Boycotting and taxes: How responsible are we

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JoyToBeCatholic

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I’ve been getting the Boycott Lists from Life Decisions International and I used to boycott everyone on the list. Sometimes I forget about it and buy things I know were on the boycott list. I know it wasn’t intentional, but, I wonder just how responsible we are for the actions of PP and NOW orgs when we buy products from corporations. who fund them? Don’t we do just as bad by paying taxes? I’m certainly not happy with the ways in which our tax dollars are used. I know it’s a law that we pay them, but we aren’t supposed to go along with laws that lead to sin. I know it’s very indirect, but I still have a problem with it.

Your thoughts? On boycotting and taxes?

Thank You,
~donna
 
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JoyToBeCatholic:
How do I NOT have my house, car, etc. in our name?
~donna
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Feel free to sign them over to me.
 
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Benedictus:
Feel free to sign them over to me.
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:rotfl:
Thank you! I NEEDED THAT!
I just read about the whole election thing in the Middle East. Thanks for giving me that laugh…
 
Thank you,Banjo. But how am I *not *“sharing in the guilt of aborting babies” by paying taxes? He does not elaborate. Am I not, indirectly, contributing to it?

Thanks,
~donna
 
“Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s…”

Taxes are obligatory by Governments, just as we are obliged to contribute to the support of the Church.

Just as we cannot control how our parishes/bishops spend the money we donate (paying heretical nuns & priests to give parish retreats etc), we cannot control (most of us) how our Governments spend our tax dollars.

They (parishes/priests/bishops/governments) will have to answer to God for how our donations/taxes are spent.

What we can do is pray that our offering/taxes are spent justlt and wisely and that those who have the disposition of them will be subject to the Will of God and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
 
Okay, thank you.

Does the same apply to boycotting? If I suspect Johnson and Johnson is using it’s profits to help PP should I boycott them? Isn’t this different than paying taxes in that I have to, by law, pay taxes, but I do not have to buy J&J products?
 
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JoyToBeCatholic:
Okay, thank you.

Does the same apply to boycotting? If I suspect Johnson and Johnson is using it’s profits to help PP should I boycott them? Isn’t this different than paying taxes in that I have to, by law, pay taxes, but I do not have to buy J&J products?
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This is your right, you don’t have to support any private company that uses their profits for things you do not believe in, but as far as taxes are concern, you must pay them, but you can protest how the monies are spent, write letters to congressmen or start a letter campaign (more effective in numbers) it might not change anything but you can go to bed at night knowing you did what you could.👍
 
This is an area of moral theology that a lot of people don’t like, and/or seem unaware of to any extent.

You cannot by your actions assist another in the (name here the immoral act of choice). That is a well defined given. However:

By giving your money to the government you are not, contrary to the very few who hold otherwise, accepting any government activity in the (name here the immoral act of choice). Neither are you doing so by buying aspirin, or band aids, or a salve produced by Johnson and Johnson, nor would you be if you were a minor stockholder. The relationship between your dollar and the choice of the govenrnment or corporation is so distant that there is no moral issue at all. In other words, your buying a morally neutral item such as aspirin, or doing a morally neutral act such as paing taxes when the bill comes have nothing to do with the choice of the Board of Directors or the President or CEO of the corporation, or some officer under Health and Welfare. You are too distnatly removed from the immoral act to have had any effect on it or to have been considered as having any say in the matter.

That does not mean that it is immoral to boycott. However, given the billions of dollars which move through the corporation to do perfectly good things, and the trillions of dollars that move through the government to do perfectly good things, you are about as likely to effect any change in either of them by withholding your dollar as you are to raise the water level by a measureable amount by pouring a cup of water in the Pacific ocean. If it makes you feel morally right to do so, you are welcome to do so; realizing that the corporation will never miss your dollar, and the IRS has the power to bring criminal charges agaisnt you; but is unlikely to do so.

Boycotting is a powerful tool when wielded effectively; however, minor boycotss are at best a nuisance, and sometimes result in a backlash by people who feel passionately the opposite of you. Further, falling back on boycotts too often may have its own backlash of not being able to organize one successfully when it is truly needed and possible.
 
Keep in mind that there are probably few companies, for example, within the Fortune 500 or Fortune 1000 who have not made some donation to a group which you may find to be immoral, such as Planned Parenthood. If you, however, look at their total revenue, it is miniscule; if you look at their total profit, it is still miniscule, as most corporations are going to give a dib here and a dab there to a multitude of organizations. The vast majority of corporate profits go to expansion of the business or research (which is designed to create new products), and what is left over, some will be saved, and some given to shareholders. Very little overall is given to charity in terms of total percentage, and then it is further divided up among a number of charitible works.
 
Thanks everyone. I never looked at it that way. I guess withholding my $4 for baby soap wouldn’t have had much affect on their contribution to PP ;). I just imagine what it would look like if EVERYONE who dislikes PP were to stop buying from these corporations. When I look at it this way, I feel responsible.

~d
 
Even if people don’t want to admit it, we all at one time or another very indirectly, donated to an immoral cause. If J & J baby soap is the only thing availible (or the only brand you child is not allergic to) then by all means use it, you have to clean your child. To stress yourself over every supermarket/drug store purchase is not good for you well-being. (or your family) Do study the list, show family memebers and friends and try to not to buy it. If you make a “bad purchase” without knowning or no subsitute avalible, use the product, you already paid for it, I believe it’s more of a Sin to waste it and throw it out. Next time just don’t get it. That’s all.🙂
 
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kaymart:
Even if people don’t want to admit it, we all at one time or another very indirectly, donated to an immoral cause. If J & J baby soap is the only thing availible (or the only brand you child is not allergic to) then by all means use it, you have to clean your child. To stress yourself over every supermarket/drug store purchase is not good for you well-being. (or your family) Do study the list, show family memebers and friends and try to not to buy it. If you make a “bad purchase” without knowning or no subsitute avalible, use the product, you already paid for it, I believe it’s more of a Sin to waste it and throw it out. Next time just don’t get it. That’s all.🙂
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Nice post(s) Kaymart. I agree.

However, I do believe that we take the role of “consumer” too lightly. I think that it is our duty to find out as much (within reason) as we can about the corporations that we make regular, and also expensive, purchases from. One person not buying products from a company will not make a difference, but neither does one vote in an election.

Getting the truth out there is also of primary importance. Now if only there was a forum to do that… 🙂
 
Even if people don’t want to admit it, we all at one time or another very indirectly, donated to an immoral cause.
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True, but once we know some of our money is being donated to an immoral cause I wonder if we aren’t being somewhat responsible, even if only indirectly. We are obliged to pay taxes, but I am not obliged to buy products from J&J.
One person not buying products from a company will not make a difference, but neither does one vote in an election.
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But isn’t it that line of thinking that results in no change taking place? If everyone who was truly outraged with the actions of PP and NOW orgs took into consideration where their money goes I think it would resolve the problem. Baby soap may be a small purchase, but if all pro-life people stopped buying it from J&J it would have an impact. Couple that with all the credit card companies, software companies, etc. and you would see a huge difference, IMO.
Getting the truth out there is also of primary importance. Now if only there was a forum to do that… 🙂
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Xactly!
To stress yourself over every supermarket/drug store purchase is not good for you well-being. (or your family)
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I agree. I’m not stressed about it. Getting the list wasn’t stressful and it wasn’t difficult to study either. I have shared it with my friends and family. I wasn’t really stressed when I realized I had bought from J&J either, but, it made me remember how lax I’ve gotten about it and made me decide to see what others think about boycotting and taxes.

The article I linked at the beginning I found after my OP. It’s not something I’ve been seriously considering. There are people who manage to get away w/out paying taxes (Amish, for instance). I do think it would be an extreme and difficult measure to attempt and certainly not something I necessarily condone.

Just interested in others opinions on the matter. Not necessarily suggesting anyone they should do these things.

~donna
 
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JoyToBeCatholic:
But isn’t it that line of thinking that results in no change taking place? If everyone who was truly outraged with the actions of PP and NOW orgs took into consideration where their money goes I think it would resolve the problem. Baby soap may be a small purchase, but if all pro-life people stopped buying it from J&J it would have an impact. Couple that with all the credit card companies, software companies, etc. and you would see a huge difference, IMO. ~donna
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Actually, that comment was supposed to be a juxtaposition of voting versus purchasing. My point was that one vote like one dollar from one person doesn’t make a difference. But if everyone thought that way society as a whole would break down. Really it all comes down to Game Theory, but I won’t get into that now.

So really just voting or just spending does make a difference, but you can make more of a difference by advocating to others why you make your vote or spend your dollar a particular way.
 
So really just voting or just spending does make a difference, but you can make more of a difference by advocating to others why you make your vote or spend your dollar a particular way.
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I totally agree. Sorry I misunderstood you :o .
~donna
 
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JoyToBeCatholic:
True, but once we know some of our money is being donated to an immoral cause I wonder if we aren’t being somewhat responsible, even if only indirectly. We are obliged to pay taxes, but I am not obliged to buy products from J&J.
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No, moral theologians have consistently said that the act of the corporation is too far removed to impute any guilt at all to the pruchaser.
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JoyToBeCatholic:
But isn’t it that line of thinking that results in no change taking place? If everyone who was truly outraged with the actions of PP and NOW orgs took into consideration where their money goes I think it would resolve the problem. Baby soap may be a small purchase, but if all pro-life people stopped buying it from J&J it would have an impact. Couple that with all the credit card companies, software companies, etc. and you would see a huge difference, IMO.
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Perhaps in a perfect world such could happen, but it simply won’t. to begin with, you are speaking of hundreds, if not thousands, of corporations, and the time alone to even try to research it boggles the mind. Further, if all of the pro life people all decided to boycott (and to do this you would have to have all or almost all agree to boycott all of the corporations at the same time), it is truly debatable whether that would even make enough economic impact to even get their attentionl let alone get them to change. A boycott to be effective has to be swift, wide, and targeted. It simply is never going to happen. and as to taxes, it would only take a couple of well publicised arrests and the whole thing would blow over; the vast majority of pro lifers are not willing to go to jail over the fact that Health and Humand Services may be offering the morning after pill.
 
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