An elderly Cherokee Native American was teaching his grandchildren about life…
He said to them, “A fight is going on inside me, it is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves.
One wolf is evil — he is fear, anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, competition, superiority, and ego.
The other is good—he is joy, peace, love, hope, sharing, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, friendship, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.
This same fight is going on inside you, and inside every other person, too.”
They thought about it for a minute and then one child asked his grandfather, “Which wolf will win?”
The old Cherokee simply replied: “The one you feed”.
When it comes to shopping, I’m not really a militant anti-shopper. I do have to live in the real world, and with three daughters, its often not so easy to avoid shopping altogether. So when I shop, I do my best whenever possible to buy something I can believe in. What kind of world do I want to “feed”? Big box stores with cheap stuff made in China? Or a small merchant making quality products with love and care?
Like the Cherokee story of the wolves, whenever you spend your money, you’re voting on what sort of world you want to create. Here’s a recent news story about a small business who is being bullied by a billion dollar fast food franchise.
The Eat More Kale T-shirt
There’s a small eco-friendly T-shirt making company in VT called Eat More Kale. A simple design and a great message. Kale is the queen of superfoods, I encourage everyone to eat more kale all the time. We cook kale here at the Rubin Rodeo many times each week.
The Eat More Kale company’s sole proprietor, Bo Muller-Moore, has used the EAT MORE KALE logo in his t-shirt designs for more than 10 years. He was inspired by a farmer who suggested the “eat more kale” line and hand created the logo. He prints each shirt by hand, and started out selling the T shirts at local farmers markets. He recently applied for a federal trademark on his business name. A federal trademark would block other artists from copying his design (which has happened in the past) and protect the livelihood he’s worked so hard to build. But if Chick-fil-A, a multi-million dollar fast food company, has its way, Muller-Moore won’t be able to protect his business. The Corporate Goliath has threatened to block EAT MORE KALE’s trademark attempt and shut the business down. Chick-fil-A uses the slogan “Eat Mor Chikin,”and it alleges that EAT MORE KALE confuses CHICK-FIL-A customers and dilutes its multi-million dollar industry.
My trademarked House of Health
Somehow I’m not convinced that the Eat More Kale logo or T shirt could really put a dent in profits for the second largest quick-service chicken restaurant company in the United States. I had a similar experience with the American Lung Association when I applied for a trademark on my answer to the USDA food pyramid, called the House of Health. The Lung Association had a team of lawyers protecting their trademark of their Health House, which had to do with indoor air quality. Anyone who applied for a trademark with either the word “house” or “health” got stopped by the legal team. After two years of back and forth, I ended up with no choice but to settle with them and changing it to Dr. Susan Rubin’s House of Health.
Both situations are classic cases of big corporations or organizations will lots of money to be able to hire big legal teams vs. a small proprietor simply trying to do a good thing.
Eat More Kale: a great message
You can help the Eat More Kale guy two ways. Sign the Change.org petition, click here
Another way is to buy a T-shirt or Sticker that says EAT MORE KALE. I’m getting one for everyone in my family for a holiday gift. Its a playful logo with a good message. And now you’ll be helping to support a small business as it does battle with a giant fast food chicken company. Click here to visit the EAT MORE KALE site.
And remember the story of the wolves when shopping for anything. What kind of world do you want to create?
