We blame so many of the world’s ills on “corporations” or multinationals. It is true that they hold vast power. But the question that is not asked often enough is: where do they derive that power from? The answer almost all of the time is from the people who buy from them. If people did not buy their products, they would go out of business. And a corporation without any business has no power.

This is the question that many people willingly ignore. Think of the fair trade activist who wears Nike shoes. Yes, it’s an iconic image, but I think that it illustrates quite well the point I am trying to make. We like the things that corporations sell, obviously, because we buy them. If we believe that a corporation is destroying our world, then quite simply, we should not give that corporation our money.

To me the real way to change is to vote with your dollars. Support the people you believe in directly, by giving them your business. I do not mean to say that we should not regulate businesses, I definitely believe that regulation is an essential part of the whole mix. But what really irks me is that so many self-proclaimed environmentalists continue to drive cars, buy lots of electronics, fly on airplanes, etc.

On a similar note, many people complain about locally owned stores being replaced by chain stores. If you think chain stores are bad, don’t shop at them. Yes, it is usually true that you will hand them less cash for a product than you would at a small mom-n-pop store. But you will pay in indirect ways as your town falls apart because everyone goes to the mall now, and your culture falls apart as you give up local control over the landscape of your town to all those chain stores.

I guess it can all be summed up in the old adage, “practice what you preach”. That’s easy to say. Now I encourage people to look at the practices of the people or organizations you give your money to. If you don’t like things that they do, don’t give them your money.