethically) and let people know of this FB page. This farmer might feel empowered about their freedom of speech but it also can come at the cost of business backlash.

Where I live in sw FL, there are more than one farmer with farms stands such as this one. Needless to say, 'd take my business elsewhere

A proprietor's beliefs (if I should actually know them) don't guide my shopping. This would be a painstaking process anyway. If an owner is rounding up and beating gays, then I've got a problem. I decide where to shop based on proximity and exiting right-turnability.

What thack said.

The farmer's view was printed in our local paper. I don't really need to spread the word -- everyone knows, even people outside the neighborhood who would never have shopped there anyway.

I don't think we'll be shopping there.

Although I do like their farm to table philosophy and I like that they're trying to make it easy for people to do that.

We have lots of nearby farmers and lots of farmer's markets but nowhere quite as handy as this.

This isn't a farm stand. This is a business that they've probably invested a million dollars into. The building alone probably cost close to that.

It's a local farmer, who only sells locally. They sell produce, meat and dairy. They sold at the farmer's markets, through various vendors, before branching out on their own.

At least that's my understanding.

I don't.

I typically drive around to get the best stuff. Convenience doesn't play a HUGE part of my shopping experience. This shop could have knocked three or four different destinations out of my shopping. I was really looking forward to the convenience of it.

Now I'm thinking I can't shop there.

You know you're going there anyway, the store is irresistible.

Pick me up some Barilla pasta while you're there would you hon?

You say you were really looking forward to the convenience, but first you said convenience doesn't play a huge part.

Maybe you could look for convenience by not making 4 stops when one or two would do.

I've found that the best stuff isn't always at the same places all the time.

It all evens out in the end.

I shop with the eye towards not wasting fossil fuels, getting overall good quality and value and understand my time is of value and quality too.

Maybe if the proprietors sell goods produced by slave labor. Maybe if they refuse service to gay customers, or pursue anti-gay employment policies. But just because they hold private beliefs that disagree with mine? You've got to be kidding me.

In your particular case, I would ask myself: what is the alternative? Do you want homophobes to make a living on their own? If you don't, would you prefer to feed them with your tax dollars through welfare programs instead? Conversely, if you do want homophobes to make a living on their own, why wouldn't this living consist of owning a shop and selling produce? I don't think your neighbors' stance is really about ethics. I think it's about the selfish motive of feeling holier than thou.

"They believe homosexuality is a sin and that gay people are going to ruin marriage for the rest of us, pedophiles will run amok, and all of our pets will be in danger."

Good god, with all those worries, how did he get time to farm?

I guess it depends on how strong YOU feel about human rights. If he were a Nazi or was pro (or anti) abortion, would you shop there? How do YOU feel about that?

He is a fool to interfere with his own commerce by espousing his religious, political or personal views to his customers.

I'm not worried so much about the pets being in danger, they'll be for sale on the shop floor, beyond danger. From a purely philosophical perspective I fully expect some will shop there and feel bad about it in the mourning.

Pets?

Yes pet.

An excellent point is made about behavior. If these jokers actively sought to exclude homosexual customers, that would merit a community response. But if they just rant about it, but take no action, then so what?

After sleeping over it, I think I stated my view too timidly. I think the chief ethical principle at stake here is that a community shouldn't punish its members for their private beliefs. (If such punishment became the norm, I as an atheist would be having a very hard time making a living in America and its predominantly-Christian society.) According to your description, the proprietors' only sin was to hold a private view that contradicts the community's majority opinion. If that's the only basis for a community-wide boycott, I consider such a boycott ethically unacceptable.


Convenience, mostly. But to the extent that ethics do influence my shopping, it's about the consequences of actions, not about rewarding conformism with my personal views. In the case of your farmer, the consequences of shopping at his store would be that the environment gets protected by consuming local crops; that my community's historic heritage, as embodied in this farm, gets preserved; that more animals get to live in reasonably-happy circumstances rather than factory-farming hell; and so forth. These are all good consequences whatever the farmer believes. I would ignore the proprietors' private belief as long as they don't inflict adverse consequences on anyone.

Thack's pretty much covered it.

If they refused to hire gay people, or took some action against gay people - then I wouldn't shop there.

People have all kinds of opinions I don't like. As long as they don't do anything that I think is wrong, I'm not going to concern myself too much with their views.