Not On My Dime

Countering King George´s coronation

by Alan Bisbort

Source: Hartford Advocate, January 13, 2005.

For many Americans, myself included, Jan. 20, 2005 will be a day of mourning rather than celebration. When G.W. Bush places his hand on the Bible held by William Rehnquist to take the oath of office -- to, for the second time, perjure himself before the American people by swearing "I will faithfully execute the office of the president of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States," -- we will turn our backs on Washington, D.C., attend one of the counter-inaugurals staged across the country or tend our own inner gardens.

Though we shudder at the prospects of four more years of Republican misrule, we won't dignify the Bush coronation -- a $50 million corporate circle jerk that perfectly captures the spirit of his administration during a time of austerity and war -- nor will we waver in our commitment to oppose all the things for which BushCo stands: preemptive war, empire, torture, oil dependency, corporate domination, global warming, land mines, expensive medical care, wiping out Social Security, religious intolerance, racism, gluttony and waste. We know that, in the fullness of time, we'll be redeemed by history.

History, however, has a bad habit of taking a while to get here. How can we hasten the process? The first step is to, rather than be cowed by the daunting tasks ahead, be emboldened by the fact that 51 percent of America is already on our side (Bush possesses a 49 percent approval rating, the lowest for an incumbent entering a second term in 50 years). Contrary to whatever unchallenged spin and outright lies the mainstream media spews on a daily basis, we who oppose Bush are stronger now than we were even a month ago. To echo a phrase used by the commander in chief: Bring it on.

The second step is to turn Jan. 20, 2005 into your own "Not One Damn Dime Day" by taking part in a 24-hour national boycott of consumer spending. No credit cards, no gas, no malls, no mini marts. Nothing. To quote the organizers, "The object is simple. [To] remind the people in power that the war in Iraq is immoral and illegal; that they are responsible for starting it and that it is their responsibility to stop it ... and to remind them that they work for the people of the United States of America ... You open your mouth by keeping your wallet closed."

The third step is to continue voting with your wallet by supporting, when possible, those enterprises that don't take part in the Republican Party shakedown. Thankfully, the website Choosetheblue.com has crunched all the numbers from the last election cycle's campaign donations. They've broken down the good guys (blues) vs. the bad guys (reds). There are some real surprises among both categories. For convenience's sake, I'm offering a digested version of their findings, though I encourage you to have a look for yourself at ChooseTheBlue.Com.

YES (Support these): Apple Computers, Hewlett-Packard, Sun Microsystems, Microsoft, eBay, Sony, Barnes & Noble, National Enquirer, Dreamworks SKG, Ticketmaster, Viacom, CBS, BET, ABC, Webster Bank (91 percent of their donations went to Democrats!), Guinness, Gallo wine, Cuervo, Johnnie Walker, Smirnoff, Costco, Amazon.com, Banana Republic, Gap, Old Navy, Working Assets (phone service), New England Gas Co., Random House, Simon & Schuster, Harper Collins, Arby's, Starbuck's, Nissan and Toyota.

NO (boycott these): Target, Sears, J.C. Penney, Home Depot, Wal-Mart, Coors, Budweiser, Busch (as if), Kroger, Safeway, Shaw's, Proctor & Gamble (all products), Verizon, all tobacco companies, all cable TV companies (but particularly CNBC, MSNBC), Sam's Club, Dell Computers, Office Max, Circuit City, Clear Channel, Sinclair Network, American Express, MBNA (credit card), State Farm, Kodak, Hallmark Cards, and (sorry guys) EasyRiders magazine and all its affiliates ( Savage , Tattoo , Tailgate ), Omni Hotels, Gold's Gym, AirTran, Wendy's, Pizza Hut, Red Lobster, Outback Steakhouse, Waffle House.

Finally, if you're looking for a new team to support, try the Charlotte Bobcats' NBA franchise. Bobcat owners gave all their donations to Democrats. The Bobcats are easy to root for, since their future superstar (and shoo in for Rookie of the Year) is Emeka Okafor, UConn's classiest player in years. Become a Bobcat booster, and give the boot to the GOP.

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reprinted from The Hartford Advocate