I smh in amazement that these businesses don't just resist the pressure to come for/against and remain neutral. Once they give in, they always alienate one side or t' other...
I have a friend who worked as a marketing exec for one of the major coffee shop chains. He said the pressure was relentless - in his particular instance, it was teh gayz. They began making demands, and once word got out, traditionalist groups began making theirs. He was supposed to be in charge of marketing, and he said the harrassment got so bad, his whole depatment was getting overwhelmed and unable to function, spending a majority of time and resources trying to placate both sides. Middle ground and neutrality were not accepted by either side as legitimate, and both sides threatened to punish the retailer for failing to toe the line.
Our businesses are in an awful predicament in the current cultural/politcal climate. The best place on earth to do business is rapidly becoming a terrible place to do business.
Okay, I get that and it sucks. That is a horrible position to find oneself in.
What I would do then, if a public choice must be made, is to come out on the side of liberty. As long as they're going to get dinged anyhow, might just as well be on the right side of history.
This will not end well.
That should be the easiest choice in the world. Unfortunately for everyone, many of these companies get trapped like deer in the headlights, trying to navigate a path that will not harm their bottom line. Insofar as they understand the stakes, that is just cowardice. If they don't understand the stakes, they probably view it as pragmatism.
Now mind you, I'm not making any such claim about Panera. They may well be run by bona fide Leftists for all I know. I'm just relating an account that was related to me from a first-hand perspective. Companies that don't want to shouldn't have to deal with this sh*t - but I have no pity for the ones that choose to inject themselves into controversial affairs outside their profit motive because their owners or board members are ideologically motivated.
That is the sick nature of the country we live in, isn't it? We have the Hobby Lobby's and Chik-fil-A's on one side, and we have the Ben & Jerry's and Google's on the other side - and the good guys are dreadfully outnumbered by the bad guys if we use the nexus of business and culture wars as our indicator. Few compaines are branding themselves as traditional, while those companies that are aligning themselves with various Leftist causes are on the increase.
