Some Corporations to Avoid....

I am writing about corporations to avoid, because I just saw a list of the top 15 deadliest corporations to avoid, if you can, and it seemed to me that they were missing some corporations. I do understand a few of the choices, though, of course. Haliburton was not a surprise, and I have been trying to avoid that one since first hearing about it, it's no bid contracts in the Iraq war fiasco, and the company's association with our creepy ex-Vice president, Dick Cheney.

Exxon also came as no surprise, as did BP. Even Chevron, and any of the major oil companies. These days, that just seems a given, although sometimes, you have to get your gas somewhere. I specifically try to avoid Exxon and BP already, to the extent possible.

Pfizer also did not come as a surprise, because somewhere along the line (although I cannot remember precisely where), they seemed to pop up on a similar list, and I had heard a couple of things like that about it elsewhere, also.

I had also heard about Nestle, although admittedly, this is a company that I have not made such a strong point of boycotting, or anything. Yes, I have enjoyed a Nestle Crunch bar, or the occasional Butterfinger. But, since that stuff really is not good for you to begin with, maybe I should get a little more active, and health conscious along with that, and add this to my personal list.

Monsanto was no surprise, as well. Genetically modified food is a very controversial issue I the present day, and no company seems to represent this more clearly than Monsanto.

DeBeers, the diamond sellers, is not a real surprise, either. I first heard about the evils of the diamond industry back in the days of apartheid in South Africa (as an aside, perhaps we should remember some of the corporations that so willingly conducted highly lucrative business there during the days of legalized segregation and white domination), back when I was actively keeping up with that issue. But the evils remain, although apartheid does not. Anyone who watched "Blood Diamond" might be a bit familiar with how the diamond process works, and the unethical nature of this. So, DeBeers is hardly a surprise. That said, it is not everyday that I buy diamonds, and I don't know many people who recently have bought diamonds, either. When the time comes again, if the time comes again, then I will try to be more conscientious about my decision, and hopefully be more informed. But that was not a huge surprise, either.

There were some surprises, however. Not shockers, or anything, since corporations are corporations, after all, and in general, their interests are in making money and expanding and increasing profits at almost any expense. That said, some corporations you do not necessarily think of too much, until you find them one day on such a list. Coca Cola, for example. I did not see that one coming. Also, Ringling Barnum & Bailey Circus. Who knew? I am glad I did not purchase those tickets to the circus for my son, Sebastien, because I had been meaning to do that, in fact.

Some of the biggest surprises were in the corporations that did not make this particular list. I mean, I was expecting to see Walmart high on the list. This is a corporations that I have tried to go to great lengths to avoid like the plague. Now, I am hardly rich, and yes, the prices in Walmart are out of this world, simply fantastic. But my conscience bothered me every time that I would shop there, because as good as their prices are, their policies and practices are a reflection of the darker side of that. Hell, it has a whole movie targeting it, and it has come to represent the evils of corporate America more than almost any other corporation. It is, or recently was, anyway, the biggest corporation in the world. I first sotpped shopping there after hearing about one store in particular in Chicoutimi, Quebec, where the workers had finally won a long fought battle for union representation in the store. Within days, Walmart announced the closing of the store, claiming it was not profitable. Not much later, a similar story in Ste-Hyacinthe, Quebec, a town maybe forty minutes outside of Montreal. That angered me, and I tried to stop shopping there, and succeeded, fro maybe a year or so. Then I began shopping there, somewhere around 2007 until perhaps sometime in 2009, I think. It was a drop, and a major one, admittedly. I would buy stuff there, and literally feel guilty about it, until it proved too much. I have not shopped there since late September of 2009, and have no intention of going back.

McDonald's seems an obvious choice, as well. I am not entirely sure that there is a food chain that represents the excesses of corporate greed and disgusting practices as McDonald's. I mean, you think about strange food sources, not knowing exactly what you are eating, and McDonald's s almost a poster child for that. It was merely a few weeks ago that McDonald's made headlines by eliminating what has come to be known as "pink slime". Lovin' it? How about lovin' all of those countless acres of forest, most famously in the Amazon Rain Forest, in order to clear land so that more beef can be produced, so that more food can be produced cheaply, with very detrimental environmental consequences. I have tried to avoid McDonald's like the plague, and was largely successful for quite a few years, until a relapse in 2008 until 2009 (about the same time as my relapse with Walmart). But I have been Mickey D's free since, and it has been a few years since I last went into one of their stores and bought anything. Anyone who wants to learn more about the horrible health effects of such a fast food chain should watch "Supersize Me". I also try to avoid KFC, Taco Bell, and Burger king, personally. Increasingly, Wendy's is edging nearer to this list, as well. I still got here on occasion, because these places target children, and Sebastien, being a child, is attracted, understandably. I try and take him to Friendly's as a treat every now and again, or some other such place. Maybe Dairy Queen, for example. But he does ask why daddy does not go to McDonald's or Burger King, when mommy treats him to these places regularly. That kind of bothers me, but what can I do? I have spoken to her here and there about it, but old habits die hard. Eventually, when he is perhaps old enough and mature enough. I will explain my position to him more clearly, and hopefully, he can make his own decision about it, one way or the other.

In any case, let me wrap this list up, because I am running out of time, and it is starting to get long.  There are plenty of others (don't even get me started on banks, and other financial institutions, for example). It could go on and on, but in the interest of keeping this relatively brief, let me just add the specific link that got me writing on this particular subject, and let you, the reader, make up your own mind on this. Feel free to share any companies that you make a strong point of avoiding, as well. 

15 deadliest corporations:

http://worldtruth.tv/15-deadliest-corporations/