Coffee Concerns and Compromise

My favorite mug

I wrote a few months ago about my concerns about my coffee.  I wanted to improve my carbon footprint, however slightly, but sticking to my decision to avoid plastic jars for my coffee and not to purchase products from Nestle, with the added step of reducing the fossil fuels needed (as far as I can tell) to bring my coffee to me.  That added step involved choosing my coffee from sources in the Western Hemisphere rather than the Eastern.  Well, it made sense to me.

That was in January, posted on the very day that Trump took his oath of office.

Then the Vigoro hit the Mixmaster, so to speak.  There were a slew of presidential orders signed on that first day and more yet to come.  The initial impact was for my selected source of instant coffee in a glass jar, not produced by Nestle but produced in the Western Hemisphere:  Target.  Target almost immediately caved in to the call to eliminate DEI from its company policies.  This is not the first time that Target has had some iffy stances on social issues.  I was not surprised to see the community call for a boycott of Target.  I went along with the Target boycott during Black History month quite willingly.  Except for a necessary visit to Target last month while in another city without transportation (the store was a block from my hotel, and I needed some supplies--including coffee), I haven't set foot in a Target store since they cancelled their DEI policies.  Human rights and the right to be treated fairly, without regard to factors of identity, is something that I believe in quite strongly.  

At the same time the rollback of DEI programs was being pursued, Trump was pushing tariffs on various countries for various reasons.  His weapon (tariffs) for economic policy (blackmail and extortion) and his waffling back and forth on when and how much to charge other countries (TACO) created a lot of uncertainty.  For my part, I had to join with all of the businesses--and consumers--who tried to keep up with his constantly changing policies and consider how they might affect my own bottom line.  Frankly, I have no idea about my bottom line.  Economics is way too complicated for me.  I have financial advisors who try to explain things to me--for my own good--and all I can see is a blurry, cloudy, white screen of foggy, mishmashy stuff.  

OTOH, I do understand coffee.  That is, I do understand that I need 1 to 2 cups of coffee every morning--not more--not later--black, no sugar--please and thank you.  Failure to have those cups means (a) a very miserable period of caffeine withdrawal (been there, done than, not gonna do it again if I can help it) and (b) a slower start to my morning at the keyboard than I care for (time flies; I need to work when I can).  

So, just like a lot of American businesses fearing the effects of these tariffs, I started stockpiling my preferred brand--in a glass jar, not manufactured by Nestle, but not, for the time being, sold by Target.  I now have several jars of Cafe Puro in my pantry, all purchased at good ol' HEB, which seems to keep chugging along, supporting libraries and other entities that Trump wants to do away with.  I do not yet have enough coffee to last through the entirety of his term, so I will do my slow stockpiling as long as I can afford it.  I will even put a little bit smaller portion of coffee in my cup (when I remember) so that I can make it last longer.  If all else fails, I suppose I could even try to limit myself to just one cup of coffee. At the moment, my coffee habit is likely to cost me an extra 10% from the EU tariffs, and I can handle that for now.  I couldn't handle the crazy tariffs Trump is trying to impose south of our border (and I am still not happy with Target).

This is about compromise.  I have values that I defined.  I had actions intended to support those values.  I encountered obstacles to my intended actions.  I then had to balance one set of values against another and choose my subsequent actions.  I do not feel good about my choices.  Why?  I think the boycott of Target was justified, and it did have a significant impact.  Whether that will be a lasting impact--affecting company policies and/or Target's tendency to waffle--is yet to be seen.  On the other hand, I didn't give up my coffee.  I even picked up some Cafe Bustelo when I felt I had to shop at Target for my needs while in Philadelphia last month.  In the grand scheme of things, my morning coffee is a minor factor.  Moreover, I also understand that this a personal preference and, therefore, a personal problem.  Nonetheless, it is one that I hope to resolve in my favor as long as possible.  While I have a little bit of a justification that need is as important as desire in (a) and (b) above, I am still not clear in my mind that I am making the right choice.  My conscience is bothering me, so I still have to figure out why--and what to do about it.

I will think about it over my second cup of coffee.