Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by James on February 12, 2013 at 8:19pm

My wife and I used to like Chic-fil-A, and dealt with their religious roots. But when they started being vocal, we stopped going. Hobby Lobby is similar. We shopped there a few times, but after I found out about their annual Easter proselytizing ad, and they started getting vocal too, we stopped going there as well. Worked for the better, because we found a local independent art store we'd rather give our business to anyway. I also make a mental list of outwardly religious companies so that I can rule them out if I ever need the services that they offer. Read Bible verses on Christmas commercials? I won't give you my money. Plaster a 'Jesus fish' on all your advertising? Sorry, that doesn't make you seem more trustworthy to me. I'll spend elsewhere.

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Permalink Reply by Kairan Nierde on February 13, 2013 at 2:03am

Hobby lobby really cheesed me off when they pitched a fit over their workers getting birth control. I refuse to go there. 

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Permalink Reply by Claire Couch on February 13, 2013 at 10:43am

Yeah, that would be a real good reason to avoid giving them my business.

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Permalink Reply by James Cox on February 12, 2013 at 10:33pm

1. Are you, as a consumer, less likely to spend at a business that is overtly religious? Why or why not?

Overtly YES. Covertly NO.  

2. Do you keep track of which businesses bill themselves as religious, which have taken no public stance, and which are run by atheists? Not really. Do you know of any resources for keeping track? Not really.

3. Say you pulled into a gas station and read this message on the pump. Would you still buy gas there? Yes, unless they were more expensive. Say you have a choice between a Catholic hospital and a secular hospital. Do you avoid the Catholic hospital because it is Catholic? No, I have had good experiences generally with Catholic/theist supported hospitals.

 

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Permalink Reply by Roger Wright on February 12, 2013 at 11:12pm

I guess it's just me, but I go where I can get what I need for the best price. I don't care about religious or political beliefs unless they are discriminatory in some fashion or another. I wouldn't want the operating staff in a prayer circle, but at the same time if a Christian hospital had the reputation for performing a certain procedure, or handling a certain ailment better than another hospital, I would go there.

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Permalink Reply by Kairan Nierde on February 13, 2013 at 2:12am

Our hospitals and many general practitioners in Northern Kentucky have been taken over by St. Elisabeth. So, birth control can be difficult to obtain. After jumping though one too many hoops to secure a prescription for the pill, I have decided to seek alternative health care providers. 

It creeps me out now that I think about it, that St. Elisabeth's hospitals have information about my religion/atheism. They ask about it when you register at the hospital. At the time, I was proud to be honest...but I hope that information does not affect the type of treatment one receives. Why do they even need to know such private information? 

I also avoid chick fillet (sp?) for obvious reasons; it's quite burdensome when I'm having a craving. :-)

I recently decided not to go with a local bank because they had a display in partnership with a catholic school to remind everyone of the "real" reason for the season. I thought that was needlessly annoying.

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Permalink Reply by James Cox on February 13, 2013 at 2:38am

"remind everyone of the "real" reason for the season"

I always thought the real reason was to 'sell' something. If religion is included, this seems to become true.

The secondary reason seems to be to 'visit with family and friends to remind oneself why we communicate infrequently'. My last experience with Xmas seemed to involve this secondary reason.

A third reason seems to involve vacation time, many times with pay, and time away from 'school'. For me, through my early years, seemed to be the best reason. Sadly it should be optionally available for better weather.

Celebrating Christ's birth seems rather dated and without much meaning for me. I would rather celebrate the birthdays of more recent persons, such as scientists, comedians, ex-presidents, or recently decommisioned dictators...   

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Permalink Reply by Claire Couch on February 13, 2013 at 10:21am

For me, I don't particularly have a problem with a religious business.  In fact, I'd say being closed on Sunday (or Saturday, or Friday, or whichever applies) would earn them some points in my book.  Of course, they will obviously lose all my business on that day of the week, but not on the others.

I rate most businesses based on a cost/benefit analysis (price vs quality of product or service) and on ethics. 

The cost-benefit I think doesn't need much explanation.

Ethics, however, might.

It's not unethical to not have your business open on Sunday, just because I may want to shop there, and more than it is unethical for you to close your shop overnight.  If I want to shop at 2AM and the business owner has things he'd rather be doing at that time (be it go to church, spend time with family, or sleep, whatever) that's my problem.  I do have a problem with Chick-Fil-A in that they spent effort, and maybe money, to enforce discriminatory practices.  They have lost my custom, totally, as a result.  Prior to their anti-gay stance, I actually thought rather highly of them, in that they were not hypocritical (like a lot of Christian businesses) in which they talk a good religion game, but that they still expected their peons to work on Sundays.

The other ethical stance that usually loses my a business my custom is advertising practices.  Preying on stupid people, or misleading advertising, hidden fine print, those sorts of things put me off.  Yes, I'm usually very good about spotting shenanigans, but, if a business shows me they are overtly deceptive, I can't guarantee I'll always catch their game.  Thus, Id be setting myself up to be conned.  No thanks, I'll just pass.

Any other unethical practices, well, some I right off as the nature of capitalism, some I don't.  I'd have to evaluate other examples on a case by case basis.  But, in general, unethical practices are a pretty good way to get me to avoid a business.

I do support some types of businesses, but not to the exclusion of others.  I'd support an atheistic business, I like supporting businesses that support the charities I like, too.  I also like to support local businesses, if only to help my local economy.

I do avoid businesses which make it clear they don't want me or my custom, so I'd have to pass on the gas station above.

I guess that sorta sums up my feelings on the topic.

Nice discussion, I must say!  I had never paused to give this topic any real thought until now.  Thanks for the great, thought-inducing, topic!

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Permalink Reply by Keith Murphy on February 13, 2013 at 11:27am

Do you know what?  I actually would avoid this.  Their whole attitude is just appalling. Why should I support this disgusting discriminatory attitude? 

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Permalink Reply by Kiah Beeman on February 13, 2013 at 1:30pm

Depends. I don't usually outwardly discriminate. I still shop at Forever 21 and Hobby Lobby although they are both very Christian because to my knowledge they haven't done anything hateful to others in the name of their religion. 

However, I'd rather shop at secular alternatives when given the chance. I would never ever want to be at the mercy of a hospital who believed praying and not their education and experience would determine the outcome of my surgery. 

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Permalink Reply by Unseen on February 13, 2013 at 7:31pm

If they were Buddhists or Hindus, I probably would. If they were right-wing nut job evangelists, probably not, if I had an alternative.

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Permalink Reply by Unseen on February 13, 2013 at 7:40pm

I remember applying for a job when I was younger. This was a job doing marketing for a wood products company in a suburb of Bend, Oregon, which itself is smaller than a lot of suburbs of Portland, Oregon, where I lived at the time.

I did a brief interview which seemed to go okay. But then I was told that they had all applicants take a "psychological survey." After looking through it I recognized it as a screening questionnaire I had picked up off a Scientology table at my university. 

It had weird questions like "Have you ever felt guilty about looking at a particularly beautiful child?" (Looking for guilty pedophiles?)

I left without filling out the questionnaire. I didn't and don't want to work for Scientologists. I'd rather work for some of the milder stripes of Christians.

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