I believe we should continue to patronize big businesses that:
Treat their employees, customers and community well.
Do not abuse their corporate power and wealth to the detriment of society.
Do not pay their executives an excessive amount ($2 million pay package or less, CEO pay is not more than 25 times average employee pay).
In my opinion and others, the rise in authoritarianism in the United States and worldwide, which will take decades to repair, is due to the increasing wealth divide, “rigging of the system” and the abuse of wealth and power caused by the greed of big businesses. It is our obligation and worth our time to fight back and one way is to change our spending habits away from big businesses.
This is what I am doing:
Buying from local grocery and hardware stores instead of the big national chains.
Using cash instead of credit cards for small purchases (credit cards are owned by large banks).
Using credit unions and smaller banks instead of the megabanks.
Avoiding Amazon and buying from the manufacturer directly.
Using a driver instead of Uber / Lyft when possible.
Avoiding any interaction with businesses owned by Trump or Musk (most of us have none except possibly for Twitter / X and Tesla).
Thinking about my purchases and whether there is a small business alternative.
These changes will take time - we have to get things done and cannot agonize over every spending decision. But we can think a little bit more about them and try to make one change per week.
There are some big companies we probably cannot avoid when purchasing cars, large appliances or flying. I am not sure what we can do about that.
We may also have business relationships with big businesses that we cannot or do not want to change.
Sometimes, we may have to choose the best choice even though none are optimal. I think that Costco does a pretty good job but their CEO has stock options that raise the pay package to $17 million. But they treat their employees well and are resisting Trump’s threats against diversity.
Let me know what big businesses you think we should support and what other changes you are making to reduce wealth inequality.
Note: I don’t have any lists of “preferred businesses” or businesses to avoid but will post any lists that visitors send me, without their name unless they want it posted.
The index to my prior essays (mostly post 5 November 2024) is here.
I have another blog on Cancer and Medicine.
You can also follow me at https://www.linkedin.com/in/nat-pernick-8967765/ (LinkedIn), npernickmich (Threads and Instagram), natpernick.bsky.social (Bluesky) or @nat385440b (Tribel).
Email me at Nat@PathologyOutlines.com.
I also publish Notes at https://substack.com/note. Subscribers will automatically see my notes.
Anonymous - this is a list of advertisers on Fox News in alphabetical order from https://whoadvertiseson.org/foxnews/, (which has a much longer list). Let me know of any errors or comments:
3DayBlinds
4Patriots
Abacus Pays
Abbott Laboratories
AbbVie
ADT
AlienTape
Allegiance Flag Supply
Allstate
American Cruise Lines
Ameriprise
Amgen
Andersen
ARMRA
Aspen Dental
Astellas
AstraZeneca
ATT
Balance of Nature
Bausch and Lomb
BDO
Belfor
Belfor Property Restoration
Bissell
BlueChew
Bullseye
Camping World
Caraway
CarShield
Carvana
Chewy
ClearChoice
Colace
Consumer Cellular
Coventry Direct
Delsym
Dexcom
Doctors Preferred
Dr. Marty Pets
Dr. Seuss Coins
EGO
Empire
Empower Retirement
Endurance Auto Warranty
Espired
Ethos
Exact Sciences
Expedia
Experian
Fabletics
Ferndale Healthcare
First American Home Warranty
Fisher Investments
Force Factor
FreshPet
FrogFuel
Fubo
GE Vernova
General Steel
GenStone
GentleCure
GL Homes
GoDaddy
Golden Corral
Goldline
GOLO
GoodRanchers
GovMint
GovX
Grainger
GSK
Haleon
Hallow
Harbor Freight
HarvestHosts
Hillsdale College
Hillsdale College
HomeServ
HomeTitleLock
Hotels.com
Humana
HungryRoot
Immuno150
Inspire Medical
InteractiveBrokers
Intra-Cellular Therapies
Intuit
iTrustCapital
JackPocket
Jones Road Beauty
JP Morgan Chase
JP Morgan Chase
Kapitus
Kardia
Keepsake
LA Golf
LeafFilter
Liberty Mutual
LifeMD
Lilly
Lumber Liquidators
Mahindra
Mammoth Nation
Miracle-Ear
MoneyBot5000
Mott and Bow
MyPillow
NatureMade
Natures Health
Nestle
New Vitality
NewDayUSA
Novex Biotech
Novo Nordisk
Nutrafol
Nuts.com
Oar Health
Old Dominion Freight
Ontario
Opendoor
Opti-Nail
Otter
Particle
Patriot Mobile
Paycom
PC Matic
Physicians Mutual
Plantur
PocketHose
Pods
PrizePicks
Procter and Gamble
Progressive
Propane
PureTalk
Quicken
Quince
Quincy Bioscience
Qunol
ReadyRocker
Rebath
Reckitt
Redfin
Relief Factor
Repatha
Replenza Labs
Resperate
Ro
Ro
Robinhood
RoofMaxx
Rosland Capital
Ryze
Saatva
Safelite Group
SafeStep
Sandals
Sanofi
Seed
SelectQuote
Senokot
ShipStation
Signal Relief
SimpliSafe
SingleCare
Sketchers
Skull Shaver
Sleep Number
Sling
Stihl
StraightDown
SuperBeets
T-Mobile
Tax Relief Advocates
Tempur-pedic
The Farmers Dog
The Wellness Company
The Zebra
Therabody
TikTok
Tommie Copper
TommieCopper
Trivago
TruGreen
TY J Young
UBS
Uqora
uquora
USPS
Vanda
Verizon
Visiting Angels
Voya Financial
Vyper Industrial
WeatherTech
X-Chair
ZipRecruiter
Zoetis
Anonymous - this is about a Lenten boycott but it gives some info on what companies you may want to avoid:
Want to join our Lenten boycott, but don't know which corporation to choose? Here are a few resources that might help you make your decision:
Forbes has published a regularly-updated list of companies that are dropping equity-focused programs to satisfy Trump and the far-right:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/conormurray/2025/03/01/state-street-drops-corporate-board-diversity-requirement-here-are-all-the-companies-cutting-dei-programs/
Accountable.US (A.US) is a nonpartisan, 501(c)3 organization that shines a light on special interests that too often wield unchecked power and influence in Washington and beyond: https://accountable.us/issues/economic-security-and-corporate-power/
BuyPartisan is an for Lent in response to their decision to drop their DEI initiatives. You can learn more here: https://www.targetfast.org/
This year, with Trump and his billionaire buddies creating policies of massive greed, corruption, and hatred, Faithful America is urging our members to pledge a Lenten fast from pro-Trump corporations. This is a call to reckon with the ways we give in and obey the will of corporate greed by financially fasting from one (or more!) corporation that has allied with Trump through political contributions, removing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion policies, or placing their CEOs in powerful positions of government.