In areas that require shoes
In areas that require shoes to be worn to school shoe charities are doing damage.
(I'm going with sentence list just for Ram)
The stupid third world shoe rule is being re-enforced by the charity instead of challenged, and the majority of the poorer kids still remain shoeless so school-less. despite charitable efforts.
A whole new social class is created, and kids are even stealing the nice new shoes from others.
When they outgrow them, they continue wearing them because of the status they have achieved.
I am a free-market believer, and love the capitalist system. Blake should be commended for figuring out a way to produce and market shoes and make himself rich in the process.
BUT, he is harming those third world communities.
Giving the second pair to shoeless kids in Detroit, Chicago, Cleveland, New York, Philly, etc. for winter protection would be a charitable gesture. It just does'nt have the same "feel good" factor as the destructive practice of giving them to those poor third world kids.
Also, I don't believe Blake REALIZES the damage he is doing, so I don't hold it against him personaly.
Those of us that HAVE done the research owe it to the barefoot kids in those countries to try to change things.
Blake won't change a good thing that's going for him, BUT, if his customers demand that the shoes be given to cold weather poor kids and at the same time efforts be made to change the school shoe rules in the third world HE WILL!
THAT'S the beauty of the free market. If a certain % of his customers really buy these because of the charity thing, then we can educate them to see that a slight adjustment needs to be made in order to make the effort truly charitable.
We show them the facts, they demand better from Tom's, and Blake complies.
THAT'S the REAL win-win Ram!