Do you tend to “vote with your dollar” or “separate art from artist”?

[123ducklings]

Hi all, I know these concepts havd been referenced tangentially on other threads recently. In your general life as a consumer do you tend to “vote with your dollar” or “separate art from the artist”? And to what extent does a person/artist/organization/business’s alignment with your values factor into your support/enjoyment/patronage?

I am curious about your general life and decision making; it’s not just a matter of where you shop for jewelry, but rather where you shop for anything, what media you consume, etc etc. Please explain or add to your response in the comments.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Depends
i can hold a grudge so long i can forget what it was even about but its almost always over allegiance to my home town Dunedin whos honour i will defend to the day i die
So i will never buy Cadbury chocolate ever again after the American owner closed down a modern profitable happy factory with a ton of good history
Mind you they had mucked around with the recepie so much it was tasting pretty revolting (we were used to real milk straight off the otago peninsula and cane sugar and no palm oil)

Will also never buy a fisher & pykle appliance ever again after a similar kind of thing happened - again to my home town

Hope no one ever takes Speights beer off shore and changes the formula !

Sometimes Bruce Springsteen has more liberal political opinions than me but he respects my right to my opinion so i respect his right to his - will continue to buy his product in all formats available

 

[123ducklings]

Depends
i can hold a grudge so long i can forget what it was even about but its almost always over allegiance to my home town Dunedin whos honour i will defend to the day i die
So i will never buy Cadbury chocolate ever again after the American owner closed down a modern profitable happy factory with a ton of good history
Mind you they had mucked around with the recepie so much it was tasting pretty revolting (we were used to real milk straight off the otago peninsula and cane sugar and no palm oil)

Will also never buy a fisher & pykle appliance ever again after a similar kind of thing happened - again to my home town

Hope no one ever takes Speights beer off shore and changes the formula !

Sometimes Bruce Springsteen has more liberal political opinions than me but he respects my right to my opinion so i respect his right to his - will continue to buy his product in all formats available

Makes sense! I’ve found that people are much more able to “separate art from artist” when the “artist” has not done something personally offensive to them.

 

[Dancing Fire]

Vote with my dollars. I will not spend a single dime with BN.

 

[stracci2000]

I vote with my dollar and I have a long memory.
I will NEVER EVER EVER shop at Walmart.
I have boycotted Walmart since 2006.
Two grocery stores I worked for had to close down because Walmart opened a location nearby. There are 15 Walmarts in my town. Why? Because when they want to open a location, nobody can stop them. Not the city, not the neighborhood associations. They bulldoze on through and kill all the small businesses.
Support your local businesses. Stop shopping at the Evil Empire.

Also, I won't spend my money at Hobby Lobby or Chick-Fil-A because the owners have a religious agenda.

 

[nala]

Vote with my dollars. I will not spend a single dime with BN.

Can you elaborate? I’m intrigued

 

[Dancing Fire]

Can you elaborate? I’m intrigued

Let just say I don't support their ideology.

 

[AllAboardTheBlingTrain]

For the most part, I vote with my dollars. Certainly if it’s just something I just want rather than need. However, if I’m faced with a situation where I need to buy a lifesaving medication, or get a surgery I/my family member desperately need I will suck it up and go to whoever is best suited to get me what I need, regardless of differences in ideaology.

 

[Missy]

Generally I spend money with my heart not just my brain. So yes, once I know something about someone that I find egregious (for whatever reason) I won't spend money with that person. If I can help it. I won't cut my nose off to spite my face so to speak but yes I try to vote with my dollars. IMO it is the "right" thing to do for me at least.

I try not to judge others because I know until one has walked in one's proverbial shoes one truly cannot understand. However, if someone is racist or vile (for whatever reason) and I know it you can bet I do not want to spend any money on them or their work.

 

[chrono]

It depends on how deeply I feel about the disagreement/morals.

 

[123ducklings]

For the most part, I vote with my dollars. Certainly if it’s just something I just want rather than need. However, if I’m faced with a situation where I need to buy a lifesaving medication, or get a surgery I/my family member desperately need I will suck it up and go to whoever is best suited to get me what I need, regardless of differences in ideaology.

Definitely! Sometimes we’re unable to avoid problematic things to meet our base needs, that’s when voting at the ballot box to change larger systems comes into play.

I also want to acknowledge that “voting with your dollars” can be a privilege. For example, I agree with @stracci2000 and personally avoid Walmart. But I have a friend whose only major grocery store within an hour and a half drive is Walmart. She shops local farm stands and also orders items online for delivery, but it is cost prohibitive (and frankly just not feasible) for her to avoid Walmart completely.

 

[123ducklings]

Generally I spend money with my heart not just my brain. So yes, once I know something about someone that I find egregious (for whatever reason) I won't spend money with that person. If I can help it. I won't cut my nose off to spite my face so to speak but yes I try to vote with my dollars. IMO it is the "right" thing to do for me at least.

I try not to judge others because I know until one has walked in one's proverbial shoes one truly cannot understand. However, if someone is racist or vile (for whatever reason) and I know it you can bet I do not want to spend any money on them or their work.

Completely agree. No judgement about what other people do with their money; I just do what’s right for me. Honestly most things we buy in life are really “wants” more than “needs.” Once I know a person or business does things I find inappropriate or wrong, it’s usually pretty easy to divert my dollars to support a person or business more in line with my values.

 

[Arcadian]

Its situational.

 

[MillieLou]

Let just say I don't support their ideology.

What's their ideology? I am genuinely curious, as a Blue Nile customer, as I've never been aware they espouse particular political or other views. I've tried googling but all I get is academic articles on the Nile Basin of Sudan...

 

[nala]

What's their ideology? I am genuinely curious, as a Blue Nile customer, as I've never been aware they espouse particular political or other views. I've tried googling but all I get is academic articles on the Nile Basin of Sudan...

Hahahahaha! Someone please tell me, too!

 

[smitcompton]

Hi,

When Nike decided to use Colin Kap (SP) as their spokesperson, I told my son to go buy a new pair of Nike sneakers on me. People said Nike would lose business, so I helped them. ha

I boycotted Wal-Mart as well for all the reasons Stacci stated. I could not maintain the anger and so stopped the boycott. I now shop there and enjoy delivery services.

I prefer not to know much about artists. I don't even like videos. I dont' want to know what the artist even looks like.

Annette

 

[Demon]

Vote with my dollars. I can't even watch Lethal Weapon anymore because of Gibson's tirades. And Its been a long time since I've been able to watch Absolute Power because of Clint Eastwood's empty chair. And James Woods movies (I always liked The Hard Way)? Ugh.

 

[Dancing Fire]

Hahahahaha! Someone please tell me, too!

There's a certain movement that BN supports which I don't. We'll leave it at that.

 

[kenny]

There's a certain movement that BN supports which I don't. We'll leave it at that.

I know what it is.
Hint: DF would buy all their diamonds if it was named Red Nile.

 

[Dancing Fire]

I know what it is.
Hint: DF would buy all their diamonds if it was named Red Nile.

I can't afford their spend 2X the $$$ upgrade policy.

 

[Cerulean]

I think it depends on how much I care about the craft or practices

For example, I got a ring made my David Klass that was not his design. I actually deeply regret it and plan on being waaaay more thoughtful (and resetting my e-ring) - it's one thing to repro an antique, it's another to repro a contemporary setting IMO

I will also only buy original paintings and even though I have many artist friends, I will never pay them less than they'd expect from a patron

For clothes, I avoid fast fashion as much as possible, and invest a lot of money in nice pieces from real designers (no, I do not mean major, mass-produced brands) because of how wasteful companies like H&M, Zara, Forever 21, etc. are....I detest their clothing

But I am guilt of shopping at Amazon even though I abhor their business practices, I am committing to myself that I cut down so I can reduce my carbon footprint

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Amazon's a hard one
I beleave they are terrible to work for

i only buy things i cant buy in NZ which is actually a lot of stuff but at least with amazon you can buy from affiliated bricks & mortar mom & pop stores

 

[123ducklings]

I actually deeply regret it and plan on being waaaay more thoughtful (and resetting my e-ring)

Girl! What?! Reading this makes my heart ache for you. I’ve been following your e-ring journey from the beginning — each time you seem so certain of your vision and excited about the ring, but then in time you switch to being really down on it and ready to reset. I hope my comment isn’t out of line since this isn’t the topic at hand. Hugs, and I’m here if you ever need a sounding board.

 

[MillieLou]

I know what it is.
Hint: DF would buy all their diamonds if it was named Red Nile.

Ohh I get it now.

*Wanders off to spend EVEN MORE money at Blue Nile*

 

[Dancing Fire]

Ohh I get it now.

*Wanders off to spend EVEN MORE money at Blue Nile*

Good, so that their co-founder can buy an other million dollar house in a white neighborhood.

 

[LilAlex]

And to what extent does a person/artist/organization/business’s alignment with your values factor into your support/enjoyment/patronage?

I like to think it does but I am not sure I am effective at putting this into practice. I still buy petrol and eat meat. I invest in the S&P500 and the total US stock market. I don't boycott any major retailers. I have a deep-seated aversion to Walmart and deep-seated love of Amazon but I don't think the latter is any better, really, in terms of paying a living wage and with respect to what it brings to -- or takes away from -- a community.

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Haha I probably stepped in it by bringing this up in the other thread referenced.

In an ideal world with an ideal me, I would want to vote with my dollar more when it came to consumer goods I’m getting for my own benefit. I don’t go to hobby lobby or chic fil A, I don’t support a local bakery after hearing them talk about “the China virus” (I’m chinese), and I don’t plan to see any movies with any of the recently loudly intolerant actors (I’m looking at you Hercules).

That being said I’m guilty of laziness and ordering from amazon when I need something rushed or there’s a really good deal. I also don’t do research before I buy. But if I know and it makes me feel bad, chances are I’m not buying.

My exception to art/artist rules is if I think the art/discovery/product is changing the world for the better despite whatever flaws the artist had. Like when Tesla was new to market, even though Elon has quite a few unsavory traits, I’m a big supporter for pushing market towards electric cars. Or if the covid vaccine lab directors were revealed to be misogynistic racists, I’d still advocate for vaccines (though would advocate for the directors removal)

So in summary: it’s situational

 

[Cerulean]

Girl! What?! Reading this makes my heart ache for you. I’ve been following your e-ring journey from the beginning — each time you seem so certain of your vision and excited about the ring, but then in time you switch to being really down on it and ready to reset. I hope my comment isn’t out of line since this isn’t the topic at hand. Hugs, and I’m here if you ever need a sounding board.

Aww that’s sweet! Nope it’s not out of line at all. I’m not rushing this reset at all, as I am determined for it to be the last. It’ll be another year or two.

I do love my current setting. A lot. I plan to keep it and reuse it, but it feels cheap that I “stole” the design and I’m realizing that a 3-stone is actually more bling than I want. I think it would feel a little more understated with a colored stone! And I feel firmly that it doesn’t align with my values, which is not something I want for my engagement ring. I’d rather pay more to go to a true designer, at least for this

I am honestly not sad or bitter about it at all. I am annoyed about the design flaws that resulted in resets, and the rude discovery of my nickel allergy after purchasing a very expensive set. But not much I can do about that! I’ve learned a lot about what I like and don’t like!

 

[Mekp]

I try to vote with my dollar as much as possible but I'm not always successful.
I boycott Walmart, however recently I wanted to get my sister a gift card to go towards nursing scrubs for her new job out of school. All she wanted was a Walmart gift card, so I sucked it up and bought it for her.
I really dislike Amazon, but I do occasionally buy from them.
I will not, however, support Chick-fil-A ever.
So I do try, but I'm far from perfect in it.

 

[rocks]

Hi,

When Nike decided to use Colin Kap (SP) as their spokesperson, I told my son to go buy a new pair of Nike sneakers on me. People said Nike would lose business, so I helped them. ha

I boycotted Wal-Mart as well for all the reasons Stacci stated. I could not maintain the anger and so stopped the boycott. I now shop there and enjoy delivery services.

I prefer not to know much about artists. I don't even like videos. I dont' want to know what the artist even looks like.

Annette

And I haven’t bought a pair of Nike’s since. I buy new balance, and try to buy the styles made in the USA.