i think aside from eating animal friendly, i think it is so important to purchase products from worker friendly commerce. though it is sooo hard to do now these days, i strive to purchase products that are made in america. don walker had brought up some great points about this in a bike manufacturer thread awhile back. if i can't buy something made in america, i try to aviod buying things from china, or other places with slave labor.

in addition to the non-explotative human element, i feel it is so important to support local/national economy. i make the forging dies for craftman, rigid and now snap-on tools. when someone buys some cheap crappy chinese made wrench, they are really are affecting my job stability by giving companies positive feedback that cutting wages and workers and jobs is ok as long as the consumer gets the best deal. that's what drives me so crazy about walmart. many people who shop there do so due to their low incomes... often times these patrons are working manufacturing jobs themselves. they are shooting themselves in the foot and supporting their low wage by shopping from a place that buys goods from overseas places trying to put them out of a job... all of these grocery store strikers really should be picketing walmart, rather then their employer, since walmart is the reason the stores have to lower costs to compete... grrrr... i'm rambling now. i'll stop.