In response

It seems, and quite fairly too that a fellow blogger has seen fit to publish a post pointing out the inadequacies of my previous post, showering the clothing company howies with praise, well deserved praise. 

I only sought to bring to howies to the attention of my fellow bloggers.  Yes they are owned by Timberland and if you care to read more about the deal they brokered with Timberland, in which original owners David and Claire Hieatt maintain creative control over the company and retain their ethical policy then feel free to click on this link to the howies website.

Another interesting piece of information brought to light by this discussion is the recent involvement drinks/smoothie company 'innocent' has with McDonald's, some might say that innocent is selling out or rather they are using a corporate giant to allow their brand (brand is a horrible word to use but it is necessary in todays modern world, even oxfam brand themselves) and values more international recognition, considering that a large majority of societies youth eat at McDonald's.  The guardian as an interesting column on the piece online.  Innocent have added their own online blog with their thoughts on the matter.

For further reading there is a guardian piece on the opening of Timberland's new ethical store in London 2006 and a small description on some of their ethical products and themes.  Also there is a book, 'eco chic, the savvy shoppers guide to ethical fashion' by Matilda Lee in which I believe the company Timberland is met in a favourable light, although I will have to double check this information.

I think sometimes in these cases it is necessary for the little guy to require a step-up from the big guy in order to promote their values and way of thinking, however this debate could rage on and on for sometime and I think the closest we could come to a conclusion is through polls, surveys, discussions and essays.  There is also the issue not just about the materials used but whether the workers for these companies are treated fairly, it is a large organism of debate that has to be approached with an objective world view.  So for now I apologize to anyone who felt my previous blogs were lacking in history and information, I can only say that I will attempt to improve in the coming months, this is my first real attempt at blogging having been a bit dubious about the whole process but with practice I am/have come round to the ideas and benefits that blogging can provide.