In a way
it's sort of creepy when PR messages from multinationals you have certainly not
‘liked’ seem to magically pop up on your facebook stream, shortly after you have more
or less ‘disliked’ those exact same multinationals on your facebook wall. I
happen to prefer my glass half full though, so I have decided to draw from this
the somewhat happy conclusion that apparently someone is paying attention. Well
then, here goes nothing...
Hello again Shell,
So,
apparently you’re getting Pakistani kids an education. Good. I like kids to get
educations. Who wouldn't?
I like it so much that I would almost like this random message you
somehow were able to send my way – you know, if it hadn’t been completely
uncalled for and, to be frank, coming from you.
Sure, I
think it’s swell that you have some external social development projects going
on. Then again, that doesn't lift you from the responsibility to clean up your
own messes - you know, the ones you are actually responsible for. (On a
sidenote, belittling the intelligence of consumers seems a questionable way to
try and grow their sympathy towards your company).
You don't need
to prove you’re some kind of good Samaritan. In fact, I don’t see how you ever
could be a good Samaritan. Not so much because I’ve become completely
close-minded towards the possibility, but rather taking into consideration that
you’re not even a person. All of us with functioning brain cells know that
Shell is made up of an incredible variety of people. And that some Shell employees
will be overall great people, while other's will be mostly shit. In all
likelihood, all of them will alternate between good and shit, and occasionally
be good and shit at the same time - life's often not simple enough to make out
which is which.
Likewise, multinationals are much too complex to be labelled either
evil or morally exemplary. All I know
is that as a company, you should be held accountable for your actions, just
like any other powerful entity. When powerful entities are not held accountable,
the amount of harm they can inflict gets a little bit too overwhelming for my
tastes. The shit will inevitably take charge, and that can’t be a good thing by
any account – except the shit account, of course.
Some PR tips
for all you non-shit Shell employees out there: if you want to save the world, start
with saving it from Shell. Go ahead and really clean up the mess the mothership has made in the Niger Delta. Offer oil spill victims
some serious compensation for their destroyed livelihoods and ensuing health
problems. Make sure that in the future Shell will do all in its power to
prevent non acceptable risks towards people, wild life and the environment they depend upon. Above all, don't allow the big shots to neglect these bare
necessities and hide behind relatively cheap to finance, external,
low-commitment projects to signify their social engagement.
I for one,
would be seriously impressed. Because I confess, it does seem mighty difficult
to prevent the shit from taking over in a large multinational company.
Love and luck,
E.