Pedant

I recently was getting the mail at our condo and noticed that quite a few of the mailboxes have a sticker on them that say no junk mail please "I'm doing it for the Better Good." I don't have any issue with this idea, though if you think about it how can you really be sure that if they don't stick it in your mailbox it's going in the trash rather than the recycling bin (which we have right next to the mail boxes for just such mail.)

My first problem is that it is actually a sticker that is free to all at The Better Good which is an organic, fair trade, locally made, handmade, natural, free yoga store on Broadway. While I do have opinions on each of these (with the possible exception of yoga), my issue isn't with their philosophy as much as the fact that their helpful little sticker is actually a form of advertising (and as I've already stated, getting the junk out of your mailbox doesn't stop the mail from existing or make a statement to the companies which print it.)

This leads into my second (and extremely pedantic) problem with this sticker and the stores name. The phrase they are mirroring is "For the greater good". The issue I have with "The Better Good" is that it doesn't mean the same thing. The greater good is the good which covers a larger area, a larger group, in this case the word greater doesn't me that which is more good but that good which effects more. The word better is already a comparative of the word good. It simply means it's better, an example being that while this athlete is good this other one is better. So in essence, what the name of this store is saying to us is that this store's good is better than the good at other stores. It's not a statement of positive purpose, it's a statement of pride or superiority.

Now, I don't believe this is a subversive message that the owners have "snuck past." The owners are nice folks and from what my sources say very genuine and honest in their attempt to make a difference with what they can offer at their store. I'm disappointed that their name, when it's thought out, doesn't really mean what they meant when they put it up. I'm also disappointed that their well meaning, but inaccurate name is on stickers that, because the phrase doesn't really mean anything in that context, are now just an advertisement.

See, I told you I was being pedantic. Sorry Corey.