Tag: Wal-Mart

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Laugh or Cry

My wife recently had surgery so we have a temporary handicap sticker for the car.  I tell you this to explain why we were parked so close to one of the three doors into Wal-Mart.  We were at the one in the area that  everyone refers to as The Valley here in Chesterfield.  It is beautiful river bottom farm land that they have lamentably converted into multiple strip malls anchored by the ever present huge box stores.

I was backing my wife’s Subaru from the aforementioned spot when I noticed two of Chesterfield’s finest exit the middle entryway of this huge Supercenter Wal-Mart.  They looked for all the world like a couple of hound dogs on the scent.  It was obvious that Continue reading “Laugh or Cry”

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Wal-Mart Could Easily Pay $12 an Hour

I referenced this same article in a previous blog, but I think it is important enough to pull out by itself.

“Raising the pay of Wal-Mart’s U.S. workers to a minimum of $12 an hour would lift many out of poverty, reduce their reliance on public assistance, and cost the average consumer, at most, $12.49 a year.

That’s the conclusion of a new study published by the UC Berkeley Center for Labor Research and Education.  The study is primarily concerned with the question of how raising Wal-Mart’s wages would affect poor families, including both those who work at its stores and those who shop at them.  The benefits to poor families, the study concludes, would far exceed the costs. “

Read the whole article at Wal-Mart Could Easily Pay $12 an Hour

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Occupy Wal*Mart

6 Members of Walton Family Have More Money Than The Bottom 30% of Americans

From article at AlterNet.org

When you consider how these folks have gotten this obscenely rich it is past obscene.  They have built this wealth off exploiting their workers,  small businesses,  cheap foreign labor, attacking the middle class, and generally turning us into a LCD (lowest common denominator) society.  Have I mentioned that they hate puppies, apple pie, and the American way?

Just a few of things I can think of off the top of head:

Wal*Mart has consistently underpaid its workers.  This is especially troubling as they are the largest private employer in the United States, employing some 2.2 million souls as of the latest data.  To give some perspective, the Federal government employs 2,823,777 which include 296,628 part-timers.  If you total up the employment of all 50 state governments you come up with 4,283,597 FTEs.  The next closest private employer to Wal-Mart, IBM, employs 436,000.

See chart below for listing of the top 10 private employers in the U.S.A. Continue reading “Occupy Wal*Mart”

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Redneck Bookends

We all travel in many circles in our life.  I travel in several myself, and dip my toe in a few others.  I’m golfer which is one circle.  I’m a programmer which is a work or geek circle.  I’ll let you choose.  I travel in the middle class circle, but I am probably just a few missed paychecks from not being there.  I’m an Okie.  I’m a male.  My girlfriend is Jewish.  One of the best friends I have ever had is black.  I count gay and lesbian folks among my friends.  I know folks up and down the economic scale.  I could name many more circles, but you get the idea. All of these are circles with their own set of rules and culture.

I’ve been to weddings that were sit down affairs with a full dinner, open bar and everyone dressed in tuxedos and evening gowns.  I’ve been to weddings in pastures where you had to be careful where you stepped to avoid the meadow muffins.

My daughter-in-law wanted me to attend the wedding of her brother.  The main reason was because her parents had never met any of her husband’s family.  I thought it a small kindness I could easily do with pleasure.  Besides, I was afraid her parents might be thinking my son Continue reading “Redneck Bookends”

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I Want to Buy American

I was in Lowe’s the other day.   The fact that it was Lowe’s is only incidental.  It could have been any of the many big box store chains that dot Generica.

They provided to me a pretty clear snapshot of the some issues that are troubling me about American business.  It all seems to boil down to corporations being willing to sell out this country because they are more concerned about the quarterly profit statement and executive pay than anything else.

My first observation is that Spanish is nearly as prominent in the store as English.  The lettering was not quite as big as the English, but it was only a small percentage less so. Continue reading “I Want to Buy American”

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Size Does Matter

How Germany got it right on the economy by Harold Meyerson in The Washington Post

The above link is an article on a different form capitalism, one that values social democratic ideals.  This is not the capitalism found in the good ole USA, but it is found in Germany.  Despite the bad economic times, and the raising economic power of Asia, their economy is still doing very well.

I have had some of the same thoughts as the author of this article, only mine were about farming.  I have occasionally had the same thoughts about small retail shops as Wal-Mart and other big box stores kill downtowns and mom and pop operations. I have just never made the logical progression to our manufacturing base. Continue reading “Size Does Matter”

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Etiquette Questions

Scenario #1 – You are in Safeway, Saks Fifth Avenue, Wal-Mart, wherever it is that you like you like to shop.  The Sweet Young Thing  (SYT) in front of you decides to get something from the bottom shelf.  In order to do so she bends over from the waist revealing the required tattoo in the small of her back.

Etiquette question #1 – Are you allowed to compliment her on her tattoo?

Etiquette question #2 – Let’s say for the sake of argument the answer to question one is yes.  Can you then go on to compliment her on her pretty thong?

Scenario # 2 – I was at the golf course paying my green fee.  The bar maid / cashier had a form fitting zip up sweatshirt. The zipper was pulled down or only pulled up to a point about a hands width above her belly button.  This revealed (among other things) a pretty white lacy bra.

Etiquette question # 3 – Am I allowed to ask what detergent she uses to keep her unmentionables so white?