I have to agree with Geoffrey, and disagree with you, Paolo and Andrus.
True, THIS TIME the focus is on Apple. There is a reason. Tomorrow, people who can do something about this are meeting.
I am going to write a terrible platitude here, but once conditions were ripe, it only needed ONE victim burning itself to death to wake up the whole Middle East.
I am not going to list the people who, single-handed, changed the world after having been called absurd or mad, or… or… or…, and their actions useless.
Please think instead of the prestige Apple has in the eyes of many many people. Not to speak of the money it makes. And if this prestigious brand said, tomorrow, OK, we accept less profit, but demand that the workers are treated as workers should, it would have an impact. If the worst come to the worst, nothing would happen immediately, but at last a discussion will take place. It has, in a way, already started, with countries speaking of stopping outsourcing. I shouldn't wish for Chinese workers to be out of work. On the contrary. With correct working conditions, it would need MORE workers to make the iPhones and iPads, more buildings…
I should like to tell you, in case you have missed it, that a (smaller, true) Swiss electronic maker has threatened to leave the Chinese firm who was producing their products unless they introduced the 40 Hours week and proper salaries, and once they saw they were serious, the Chinese firm did. The products still come a bit cheaper than if they were made in Switzerland.
The worst thing of all is, indeed, to do nothing.
All this to say: thanks, Jeff, I signed the petition.
And by the way, there is no reason, the day after tomorrow, not to focus on some other brands which sell cheap products made in China in terrible conditions.
Best,
Anne Cuneo