Hypocrite

That should be my middle name. I mean, I want to be this socially aware, socially conscious and even socially active person. For example, when I found out Coke is one of the leading Human Rights Violaters, I stopped drinking it. And I LOVED a nice cold diet coke in the afternoons. Listen, I know one person not drinking Coke isn’t going to stop the abuse, but hey, it makes me feel better. (although I can’t lie here [well, I could, but what would be the point?] I really fell in love with that Christmas commercial about Coke and Wal-Mart.) Don’t even get me started about Wal-Mart. Needless to say, I don’t really shop there. Where does the hypocrite come in? Starbucks. Man alive. I tried so hard to give it up. It lasted a little while. But lets face it, when I want to be all “no way! I’ll never support the MAN! DOWN WITH THE MAN!” instead I’m all “oh my word an iced vanilla latte is almost equal to chocolate covered heaven and I want to make out with it.” I mean Starbucks is Fair Trade** certified, but as far as I know they only carry one fair trade blend. The company’s website says they will give any customer a cup of fair trade coffee if asked, but rumor has it they only brew it once a month as a regular option.

Wait a sec...

...~gasp!~

I’ve been Googling this stuff as I type and look what I just found:

I see that in October 2008 Starbucks made the commitment to double their Fair Trade Certified™ Coffee Purchases in 2009, becoming the world’s largest buyer of Fair Trade Certified coffee as part of Starbucks™ Shared Planet™

http://www.starbucks.com/aboutus/pressdesc.asp?id=929
http://www.organicconsumers.org/starbucks/index.cfm

Hmmmm. Maybe I don’t have to be a hypocrite after all! I can’t wait to see how this plays out this year at my local bux. As I make out with my vanilla latte ;)

**Fair Trade means an equitable and fair partnership between consumers in North America and producers in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean. The chief concern of the Fair Trade movement has been to ensure that the vast majority of the world's coffee farmers (who are small holders) get a fair price for their harvests in order to achieve a decent living wage. Fair Trade guarantees to poor farmers organized in cooperatives around the world: a living wage (minimum price of $1.26/pound regardless of the volatile market); much needed credit at fair prices; and long term relationships. These fair payments are invested in health care, education, environmental stewardship, and economic independence.
http://www.globalexchange.org/campaigns/fairtrade/coffee/background.html