There are probably some that find the Salvation Army's bells annoying. Of course they come to the stores to shop, and not to be solicited. However I doubt while deciding what stores to shop this Christmas that hearing the bells of solicitation will be a deciding criteria this is very high on anyone's list.
As the Salvation Army kicks off its annual red-kettle program today, a growing number of retailers, from Best Buy to Target, are banning Salvation Army bell ringers from their doors -- to avoid having to choose between competing charities and out of concern for customers, they say.
That's created a schism in the retail world, with rival chains banking on kettle-carrying volunteers to set them apart as more civic-minded.
They issued a statement claiming that Target has always had a no-solicitations rule, and that they found it difficult to make an exception for the Salvation Army. I appreciate Target's rule on solicitors; I find it annoying to be accosted by the rainbow of nutbar causes and con artists that accost shoppers elsewhere. However, lumping the Salvation Army in with the rest of the hucksters stretches credulity. The Salvation Army, as Hugh pointed out, has the lowest overhead and supports the most heartbreaking cases of any major charity group, making them not only the first such organization but also the best. You never hear about Salvation Army management keeping Upper West Side lovenests with donor money, as happened with another national charity a few years ago -- one that regularly enlists corporate management to extort donations through payroll deductions.
"Please take this as our official notice that we will not be shopping at TARGET this Holiday (CHRISTMAS) Season. Additionally, we have told 10 of our friends about this, who in turn will tell 10 of their friends who in turn will tell ..well you get the message. Even though your store is a little bit closer and more convenient, my family and I will make the little extra effort to visit our neighborhood WALMART store.
Oh, by the way, SEASONS GREETINGS AND A MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU AND ALL OF YOUR EMPLOYEES who are against this policy (of which I am sure there are many)"
Some that are annoyed should do a little reflection and maybe, just maybe they will find their annoyance comes not from the solicitation, but from embarrassment. They know the Salvation money is used locally for good causes. They might realize that their annoyance comes from their embarrassment because of their unwillingness to donate.
For my holiday shopping this year I am going to avoid the stores that are banning the kettles, and patronizing the ones that welcome it. Also before the day is out I am also going to write stores below on both sides of the conundrum. They will have my opinions on silencing the bells, and my shopping intentions.
Stores that welcome the kettles are:
Big Lots
BJ's Wholesale Club Inc
AutoZone Inc
Books-A-Million Inc
Wal-Mart
Home Depot Inc
Barnes & Noble Inc
Circuit City Stores Inc
Caldor Corp
UPDATE: Hugh Hewitt also writes in his article that there will be a link to www.dontshoptarget.com up sometime later today.
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