Boycott Chinese products until wildlife markets cease

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I’m emailing companies that don’t state country of manufacture for their goods asking them to do so. I’m avoiding buying Chinese products until they ban the barbaric, cruel wildlife animal markets. Then maybe they’ll stop spreading animal viruses into humans causing such damage worldwide.

John Lewis only state countries for some products, Gap - none, Boden - none stated.

For example if a particular clothing company has everything manufactured there then it's worth boycotting them and letting them know why. If enough people did it they'd soon move their manufacturing operations elsewhere.

For a lot of companies, manufacturing in the East is the only way they can manufacture at all, it's just too expensive to do it elsewhere. I'm emphatically not saying it's right, I think the world economy is a shitshow frankly and we all avert our eyes from human rights violations when it comes to buying stuff.

I agree that doing a bit is better than doing nothing. I'd never buy another thing from anywhere if I could. So disillusioned with it all.

OP
You are blaming China for what is a natural disaster that could have happened anywhere in the world. Deadly viruses transmit from animals to humans regularly and most often from domestic livestock not wildlife regardless of how those animals are treated.

You exhibit medieval witch hunt thinking by blaming the appearance of this virus as caused by China’s “sin” of there being underground wet markets in rural areas where people have no access to refrigeration and thus for their own safety can only eat freshly slaughtered meat.

Furthermore, boycotts are group punishment that target the most vulnerable, not the upper classes or government. You are only punishing the poor factory workers who depend on our buying their products for their survival. Do you know that the US economic sanctions (basically a government sanctioned boycott) against Iraq for their human rights violations mostly affected the poor women and children who experienced a huge surge in death in childbirth, infancy and childhood due to lack of basic essentials like food, medical care, clean water, housing, etc. They estimate the economic sanctions caused over half a million more women and children to die than would have if they’d not done the sanctions and tried other, more humane diplomacy to resolve the issues.

So, by all means boycott China but just understand you are denying China’s workers access to a basic standard of living. You’re not helping them, you are punishing them for something that they had no control over.

No I'm not going to boycott China. To blame a nation for this horrific pandemic helps no one.

I disagree actually. I don't have an issue with pointing the finger of blame in anyone's direction over anything at all, so long as the proof is there that the problem was caused or exacerbated by the policies or behaviour of a nation.

nib Yes we're stopping buying new stuff, including plastics unless it's reusable (I'm looking for a cooker 2nd hand online).

With this virus it's time for the hyperglobalisation of the world to calm right down. This is an opportunity to begin greening manufacturing.

This is a curious idea, to think that in our time we can roll back on globalism when we have spent so many decades reaping its rewards (especially those of us in the West). This Guardian article about animal maltreatment by some Irish and French - will you be adding those countries to your boycott?

@PlanDeRaccordement , thanks for your reasoned approach.

What PlanDeRaccordement said. I like how when the very poorest in other countries eat wild animals as their only means of getting enough protein it is brutal and disgusting. When well off people here do it it is called eating game and praised as an ecologically sound option.

Yes, I know game animals are bred for hunting and eating whereas wet markets trade in animals that are often endangered. I still think the criticism of a lot of these situations is blinkered and unfair.

The rolling back of globalisation will happen by way of global warming (esp. if we do just carry on as if nothing has happened after this Virus) whether we want it or not.

It was only a few years ago that parts of UK had foot & mouth
All those cows being burnt

It was mad cow disease

good luck with that one

What about African goods? Sub-saharan Africa has many bush meat markets.

Yes we're stopping buying new stuff, including plastics unless it's reusable

But were you also complaining that the government hadn't bought billions of pieces of single use plastic - PPE.