Shop at your own risk

[meegbear]

Do you eat Pop-Tarts? Play Tony Hawk? Wipe with Charmin? Well, guess what? You’re funding the funders of the right.

Few people spend much time considering which brand of almonds to buy. But progressives just might want to take that extra moment the next time they’re in the snack aisle. That’s because a Florida company called US Sugar Corp. owns Blue Diamond almonds, and US Sugar’s founder and co-CEO, Donald G. Tobin, serves on the board of the Manhattan Institute, one of the country’s leading conservative think tanks. US Sugar Corp. also gave $410,000 last year to a Florida group called Families for Conservative Values, which funneled the money to other groups opposing Democrats and progressive ballot measures in that state.

You’re not going to bring Tobin, US Sugar Corp., or the Manhattan Institute to their knees by putting down that can of almonds. And you can’t possibly hope to avoid buying anything that profits conservatives. But you should know where your money is going.

If you’re a pro-choice woman in the Boston area, odds are you’ve heard that the founder and CEO of the fitness chain Curves, Gary Heavin, supports and funds pro-life causes. As a result, so many women have decided not to join the clubs that the Curves corporation has gone on the defensive, trying to show that Heavin’s contributions are not as bad as people say.

But even if you have decided to withhold your money, when feasible, from those who campaign against progressive causes, it can be awfully hard to know which companies, and which products, to pick and choose through.

<snip>

http://www.bostonphoenix.com/boston/news_features/top/features/documents/04927120.asp

Great article with the second page dedicated to listing red companies and products.

[whatever4]

1. That's why I like buyblue.org Buy Blue!! :) nm

[babylonsister]

2. Dammit, Target's on there, as is

GOP LOYALISTS
These are contributors to George W. Bush’s presidential campaigns and/or the Republican National Committee.
A "Pioneer" personally raised at least $100,000 for Bush. A "Ranger" raised at least $200,000 for Bush. A "Super Ranger" is a Ranger who also raised at least $300,000 for the RNC. Others in this list have given extensively to GOP candidates and political-action committees, both personally and through their companies.
Activision games: Robert Kotick, chairman/CEO, Ranger
Call of Duty
DOOM
Spider-Man
Tony Hawk
Applebee’s restaurants: Lloyd Hill, chairman/CEO
Best Buy stores: Richard Schulze, chairman
Boston Concessions Group: Joseph J. O’Donnell, CEO, Ranger
Concession stands at TD Banknorth Garden, Wang Center
Cargill: Warren Staley, chairman/CEO, Ranger
Honeysuckle White turkey
Shady Brook Farms turkey
Sunny Fresh foods
Dell computers, Michael Dell, founder/CEO
DirectMeds: Munr Kazmir, president/CEO, Ranger
Dominos Pizza: David Brandon, chairman/CEO
Johnson & Johnson: Robert Wood Johnson IV, heir, Ranger
Acuvue
Band-Aid
K-Y
Monistat
Motrin
Mylanta
O.B.
Pepsid
Reach
Splenda
Stayfree
Tylenol
Kellogg Co.: James Jenness, chairman/CEO
Eggo
Kashi
Keebler
Kellogg cereals
Morningstar Farms
Nutra-Grain
Pop-Tarts
Smart Start
McCormick & Schmick restaurants: William McCormick, co-founder, Super Ranger
Pepsico: Steven Reinemund, chairman
Frito-Lay
Gatorade
Pepsi
Tropicana
Pier 1 stores: Marvin Girouard, chairman/CEO
RPM International: Thomas C. Sullivan, chairman
Huffy bicycles
Tommy Armour golf clubs
Target stores: Robert Ulrich, chairman/CEO
Urban Outfitters: Richard Hayne, chairman/president
The Wine Group: Arthur Ciocca, chairman
Franzia wine
RIGHT-WING 527S
Americans for Better Government (ABG) funded phone-bank outreach to encourage Colorado residents to support George W. Bush for president and Pete Coors for senator.
Club for Growth (CFG), a straightforward low-tax/limited-government political-action committee, added a 527 fund to its arsenal in the last campaign cycle, and raised a total of $22 million.
Progress for America (PFA) spent millions of dollars helping Bush get re-elected. It now supports the Iraq war, Social Security reform, and Supreme Court nominee John Roberts.
The Republican Governors Association (RGA) is currently running attack ads against Virginia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tim Kaine. Those ads show pictures of John Kerry while calling Kaine "another liberal" who will raise taxes. Mitt Romney is vice-chairman of the RGA.
The Republican Leadership Coalition (RLC) advocates free-market solutions, and spends considerable effort and money persuading Hispanic Americans to vote Republican. Its political director, Richard Nadler, is a leader in the fight to teach creationism in Kansas schools.
Ameriquest: Roland Arnall, chairman, PFA donor
Home Depot: Bernard Marcus, founder, PFA donor
Outback Steakhouse, Chris T. Sullivan, chairman, RGA donor
Pilgrim Pride: Lonnie Pilgrim, chairman, PFA donor
Eggs Plus
Pilgrim’s Pride chicken and turkey
Starz Network, John Sie, founder, ABG

TRT Holdings: Robert Rowlings, chairman, CFG and PFA donor
Gold’s Gym
Omni Hotels
Uhlmann Company: John Uhlmann, president, RLC donor
Wheatena
United Dairy Farmers: Robert Lindner Sr., PFA donor
Homemade brand ice cream
UST Inc.: Vincent Gierer, chairman/CEO, PFA donor
Copenhagen
Skoal
Wal-Mart: Alice Walton, heir, PFA donor

http://www.bostonphoenix.com/boston/news_features/top/f...

[oscar111]

"not bring them 2 their knees"- YES YOU ARE GOING TO

after Apartheid was ended in S Africa, a nation that was run by racists...

the racists confided that what they feared most was not the occasional violent attack, but rather

strikes and boycotts.

boycotts are quite effective.

[kaygore]

3. Costco is true blue

Looks like K Mart is, at least, not red.

[RebelOne]

5. I am not going to stop shopping at Target.

They have the cheapest grocery prices in my area. So I'll just have to buy red at Target.

[EC]

6. I guess I'm dumping my Pier One card

and I'll make my Coconut Chocolate Chip cookies from now on instead of buying from Keebler...and I'll make my own Kashi,(I like puffed rice sauted in butter, better anyway) the rest, well I hardly ever buy name brands anymore, but I will pay closer attention to where the generics are made...

[RebelOne]

4. Morningstar Farms, no way!!

I'm not giving up my Morningstar Farms products, nor Frito-Lay.