DistinctiveStatic

Working the System

Let's talk about working the system.

Look, I get it. I get the want to just, throw everything about our broken capitalist colonialist Christian-saturated western landscape in the trash and go make yo-yurt somewhere on a mountain. I do. I do get it. However, that's not actually practical.

But what I see, so often, in queer or minority spaces, is a complete inablility to find somewhere in the in-between. Ways to work the broken system. So many of them are "I don't consider myself to be a liberal, I'm a leftist" and have never done anything for anyone except scream online at politicians.

So. Let's talk stupidly simple, actionable things.

A) Check out my Rec Object Page for a few things, like ways to buy from indigenous groups (it's not cultural appropriation if they're offering to sell it) and stuff like plastic-free toothpaste tabs and compostable brush heads. There's some good shit in there.

B) Pay attention to what you sign up for. Target has a program called Target Circle. If you get their app, you're auto-enrolled when you make an account. If you look into Target Circle, you'll note you have votes. Each vote is a Target 'trip'. If you vote, you can direct where Target sends its donation money in your area. Considering sometimes the money goes to places like Salvation Army when only assholes are voting, it's worth your time to vote. But you're never going to know you can do that unless you pay attention to what you sign up for.

C) Give feedback. Yeah, I know, Karen something, blah blah. I'm not talking complaining to the cashier. I'm talking going online, to the corporate website, and hitting the feedback button, or the contact me, and explaining how frustrating it was to be stuck in line at the aforementioned Target, because there are so few people manning the store that they can only have one cashier, who is an excellent cashier, but also not able to keep up with the amount of customers they have, and if they want to keep customers maybe they should hire more people so they're not constantly short-staffed. Shit like that makes a difference.

I currently work for insert medication company here and we are serious about customer complaints. That shit has to be inspected and investigated to make sure we're not contaminated, but also to see if there's any way we can make our products better for more people. If you take a medication and then find out you're pregnant, and you're like 'oh no, I was taking that medication' -- report it. Not only is the company able to give you and your doctor advice about possible effects, but they're going to use the data you give them to compile evidence about whether that drug is safe for pregnancies in general. Feedback makes a difference. Especially in this capitalist society.

And you know who complains? Assholes. Assholes complain. Your unwillingness to be a bother is not helping anyone, and their willingness to be a bother is letting them win these tiny battles that turn into larger ones. Bring these things up. It's good.

~Anyway~

You'll note none of this stuff requires money. Yeah, Target means you spend money, but I assume you buy groceries anyway, and Target is only an example of what I mean by read what you signed up for, anyway. My point is, there's always something actionable to do. Even in the shit-ass society we're fucked with, there's always something.

And that something is a whole lot better than nothing. Certainly it helps more people than cursing at a politician on the internet.