- McLibel -

Re: There is hope

Posted by: Louise ( UK ) on September 30, 1996 at 15:34:13:

In Reply to: There is hope posted by Michelle on September 23, 1996 at 16:44:13:

> > No matter how much bad publicity this case gets,
> > McDonald's will remain a giant.
> ...
> > There are just too many mindless people in the
> > world who are more concerned about their immediate
> > needs than larger issues that affect the world.
> > I may never eat at McDonald's but I don't kid myself
> > into thinking that I'm changing the world.

> I think I understand why you feel the way you do, but I disagree that
> it's all an utter hopeless mess. A company like McD's or any other
> multinational only has so much power because the people within it
> take action to access and maintain that power. No matter what influence
> it has over a population, it was built by humans, and can ultimately
> be taken apart by humans.

> Even if the information disseminated by the ripples of the McLibel trial
> are all that come out of it, I think it's a step ahead. The way to
> challenge disinformation and propaganda (ie that their food is nutritious
> or that Ronald is a healthy role-model for our kids) is to provide a
> space for alternative viewpoints. --- McSpotlight!

> I know heaps more about what's behind the glossy McDonald's image now than
> I did before the trial started. It means I'll never set foot in one again
> (even to buy fries if there's nothing else to eat...), and I'll tell everyone
> else what I know. That might make me feel like just a tiny cog in the huge
> scheme of things, but when I know people are making similar choices as far
> away as America or Finland, it seems like the world could really make a change.

> Yes, there will always be `mindless' people, but you don't have to abandon
> your world to them.

I do know what you mean, but if everyone had the same attitude there would have
been no civil rights movement, no suffrage, and no trade union movement, amongst
other things. I don't know about you, but I thnk these were (are) fundamentallty
good things, and that they did change things. The world is a better place for a
large proportion of it's people because of them. All I'm saying is think about it.



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