What Does It Say About Me that I Bought a Patagonia T-Shirt from Goodwill for $3?

I recently bought a Patagonia t-shirt from Goodwill for $3.

What does that say about me?

I suppose the larger conversation is about consumer brands. After all, a product isn’t just a product anymore. It must speak to something higher. You like to eat Cheez-Its? What about their company culture speaks to you?

The inverse is equally – if not more – true. People won’t buy items because they don’t want to be associated with a particular brand. A good ol’ fashioned boycott.

I’ll still go to Chick-fil-A because their sandwich and their sauce are incredible. But I refuse to go to Jimmie John’s because Jimmie is a big game hunter who kills elephants. (Note: in writing this blog, I found out that he says he no longer does that. There’s also a chance he’s a dirty, rotten elephant-killing liar.)

Does that mean I care more about animals than the LGBTQ community? Of course not, right?

…right?

Can you like a chicken sandwich and not like a particular stance of the company’s founder? And where do you draw the line? You refuse to eat at Chick-fil-A but you use another product with a problematic background. The art of a morally consistent boycott can be tiring because you must keep track of who you’re boycotting and why.

Because the foundation of a business boycott in 2022 is selective outrage.

I Want to Be Seen as a Good Guy … Not Actually Pay to Be a Good Guy

Brands making the world a better place is a nice thought. Who doesn’t want the world to be a better place?

I dig what Patagonia is going for. Really, I do. But a pillar of choosing a brand like Patagonia is your willingness to pay more to support what they stand for.

So what does it mean that I want a Patagonia shirt, but not suffer the (bank account) consequences?

I suppose it means I want to show the world that I care about the planet, as long as I only have to spend three bucks.

How Can You Support (Brand X)?! Don’t You Know That They’re (Stance/Lack of Stance) on (Topic X)?!

I’m envious of those who can disengage morality from commerce and not care about all this crap. They understand the inconsistency and hypocrisy of making brand-related decisions on moral grounds.

Nike produces a moving commercial around Colin Kaepernick with the tagline Believe in Something. Even If It Means Sacrificing Everything. … then acts less confident about China’s slaughter of Uyghurs because Chinese dollars could impact profits.

Apple peacocks how seriously they take people’s privacy, but routinely uses loopholes to avoid paying taxes that would go a long way to helping the underprivileged.

Do enough research on a company and you’ll find skeletons – or some opinions you don’t care for. Sometimes I think it’s good that we hold companies accountable. Other times, I wonder why we ask brands what they think about large-scale human issues in the first place.

What do you think about racism, Crest?

What’s your stance on abortion, Chili’s?

You’ve been suspiciously quiet on human trafficking, White Claw.

Corporations Are People, My Friend

This whole blog is to explain I’m exhausted.

In a deeply flawed world, is choosing one consumer brand over another worth it? Or is deciding to favor one brand over another in your personal life better than doing nothing? Hey, it’s inching humanity toward a greater good.

As I get older, I have found a way to minimize this tiring exercise: I’ve become less of a good little consumer. I buy less stuff.

I spend my money on bills, not Beats. I won’t buy expensive clothing and I prefer to drink from a water fountain.

So, what is the point in asking “What does it say about me that I bought a Patagonia shirt from Goodwill for $3?”

The point is – for better and worse – we’ve reached a time where it’s relevant to ask that. To wonder if I’m living up to the Patagonia standard. To wonder if I should have spent $40 if I truly cared about the Earth. To wonder if I’m cutting corners on buying a shirt, what else am I doing to help fill the pockets of evil CEOs? To wonder if I should have taken a stand.

The point is there’s no longer room in societal conversation for:

“I like this shirt.”