I'm with you. I like Target and I like the Salvation Army. It is certainly the prerogative of Target to support or encourage charity as they see fit. In my estimation this doesn't warrant a boycott and I will continue to shop there.
We need to pick our battles wisely, lest we wrestle back the "wacko" title from the left.

To be fair to Hugh he is not directly advocating a boycott - but to apply pressure to them. I listen to his radio show and people who have told him that they are going to sell their Target stocks, that he told them to hold off on doing something like that.

"I thought our side was kind of, sort of in favor of a corporation exercising its prerogative as long as it wasn't pulling an Enron"

Well yes, but our side very much values the voice of the community and Hugh is giving voice to some in the community who do not appreciate Target's move.

I personally don't care, other than to say I hate their f'in commericials. And that your point about what the GOP is doing w/ the budget is well taken. I am very very upset at what they are doing -- I mean, why the hell did I vote a Republican ticket -- to see them pass mega-spending bills at the last second? That's not prudent law-making, that's being complicit in the welfare state. The bastards.

"I mean, why the hell did I vote a Republican ticket -- to see them pass mega-spending bills at the last second?"
Serves you right, except we all suffer the consequences!
Now you call them bastards? Where have you been the last 3 years? Or is it that your eyes refused to see & your ears only heard the republican spin, and now, "your side" is forcing you to actually see and hear reality?

Target? Good for them! I also like the store, same reasons: clean, good supply, great prices, lots of check-out lanes.
Salvation Army? I personally contribute BY MAIL. I hate their frig'in bells!

"lest we wrestle back the "wacko" title from the left." Too late, you already have.

I am a Guest Service Team Leader at Target. (The GSTLs run the checklanes and the return desk.) We GSTLs get a lot of direct feedback from Target guests. One big and continuing beef from guests was about solicitors in front of the store. Target banned ALL solicitors - not just The Salvation Army. I've pointed this out to Hewitt, but he seems to choose to ignore it. Be that as it may, not one of the six GSTLs in the store I work in has had one single guest complaint about Target banning The Salvation Army, and our sales are up over the comparable days last year.

I too like Target, Super Target actually is where I do most of my business and Sams I guess. Regualr Walmarts in my experience simply don't stack up, they look messy, they just don't have appeal as I walk in.

I have no problem with banning salvation army at Super Targets, thats a free enterprise perogative. Isn't it also an argument for government funding for the needy. I am bias towards suspecting most charities of graf and ill managing funds. That is my problem with so called faith based initiatives. That leaves the helping hand at the mercy of the markets or worse yet churches, the bastion of self interest in this country. I am catholic and I do give to catholic charities, but only because of personal historical reasons. In my view the government, as troubled as it can be, is the right place for impartiality in meading out favors. I believe that governemnt has the responsibility to protect those that cannot help themselves, and we as successful citizens have an obligation to those that are in need. That I believe is a responsibility of citizenship, not an off hand gesture as I am out saving the economy by shopping at Target.

If we don't want the government influencing private business and then we don't want private individuals or groups to exert pressure and we don't want the church to boycott (e.g. United Methodist Boycott of Taco Bell) then that seems to leave us with absolutely no one to take a moral stand.