I had a little bit of discussion with Ovid on some things he posted about the ethics of DoS attacks as a means of protest. To further this notion of what you can do when a company does something you don't like, here are a few DOs and DON'Ts that could be useful to someone who wants to make a difference:

DO Tell them that you don't like what they did. Write a real snail mail letter, state your case intelligently and politely, and mail it to them. Make it clear what they could do to win your respect back.

DO Boycott them, and get others to boycott them. Tell them you are doing this.

DON'T Attack their website. Besides being illegal, this will not help to convince anyone that you are a rational person whose views matter. It trivializes your stance by marking you as a criminal, and thus probably not someone they would have wanted as a customer anyway. If you wouldn't smash in the windows of a brick and mortar company, you shouldn't DoS the servers of a web company either.

DON'T Assume that all the company's employees are evil. There may be one or two people there who are ruthless or else uninformed about the consequences of their actions, but a company is made up of many people who don't all share the same ideology.

DO Remember that there are many sides to every story. As an employee at eToys during the time when they were embroiled in the etoy fiasco, it was painful to see how one-sided and unfair the Slashdot articles on the subject usually were. I know that eToys' motives were good, even if the actions were wrong, and I know that etoy was not as pure and righteous as they were made out to be.

DO Recognize it if a company tries to do the right thing. If they fix the problem, stop boycotting them. Maybe even send them a thank you note for doing what you asked. After eToys dropped the lawsuit against etoy and paid all of their legal bills for them, I saw lots of people on Slashdot saying things like "I don't care, I'll never buy from those fuckers again." If you take that attitude, what possible motive does a company have to change in the way that you asked?

This is all a bit off-topic, but since others were already talking about it, I though I'd throw in my two cents.

  • Comment on Ethically Protesting a Company's Actions

Replies are listed 'Best First'.
Re: Ethically Protesting a Company's Actions
by footpad (Abbot) on Aug 17, 2001 at 07:36 UTC

    Your thoughts are certainly balanced and bring up and important point about any form of community activism; specifically, the need and flexibility to reverse your prior stance--and opinions--based on improved behavior. When change happens, as we all hope it will, then there should be no hard feelings--provided the change was in line with your goals. If the issue is resolved and any appropriate reparations made, then the slate is clean and you all move forward. Not in an innocent sense, of course, but with a hopeful one.

    That said, use extreme care when conducting activism against an organization you work for. Your steps should be acceptable to most reasonable people, however, many unethical people are also unreasonable and cannot tolerate dissension in the ranks in any form. In that (admittedly narrow) domain, it's wise to begin taking career improvement steps. I would document *everything.* Forward emails to outside accounts, take notes of conversations, photocopy review materials, and so on.

    Individuals and Consumers, properly organized, can wield enormous power over businesses and organizations, especially when those entities engange in deceptive, unfair, monopolistic, or otherwise unacceptable practices. However...those involved with consumer- and community-based activism must always use care to ensure that their activities are legal and balanced. Remember: your targets can generally afford better lawyers; therefore, you must stay on the right side of the law.

    --f

[reply]
Re: Ethically Protesting a Company's Actions
by RatArsed (Monk) on Aug 17, 2001 at 11:58 UTC
    ah, but what if it's your employeer ;)

    --
    RatArsed

[reply]
      You've got three options:
      1. Try to change from within. Some possibilities are:
        • Discuss things with your manager. Maybe they have an idea...
        • Try to get a meeting with an executive to explain your point of view.
        • Make the change in your corner of the world. If it's a good change, others will follow.
      2. Stop complaining ... you need the paycheck.
      3. Find a new employer. This isn't that hard.

      ------
      /me wants to be the brightest bulb in the chandelier!

      Vote paco for President!

[reply]

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