An original idea
May 28, 2004
A reader named Jean-Marc Facchinetti, a doctor in Cannes, had an original idea. What, after all, is the last resort of the "pressured" consumers? Answer: boycotting a consumer product. But he immediately notices that one product seems immune to such action: gasoline, absolutely essential for drivers. There's nothing to stop prices at the pump from rising indefinitely. Drivers know perfectly well that gas station attendants and fuel delivery personnel are not responsible for this, and that they earn meager livings serving customers. The real culprits seem untouchable, and the only remaining form of protest is "grousing"—something politicians and oil groups utterly disregard. There must be psycho-sociological studies aimed at adjusting fuel price increases according to individuals' tolerance thresholds. After all, it's primarily a tax, a form of taxation, and a windfall profit for oil companies. In these distribution networks, except for minor discounts offered in large supermarkets, we are in a situation of near-monopoly. The display of prices at highway entrances is laughable. No one would think this reflects genuine competition. Facchinetti's idea is to suggest a long-term boycott—not of petroleum products themselves, but of a particular distributor chosen at random, such as SHELL-ESSO, which are all part of the same group. I find this idea interesting. Just keep it in mind. Near your workplace, near your home, identify the gas station that is absolutely not Shell-Esso. On highways, act accordingly. The idea is to randomly select a target.
People might get used to this practice, to the point that the group's profits could suddenly begin to decline—first barely noticeable, then clearly apparent. If the phenomenon grew in scale, one can imagine the panic within such a powerful group.
- Why us, and not others?
Undoubtedly, this is the only way for consumers to express their frustration at being so heavily taxed.
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