I was going to blog about Halloween–until I read Ben Corey’s post

It’s called The Evil Part of Halloween. But it’s not what you think. As Ben says,

There is an evil side to Halloween–one that doesn’t involve fake ghosts or goblins, but a real evil–one that includes slavery, oppression, beatings, broken lives, and destroyed families.

That’s right folks, we’re not talking about Satan, we are talking about chocolate. Ben’s post is a good reminder of how difficult it is to consume anything these days without somehow perpetrating an injustice. The interconnectedness of the global economy has the potential to turn all of us into virtual Jainists, afraid to step out our door for fear of treading on someone else.

However, as Ben points out, the proper response is not paralysis but conscientious consumption and advocacy. As consumers, we have tremendous power to influence the companies that produce our goods. So check out some of the links Ben mentions, such as Free2Work, to see what you can do to help create a more equitable situation for the people who produce the raw goods that are eventually transformed into the products we all enjoy.