Need another reason to hate Walmart? Here ya go...

[rocketman]

Besides a large footprint, I don't see many similarities.

Starbucks is primarily limited to coffee drinks at premium prices.
Walmart has basically everything at budget prices.

You can give up expensive flavored drinks.
You can't give up household supplies and food.

I'd imagine Wal-Mart's logistics are killing them right now with fuel prices, seeing as they do all their transportation themselves. Wal-Mart is pushing for "greener" practices not out of the goodness of their heart, but because it saves them tons of coin.

 

[scooter1369]

Walmart fires employee for defending himself against attacker

Walmart's PR crew is once again on red alert

 

[jwinslow]

Walmart's PR crew is once again on read alert

Lucky for them, you aren't on it :p

 

[scooter1369]

Lucky for them, you aren't on it :p

Mild case of fat finger.

 

[buxfan4life]

Walmart fires employee for defending himself against attacker

Walmart's PR crew is once again on red alert

Both Wal-Mart and the customer who punched him are gonna be in some pretty hot water. Laying your hands on a person over the age of 65 in anger is a big felony in Florida, as well as the age discrimination suit this guy will bring against Wally World for firing the man for defending himself.

 

[Dryden]

Walmart fires employee for defending himself against attacker

The problem for the old man in this is that he was hired as a greeter, not a security guard. I doubt WalMart, or any other supercenter, includes asset protection and recovery as part of the job training for the elderly and semi-retired employees they hire to work as greeters. The employee escalated the situation by following the customer out to the parking lot to get the license plate number. That act was innocent enough on its own, but also well outside the realm of his job duties, which is even before his attempt to wrestle the clipboard back from the customer after both came back into the store. At the point where the customer returns to the store to steal the clipboard, the greeter needs to surrender it and call for assistance or trained security personnel.

It's one of those BS pussification-of-America excuses to fire him for something that wouldn't have been cause for termination only 20 years ago, but I suspect WalMart does have a position here. If this situation occurs 100 times this employee probably reacts the same way all 100 times, because he's wired that way. He was trying to do a good deed, the customer became enraged, and the employee retaliated when he feared for his own safety. All that said, I'll bet in his employee file is some 32-page contract in 6-pt. type that he signed the day he was hired where he specifically agreed never to leave the store and follow a customer to the parking lot unless it was to assist someone loading items into their vehicle.

 

[FCollinsBuckeye]

Anyone here have an old abandoned Wal*Mart in their town? Y'know, with the associated old abandoned strip mall associated with it? And then the shiny new Super Wal*Mart on the outskirts of town? Ft. Collins does.

The defenders of Wal*Mart hold up these ideals of capitalism, as if the market place is succeeding when we've consolidated our retailer into a giant one-stop shop that 'sells for less!'.

The insidious other side of the coin here is that Wal*Mart manipulates our communities such that they are able to 'sell for less!'. Call me a conspiracy theorist if you wish, but the reality is that Wal*Mart has done the following in many communites, mine included. They put up a Wal*Mart years ago, offered their Chinese wares at 'everyday low prices!' Shopping habits change, we all like to save money after all, right? Several smaller retails fall by the wayside and our choices are increasingly limited and Wal*Mart has a developed a large customer base. Capitalism is working, and the 'marketplace' is happy. the local community is still getting sales tax revenue regardless of whether people are shopping at Wal*Mart or 'Mom and Pops General Store', so we're still getting some community benefit from the retail sector.

Fast-forward 5 or 10 years, Wal*Mart builds a brand new, shiny SUPER Wal*Mart outside the city limits! One that can serve the two communities on either side of it. Wal*Mart is able to consolidate it's operations in two towns, and can avoid costly city sale and property taxes! Prices are even lower! Great for the consumer!

Only, it's bad for the community. These huge hits on smaller towns sales tax revenues kill local budgets and reduce the quality of services offered in those towns. Things like schools, police protection, fire protection, snow removal, parks maintenance, etc. Things that make communites worth living in.

Many Americans will say "good! Public schools waste tax payers money! They need to get more efficient anyway! Privatize community services! It's more efficient! etc, etc". It's my opinion these Americans can't see the forest for the trees. We need public servants. Our country was founded and grown by public servants. We need public servants at the most local levels, they are our friends and neighbors and they work on our dime to make our communities work. And since they are public servants, they are accountable to us. The strategies of Wal*Mart are unravelling communities across America.

 

[scarletmike]

While I totally understand where you're coming from and agree somewhat with your post, I think it is a little extreme. If anyone here hasn't read it, I highly suggest picking up "The Wal-Mart Effect" by Charles Fishman. It is a great book on the subject of what impacts Wal-Mart specifically has on our economies local, national, and global. And I think it does a great job of trying to be unbiased.

 

[DubCoffman62]

Anyone here have an old abandoned Wal*Mart in their town? Y'know, with the associated old abandoned strip mall associated with it? And then the shiny new Super Wal*Mart on the outskirts of town? Ft. Collins does.

The defenders of Wal*Mart hold up these ideals of capitalism, as if the market place is succeeding when we've consolidated our retailer into a giant one-stop shop that 'sells for less!'.

The insidious other side of the coin here is that Wal*Mart manipulates our communities such that they are able to 'sell for less!'. Call me a conspiracy theorist if you wish, but the reality is that Wal*Mart has done the following in many communites, mine included. They put up a Wal*Mart years ago, offered their Chinese wares at 'everyday low prices!' Shopping habits change, we all like to save money after all, right? Several smaller retails fall by the wayside and our choices are increasingly limited and Wal*Mart has a developed a large customer base. Capitalism is working, and the 'marketplace' is happy. the local community is still getting sales tax revenue regardless of whether people are shopping at Wal*Mart or 'Mom and Pops General Store', so we're still getting some community benefit from the retail sector.

Fast-forward 5 or 10 years, Wal*Mart builds a brand new, shiny SUPER Wal*Mart outside the city limits! One that can serve the two communities on either side of it. Wal*Mart is able to consolidate it's operations in two towns, and can avoid costly city sale and property taxes! Prices are even lower! Great for the consumer!

Only, it's bad for the community. These huge hits on smaller towns sales tax revenues kill local budgets and reduce the quality of services offered in those towns. Things like schools, police protection, fire protection, snow removal, parks maintenance, etc. Things that make communites worth living in.

Many Americans will say "good! Public schools waste tax payers money! They need to get more efficient anyway! Privatize community services! It's more efficient! etc, etc". It's my opinion these Americans can't see the forest for the trees. We need public servants. Our country was founded and grown by public servants. We need public servants at the most local levels, they are our friends and neighbors and they work on our dime to make our communities work. And since they are public servants, they are accountable to us. The strategies of Wal*Mart are unravelling communities across America.

I've seen the exacr opposite in other cities, Walmart had filled many an abandoned stripmalls with their stores and revived neighborhoods. There used to be an old abandoned mall about 5 miles from where I live, the place was overrun with gangbangers and whores but now there's a walmart and a Lowes and the area seems to be doing well.

 

[Fungo Squiggly]

Anyone here have an old abandoned Wal*Mart in their town? Y'know, with the associated old abandoned strip mall associated with it? And then the shiny new Super Wal*Mart on the outskirts of town? Ft. Collins does.

The defenders of Wal*Mart hold up these ideals of capitalism, as if the market place is succeeding when we've consolidated our retailer into a giant one-stop shop that 'sells for less!'.

The insidious other side of the coin here is that Wal*Mart manipulates our communities such that they are able to 'sell for less!'. Call me a conspiracy theorist if you wish, but the reality is that Wal*Mart has done the following in many communites, mine included. They put up a Wal*Mart years ago, offered their Chinese wares at 'everyday low prices!' Shopping habits change, we all like to save money after all, right? Several smaller retails fall by the wayside and our choices are increasingly limited and Wal*Mart has a developed a large customer base. Capitalism is working, and the 'marketplace' is happy. the local community is still getting sales tax revenue regardless of whether people are shopping at Wal*Mart or 'Mom and Pops General Store', so we're still getting some community benefit from the retail sector.

Fast-forward 5 or 10 years, Wal*Mart builds a brand new, shiny SUPER Wal*Mart outside the city limits! One that can serve the two communities on either side of it. Wal*Mart is able to consolidate it's operations in two towns, and can avoid costly city sale and property taxes! Prices are even lower! Great for the consumer!

Only, it's bad for the community. These huge hits on smaller towns sales tax revenues kill local budgets and reduce the quality of services offered in those towns. Things like schools, police protection, fire protection, snow removal, parks maintenance, etc. Things that make communites worth living in.

Many Americans will say "good! Public schools waste tax payers money! They need to get more efficient anyway! Privatize community services! It's more efficient! etc, etc". It's my opinion these Americans can't see the forest for the trees. We need public servants. Our country was founded and grown by public servants. We need public servants at the most local levels, they are our friends and neighbors and they work on our dime to make our communities work. And since they are public servants, they are accountable to us. The strategies of Wal*Mart are unravelling communities across America.

Fucking socialist pigdog.

 

[FCollinsBuckeye]

[censored]ing socialist pigdog.

I take that as a compliment coming from you, comrade.

:p

 

[Fungo Squiggly]

I take that as a compliment coming from you, comrade.

:p

Cheers!

 

[MightbeaBuck]

It's my opinion these Americans can't see the forest for the trees. We need public servants. Our country was founded and grown by public servants. We need public servants at the most local levels, they are our friends and neighbors and they work on our dime to make our communities work. And since they are public servants, they are accountable to us. The strategies of Wal*Mart are unravelling communities across America.

You were doing well until this last paragraph.

And since they are public servants, they are accountable to us.

Wow. Are you in the same country as me?

Have you not heard of what the White House czars are doing? And the only one they are accountable to is the head of the current regime.

Or to turn it around, I'd be glad to have your abandoned WalMarts, strip malls, etc. in exchange for public servants that believe they are accountable. For example, the police forces in this country are not responsible for preventing crime nor for protecting anyone. Legal Snares for the Unwary Law-Abiding Citizen
They do, however shoot people. Unarmed people in hospitals. toledoblade.com --
62 year old ladies type people. Toledo police shoot and kill 62-year-old woman - WTOL.com, Toledo's News Leader, News 11 |
The last death by gunfire in my town / my county was murder by cop.
The last death by gunfire in the city I work in, Toledo, was murder by cop.
Both of them were considered justified. Some civil servants.

Our country was actually founded by the original Tea Partyers, the most anti-public servant group ever gathered. Over-throwers of governments.
And does anyone really believe the growth of the country was by public servants? That the FortyNiners who pushed the European expansion over onto the west coast were on the government dole? That the Oklahoma Sooners were lapping at the public tit? That the Railroad Tycoons pushed civilization west by turning a huge profit did it only on what we taxpayer alloted them? That the Eire Canal planner, entrepreneur Jesse Hawley worked for the government in any way? "Go west young man!" Though Horace Greeley didn't say it, neither did a public servant.

The westward movement of the Mormons was caused by the government though.

 

[sepia5]

You were doing well until this last paragraph.


Wow. Are you in the same country as me?

Have you not heard of what the White House czars are doing? And the only one they are accountable to is the head of the current regime.

Or to turn it around, I'd be glad to have your abandoned WalMarts, strip malls, etc. in exchange for public servants that believe they are accountable. For example, the police forces in this country are not responsible for preventing crime nor for protecting anyone. Legal Snares for the Unwary Law-Abiding Citizen
They do, however shoot people. Unarmed people in hospitals. toledoblade.com --
62 year old ladies type people. Toledo police shoot and kill 62-year-old woman - WTOL.com, Toledo's News Leader, News 11 |
The last death by gunfire in my town / my county was murder by cop.
The last death by gunfire in the city I work in, Toledo, was murder by cop.
Both of them were considered justified. Some civil servants.

Our country was actually founded by the original Tea Partyers, the most anti-public servant group ever gathered. Over-throwers of governments.
And does anyone really believe the growth of the country was by public servants? That the FortyNiners who pushed the European expansion over onto the west coast were on the government dole? That the Oklahoma Sooners were lapping at the public tit? That the Railroad Tycoons pushed civilization west by turning a huge profit did it only on what we taxpayer alloted them? That the Eire Canal planner, entrepreneur Jesse Hawley worked for the government in any way? "Go west young man!" Though Horace Greeley didn't say it, neither did a public servant.

The westward movement of the Mormons was caused by the government though.

Can we keep this bullshit in the poli forum where it can be systematically avoided?

 

[MightbeaBuck]

Can we keep this bullshit in the poli forum where it can be systematically avoided?

Hey, he started it. :tongue2:


You're right though. Sorry. :!
Because of the disruption of the economic (taxes, etc.) / political (eminent domain, etc.) / geographical (urban blight, etc.) aspects of this, Walmart should probably have its own thread in the poli forum.

Just remember, he started it.