I would suggest that this is about social value as much as when all those movie stars bought Toyota Prii.
If you want to help Africa, give money to Doctors Without Borders or UNICEF, don't buy a smartphone and and brag about it on twitter while sipping fair-trade coffee.
"If you want to help Africa, give money to Doctors Without Borders or UNICEF, don't buy a smartphone and and brag about it on twitter while sipping fair-trade coffee."
This argument is, at least, misleading. It seems to imply that the best course of action from the social-value point of view is to give money to DWB and then go ahead and buy an iPhone with a clear conscience.
The best course of action, of course, is to take the most socially-conscious option for every consumer choice. So, donate to DWB and buy a fairphone -- or, better, stick to your old phone.
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Is this really about social value?
I would suggest that this is about social value as much as when all those movie stars bought Toyota Prii.
If you want to help Africa, give money to Doctors Without Borders or UNICEF, don't buy a smartphone and and brag about it on twitter while sipping fair-trade coffee.
"If you want to help Africa, give money to Doctors Without Borders or UNICEF, don't buy a smartphone and and brag about it on twitter while sipping fair-trade coffee."
Hear, hear TylerE -- well put. It reminds me of "Smug Alert": http://www.southparkstudios.com/full-episodes/s10e02-smug-al...
This argument is, at least, misleading. It seems to imply that the best course of action from the social-value point of view is to give money to DWB and then go ahead and buy an iPhone with a clear conscience.
The best course of action, of course, is to take the most socially-conscious option for every consumer choice. So, donate to DWB and buy a fairphone -- or, better, stick to your old phone.