Fair Trade

[SocialResponsibility]

is the most idiotic movement I have ever heard in my life. Let me go ahead and offer you a premium price because you can not produce a quality product, then let me go ahead and try and sell the product in a small niche market where I may/may not even cover my costs. It goes against everything that this great capitalistic country was built on. But liberal tree-huggers put pressure on great companies like Starbucks to be a charity and but inferior products for premium prices, all because Juan in Costa Rica can't manage to farm a quality coffee bean.

Thoughts?

 

[ColdBlooded]

Everything fair trade I've ever bought or considered buying was of quality. So I don't know where you get this inferior/lacking quality shit from.

But if you don't like it don't buy it. Isn't that one of the core principles of your beloved capitalism?

 

[SocialResponsibility]

Some FT coffee farmers and cooperative produce a lower quality coffee bean, but places like Starbucks have quality standards that fair trade coffee must meet, so the quality issue probably wouldn't be that prevalant, but I guess quality in coffee is subjective and most people dont notice a difference unless you are a heavy drinker. Quality isnt the main issue of my point though.

Just out of curioristy, what Fair Trade products are you purchasing?

Indeed dont like dont buy, but organizations like Global Exchange and TransFair who hold protests at Starbucks annual shareholders meetings and demand Starbucks to purchase more FT coffee arent really given Starbucks a choice, are they? What part of Capitalism is that?

 

[RobVan]

FTW

 

[ColdBlooded]

If you're not buying and you think their business model is bad and they may not even cover their costs I don't get what your gripe is? They'll fail soon enough, right?

Just out of curioristy, what Fair Trade products are you purchasing?

Nothing regularly. I have bought fair trade coffee for people before (i don't drink coffee) and there are clothing shops here that sell fair trade clothes. I'm far from a regular consumer of the stuff.

Indeed dont like dont buy, but organizations like Global Exchange and TransFair who hold protests at Starbucks annual shareholders meetings and demand Starbucks to purchase more FT coffee arent really given Starbucks a choice, are they? What part of Capitalism is that?

The same part where Starbucks gets to go

 

[SocialResponsibility]

The same part where Starbucks gets to go

hmmm, this is the "gathering of minds" forum correct?

 

[RobVan]

Lately, it seems like the "Gathering of Polarized Voters" forum. ugh

 

[The Duke of Earl]

neo-liberalism so great

 

[MEXCOM]

What part of Capitalism is that?

The part where the market sets the demand for the product.

 

[Mr. Nice Guy]

The part where the market sets the demand for the product.

And government subsidies, regulations, and laws don't influence the market?

 

[MEXCOM]

Did I say that?

Regardless, your argument is moot as the market, regardless of how influenced it may be, still sets the demand.

Nice try though.

 

[Mr. Nice Guy]

Did I say that?

Regardless, your argument is moot as the market, regardless of how influenced it may be, still sets the demand.

Nice try though.

LOL


So when Nancy Pelosi gets to put a 5 dollar tax on every pack of cigarettes or when we subsidizes electric cars that is not influencing the demand for cigarettes and electric cars?

If you studied economics you would know that the government is considered an outside influence to the supply - demand equation. The "market" itself has no influence other than the direct supply & demand of a products and the consumer. Everything external to that relationship is an outside influences that negatively influences the integrity of the relationship.

Supply and demand is an economic model based on price, utility and quantity in a market. It predicts that in a competitive market, price will function to equalize the quantity demanded by consumers, and the quantity supplied by producers, resulting in an economic equilibrium of price and quantity.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supply_and_demand

 

[MEXCOM]

LOL

I don't see why you're laughing. You obviously are debating something completely different from me.

So when Nancy Pelosi gets to put a 5 dollar tax on every pack of cigarettes or when we subsidizes electric cars that is not influencing the demand for cigarettes and electric cars?

Prone to hyperbole much?

And if you're as much of an econ wiz as you'd like to think you are you'd know two things:

1. The demand for cigarettes is considered inelastic. I highly doubt we'll see your "5 dollar tax" but even if taxes are raised then we wouldn't see much of a drop in the demand for them because the demand of cigs is inelastic.

2. Electric cars like which one? Name one. We can't be making up things and then incorporating them into our arguments, it just looks bad.

If you studied economics

Obviously I have. I don't need wikipedia to help me out. Also the part you highlighted doesn't really help your argument. Infact, it doesn't really do anything. So I ask, "Why bother?"

you would know that the government is considered an outside influence to the supply - demand equation. The "market" itself has no influence other than the direct supply & demand of a products and the consumer. Everything external to that relationship is an outside influences that negatively influences the integrity of the relationship.

And...? Is your argument supposed to be helping you? Because you basically proved that the market sets the demand of a product.

Even if you use your "logic." Outside influences affect what? Consumer's selection choices. What does a consumer's selection choice affect? Demand! Ergo; demand is set by the market.

Jesus, you're stupid.

 

[SocialResponsibility]

The part where the market sets the demand for the product.

I'm sorry, are you trying to explain how protesting a company and putting pressure on them to spend money the way they would like them to is related to Capitalism?

Cuz if you are, could you elaborate more? I am not seeing how that ties in with market demand for a product. My point is there isnt a huge demand for Fair Trade products. If there was, Starbucks wouldnt need TransFair to put pressure on them to use more Fair Trade suppliers - they would do it on their own. A $4 billion WORLDWIDE market (mainly in Europe) doesn't seem to be screaming huge demand.

 

[taetae]

liberal tree-huggers

Obviously there is a demand for the product, as evidenced in your first post. I work at co-op grocery store, we exclusively sell FT coffee - we have FT cert sugar, rice, tea, cocoa and transfair is expanding to dried fruit and produce soon. You best believe we're stackin coin with that shit. Someone came up with a better ad campaign. So what?