Starbucks forced to publicly request that a rather large number of highly visible people stop using their cafes as clubhouses. Seems they have more non arm bearing customers than vicey versa.

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Te futueo et caballum tuum

1986 300SDL, 362K
1984 300D, 138K

I can't believe we made it this far in and not one, "Packaged pasta is crap! I make my own from grain I grew myself and ground into flour and eggs from own chickens." (Fresh pasta is fantastic but we certainly don't have the time to make it!)

It might make a difference. Quite frankly, with a couple teens in the house and a couple more pre-teen boys that are definitely playing catch up, pasta makes it into almost every meal as an extender. We go through a lot of pasta. We don't favor any brand, we buy whatever is on scan-saver that week at the supermarket. Barilla makes some good pre-made pasta, but it may be a factor come purchase time. Especially if the Mrs. is shopping.

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1980 300TD-China Blue/Blue MBTex-2nd Owner, 107K (Alt Blau) OBK #15
'06 Chevy Tahoe Z71 (for the wife & 4 kids, current mule) '03 Honda Odyssey (son #1's ride, reluctantly) '99 GMC Suburban (255K+ miles, semi-retired mule) 21' SeaRay Seville (summer escape pod)

I do not understand why it is that people seem unwilling to take a stand on somethjng so simple. Oil is something that it is nearly impossible to do with out. Its everywhere. Pasta on the other hand is easy to say....nope, im buying someone elses. If only one person does it it will not make a difference. If a lot of people do it will. More importantly I will not support something I dont agree with especilly if there is an easy alternative. I support equality for gays across the board. Its very simple for me. If you oppose equality and make it known then you will not get my business. There are plenty of pasta makers out there. Why shoould I buy his?

It seems very few here are wllling to take a stand on anything that might inconvience them. At least Larry has the convictions to say he dissagrees with Starbucks and tbey will not get any more of his money. I use my buying power to make a personal statement. Could care less if it make a differenxe or not. Id love it if otherss would do so but judt because they will not does not mean that I will just give up.

And no, Barilia will not see another penny of my money. Tbey get added to my list.

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Sent from an agnostic abacus

2014 C250 21,XXX my new DD ** 2013 GLK 350 18,000 Wife's new DD**

- With out god, life is everything.
- God is an ever receding pocket of scientific ignorance that's getting smaller and smaller as time moves on..." Neil DeGrasse Tyson
- You can pray for me, I'll think for you.
- When you understand why you dismiss all the other possible gods, you will understand why I dismiss yours.

If you are going to boycott on principle, it shouldn't matter if it is simple or not. Where do you draw the line if you are going to boycott?

And that is the very heart of the matter. It begs the question "why should I inconvenience myself for you?". Making a difference is nice on a job recruitment poster and people talk about it daily. I have little doubt that many would support me by inconveniencing themselves so why should I do it for them?

It won't make the difference unless it becomes critical to many others. That is the way of the world.

Congratulations on your Pyrrhic Victory. Unfortunately, not that many people are interested in that sort of victories which is why you do it, I suspect. Most could care less and want something concrete. Till you can provide that, it becomes just a Pyrrhic Victory and little else.

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01 Ford Excursion Powerstroke
99 E300 Turbodiesel
91 Vette with 383 motor
05 Polaris Sportsman 800 EFI
06 Polaris Sportsman 500 EFI
03 SeaDoo GTX SC Red
03 SeaDoo GTX SC Yellow
04 Tailgator 21 ft Toy Hauler
11 Harley Davidson 883 SuperLow

A few years ago, Home Depot ran an opinion poll asking customers what difference, if any, a tool's country of manufacture would make in their buying decisions. The vast majority came back and said it would make NO difference if the tool was manufactured in a foreign country just as long as it performed the task for which it was designed for.

I believe Aklim is more right than most want to admit. A few years back, there was a customer service help desk staffed by pleasant people in the center of Wal Mart. If you needed an answer to a quick question, they were there to assist. No more; now you have to go to the customer service/returns center and wait in line if you have a quick question. No sales people are roaming the aisles of Wal Mart to answer questions or assist you in making a selection. The past few times I have gone shopping there, the cashiers have not thanked me for shopping with Wal Mart nor did they make any indication they would like to see me back again spending more cash with them in the future.

We can call them Cash Register Operators.....they would fit in perfectly running the service desk at the local Post Office.

Today's dumbed down public has grown used to the idea of poor product quality as well as poor to non-existent customer service (what is that?).

As for loyalties or disloyalties because of what a company CEO said he/she believed in? That only goes so far and then it is back to "If I want it I will buy it" and nobody is about to stop me, not even my own personal convictions or beliefs.

I had to giggle at this. I'm sure that for pasta lovers, your pasta with fresh ingredients is fabulous, but I'm not a pasta lover at all. I eat very little in the way of carbs, so it struck me differently than it would most folks.

When we first moved to the boonies, my wife had some laying hens for awhile and the fresh eggs were to die for. Eggs from the coop and eggs from the store are as different as an apple and an orange. I'm sure that they make lots of difference in your pasta as well. In fact, your pasta sounds like it might be something that would make me want pasta.

Must have been more than a couple of years. I do see some people in Wal*Mart but they are department heads or stockers or something. Frankly, I'm not interested in your "Please come back again" or "Thank you for your purchase" speech you are told to rattle off. Even a nickle is worth more than that blurb.

As to product quality, if you want it cheap, it probably won't be good. Gotta give up something. You can't have it all.

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01 Ford Excursion Powerstroke
99 E300 Turbodiesel
91 Vette with 383 motor
05 Polaris Sportsman 800 EFI
06 Polaris Sportsman 500 EFI
03 SeaDoo GTX SC Red
03 SeaDoo GTX SC Yellow
04 Tailgator 21 ft Toy Hauler
11 Harley Davidson 883 SuperLow

A few years ago, I was shopping for a cell phone. I stopped by Wal Mart and went to their phone center. The sales clerk (older woman) struck up a conversation. We talked for approx 2 - 3 minutes about the various phone options when she blurted out: "DID YOU COME HERE TO BUY SOMETHING OR DID YOU COME HERE TO JUST TALK?????" I replied, that actually I had just stopped by for a moment to gather some information and possibly make a purchase but no, I would not be completing a transaction with her. I immediately exited the Wal Mart cell phone store never to return again.

Generally I go to the store to buy. With all the moving around of personnel in today's world, I do my own research and at best need you when it comes to the negotiations or to point out where the item is. Chances are that your Ford salesman was selling GM yesterday and something else last month so they won't know much. So yes, I only care about the price since I don't think that you have much to offer.

__________________
01 Ford Excursion Powerstroke
99 E300 Turbodiesel
91 Vette with 383 motor
05 Polaris Sportsman 800 EFI
06 Polaris Sportsman 500 EFI
03 SeaDoo GTX SC Red
03 SeaDoo GTX SC Yellow
04 Tailgator 21 ft Toy Hauler
11 Harley Davidson 883 SuperLow

The sales staff (and make no mistake, EVERYONE in the store is sales staff) gives the customers a reason to make a purchase or a reason NOT to make a purchase. If they don't give me a very good reason to purchase, I'm down the street to a competitor who DOES appreciate my business and WANTS my business and is willing to DO something to gain my business.

Speaking of which, I was at the local mall Kay Jewelry store awhile back. The salesman (about 30 years old give or take) told me a story. Seems a farmer who wears dirty overalls and has grease under his fingers has been dissed by most of the local jewelry stores. They don't seem to want to give him the time of day much less take his money. So, the farmer goes to Kay Jewelers where they TREAT HIM LIKE A KING. Why? Because the man regularly unloads large sums of cash to buy nice jewelry for his wife. And, after every purchase, the Kay Jewelry store manager sends the farmer a hand written thank you note THANKING THE MAN FOR HIS PATRONAGE AND LETS HIM KNOW THAT THEY ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO HIS NEXT VISIT. And, hard to believe, the farmer keeps coming back dropping large sums of cash on jewelry.

Kinda like the treatment Vivan Ward (actress Julia Roberts) was initially given in the movie, "Pretty Woman". Remember? The store owners didn't think Vivan Ward had two nickels to rub together? Did she show them or WHAT?

BUSINESS GOES WHERE BUSINESS IS APPRECIATED.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Yes, getting and keeping a customers business is as simple as this.

I made a couple of spelling errors in the post (now corrected). As I age, my typing hands aren't what they used to be.....sigh.....

I think it can be financial suicide for any large company to make too much of a political or religious statement one way or the other. Nowadays, it is best to be vanilla and take a neutral stance in the business world. Otherwise, someone is going to get pissed off and throw rocks through their windows.

I don't think that in business, the neutrality policy is anything new. Discussing religion, politics, favorite ball team, etc., with customers or clients is displaying your desire to decrease your sales numbers.

And so it is. A friend of mine is always putting a political bumper sticker on his car or planting a political sign in his yard, etc etc. He's after me to do the same. One day I told him that people who like his candidate will be his friend while those who do NOT like his candidate will not like HIM which might screw up his career opportunities, networking opportunities and the like. In this day and age it pays to stand for NOTHING.

Hey, there's HuskyMan, he stands for NOTHING; he has no core personal beliefs or convictions. Whatever the customer says, he simply nods his head in agreement.

He's a limp dish rag.........