Do you support slavery?

Do you support slavery?

Don't answer that! It's a rhetorical question (meaning the purpose was not to excite an answer but rather inspire critical thought).

But I bet you do. I do to. I try not to, but sometimes I do. Damn, I hate that.

Don't misunderstand me, our world is filled with forces, some of them just evil men and women who only care about money, but many of them are mechanisms of our own psyches that help us ignore the fact that we support all kinds of evil institutions.

Companies that use slave labor are not only exploiting those who make the products we crave, they are also exploiting our weaknesses, our willingness to ignore, our own raw desires...a perfect storm (check out what some serious nerds from Harvard have to say about it in their study, Sweatshop Labor is Wrong unless the Jeans are Cute at http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/6102.html).

Supporting slavery is so common now that trying not to do it is kinda like trying to make it past the giant tray of M&Ms at the reception desk during the holidays. The bottom line is that we want something, we want it now, and the blurring of lines begins. The far and wide removal of our victims makes it easy to ignore their suffering...nay, even to justify it.

Answer these questions for yourself and find out if you support slavery.

Do you own an iPod?

Do you own anything made by Nike, Converse, Reebok, Asics, Sketchers?

Do you have a computer?

If you answered no to all three, then I have a question for you: Did you just travel from the past?

Sadly, I could only answer no to #2. I just had to have the iPod because I'm weak and I should have thought it through. I check EVERYTHING I buy, but didn't check the iPod. What weakness is it in my psyche? I'll tell you: it's called wanting stuff and not being pricipled enough. Well that was two years ago...that iPod is busted now. Apparently you can't sweat on an iPod for 2 years without damaging it somehow. Gheezus.

So Apple was mired in controversy 3 years back where iPod sweatshop conditions were exposed ...200,ooo workers living in dormitories with no visitors allowed, long hours, ridiculously low pay, no forseeable way out, fear of job loss because of imminent hunger...you know, slavery.
Did people quit buying iPods? Hell no. Even more infuriating, Apple is still doing it (sorry Apple!) and iShit is hotter than ever. Click here to learn about the latest in the unfettered chain of exploitation.

And stop blaming Wal Mart! Yes, it's true, Wal Mart is the biggest slave driver on Earth, followed by Target and then the rest. But I find US-made stuff at Wal Mart all the time; you just gotta look.

Conscience buying takes practice and discipline...but most of all, you have to give a damn.

Soul searching time, suckahs!

Welcome to Redhanded Soul! A blog is born.

Welcome to our blog! Yes, by day we are Redhanded Bags, a handbag company that makes wonderful, eco-friendly handbags, but by day and night, we are relentless activists with a concise motive: to be part of the solution. Is that not concise? Do I need to look up concise? Okay, we have one concise motive: to make the world a better place. How was that? Not too good, huh? God almighty what to you want from me? Okay, here it is: our mission is to raise awareness about slave labor and human rights violation which is still alive and well on every continent. Also, we are out to prove that a company can be green, cruelty-free, and sweatshop-free, and still survive in a world of exploitation. So now I am off to exploit the info-riches of the worldwide web and bring to you information that will make you unconfortable, but hopefully appeal to your better judgement. By the way, the snarky, smirky, tired looking fool in the picture is yours truly. Don't worry, I don't look like this all the time.