A few years ago, we were almost burned by a client. The guy ended up being slapped with a whole bunch of federal grand jury indictments, and a lot of my colleagues and other business owners DID suffer.
That’s when I put the “morals and ethics” paragraph into our contracts. It basically says that if we feel that you are operating unethically, or if you feel we are, the contract can be terminated immediately.
We never used the clause. Although we should have.
About a year ago, I called up my lawyer and asked her if we could change it. I wanted to shift it from being a “morals and ethics” clause to, pardon the language, the “@sshole” clause.
I figured it would be an easier win in court if we ever needed to call upon it.
Judge: “Why did you decide to terminate the contract?”
Me: “Well, your honor, the guy is an @sshole. And he signed the @sshole clause.”
Judge: “Well, I can’t argue that. Case closed. You win.”
My lawyer tells me it’s not that simple in real life. But if only, right?
So let’s all put down our pitchforks and partisanship for a minute and have a real conversation about this whole religious freedom law debate.
Everyone, take a deep breath and let’s look at this as objectively as possible.
A guy I know wanted to do business with my company. When he found out where I stood politically, that was apparently a problem for him. He decided to take his business elsewhere.
I COULD have been insulted. But I wasn’t. Because guess what? It probably would have been a lousy experience for both of us.
Looking at all of the debate around the law, I sort of look at it from a more common sense perspective. If I were gay, and a cake baker told me that I was going to hell because of who I was marrying, I probably wouldn’t want to buy a cake from him. Is it because he’s discriminating? I don’t know about you, but at the very root of it…I wouldn’t want to buy a cake from him because he’s an @sshole.
Hence that clause that I pushed for.
It’s the free market at it’s finest.
The fact that people are no longer afraid to hide their feelings simply means it’s easier for you to decide who you do and don’t want to buy from.
I’m Catholic. Born and raised. And if someone didn’t want to sell me pizza because of it, I’d probably blast them on social media. But I wouldn’t want to eat their damn pizza anyway after finding out that they had a problem with my beliefs.
Here’s what I find to be ironic. The Governors of Connecticut and New York put a state-funded travel ban in place to Indiana. Why? Because they didn’t believe that the law was acceptable.
So let me get this straight. Somehow it’s ok for them to use taxpayer money to express THEIR personal beliefs? Even when this was a law that was legally passed through a voting process? Isn’t that sort of the pot calling the kettle black? Someone should have written a clause about those two. (See what I did there?)
This isn’t about gay or straight or black or white or Christian or Jewish or Muslim. It’s about a free market system that can giveth…and one that can taketh.
Jesus said we should love everyone. Religions outside of Christianity have preached love and compassion and inclusion. But if someone doesn't love ME - I say the hell with them. I'll do business with someone who DOES. That's the beauty of the free market.
With that, I’m going to skip the bar and grab a beer at home. Why? Because my fridge won’t care whether I’m in the mood for a stout or a blueberry ale. That’s just the way it should be.
Authors note: before publishing this piece, I sent it out to 25 members of my team to get their perspectives. The group was split: 50% said "no WAY are you publishing this". 50% said "do it - it brings up a perspective people aren't talking about". People were heated on both sides. With a split like that, I KNEW I had to publish it...because I believe the exchange of a professional dialogue is perhaps the MOST important part of a free market. And so I graciously ask you all to share your thoughts in the comments below...but let's try and keep it civil.
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