Speak Up, Maybe You'll Change Something

My mother has had modest success in writing to companies and complaining (when they deserve it). One of her most noteworthy efforts involved writing to Imperial margarine after they changed their old stand by recipe for it. She wrote something along the lines of "What have you done to my favorite margarine? I've bought it for years. The new stuff tastes awful. I am very unhappy and will not buy this terrible stuff."

She said she never expected to hear anything but a couple months later got a letter back with a coupon for her to try Imperial again. "We have changed the recipe back," they noted. She was not only happy, but also a little shocked. She felt that surely she hadn't been the only one to complain.

One of the most famous consumer revolts in history involved marketing experts (I just know they were to blame) advising Coca-Cola that it was time to update its taste for modern consumers. A "New Coke" was rolled out in 1985, sweeter than the recipe in use for almost 100 years. Consumer rejected the new drink, and just three months later, the old formula was pacifying drinkers again.

I've never caused anything historical to happen, but one day I had a small fender bender in a nearby city. The other party and I started to exchange insurance information while waiting for the police to arrive. When an officer arrived, he gave us each a handy little card with which we could record the pertinent information: name, address, name of insurance company, race.

Race? I stared at the card. What did my or anyone's race have to do with it? I was kind of astounded to find this kind of reference in 1999. Subsequently I wrote a polite letter to the police department with a head's up that they might want to change the card before someone with a lawsuit forced the issue. They wrote me a nice letter back saying, "After reading your letter and looking at the card, your comments are well founded. We are in the process of making the change plus one or two others." It felt good to know that sometimes speaking up brings results.

Then there are some times when it is just good to speak up because it is the right thing to do and people need to hear a dissident voice. After all, if no one complains about something, then companies or presidents say, "Well, we haven't had any negative feedback, so people must like this."

It's even good to complain when columnists make big boo boos and write something that they had no business saying. Of all the people in the world to offend, I made a major faux pas back in April when I wrote about teaching honesty and noted that you couldn't find many lawyers around today who were as honorable as old Abe Lincoln, or who would work for no pay. Big mistake, and I do apologize; a number of lawyers or relatives of lawyers wrote me to say that many many lawyers do pro bono work (that means free) and some of the bigger firms higher lawyers to handle all cases free for those who can't afford services. It takes only a few scoundrels to give an occupation a bad rap, so I'll accept 30 lashes with the late Ann Lander's proverbial wet noodle.

So, speak up. Start a movement, or at least get a margarine company to go back to its original recipe.

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Contributed by Melodie Davis from her weekly columnANOTHER WAY (http://www.thirdway.com/aw/).For information on using Another Way in a local newspaper, contact:ANOTHER WAY, 1251 Virginia Ave., Harrisonburg, VA 22801-2497; or call1-800-999-3534; fax at 540-434-5556; or email me at:Melodie@mennomedia.org