Just what we need, another Wal-Mart. ☺
Wal-Mart is assembling another one of its Big-Box businesses in Lawrence, Kan., despite the fact that there already is one on the south side of town that people can drive to within a few minutes.
I'm not a big fan of Wal-Mart. I go there if I have to, but it's never on impulse like it is for a lot of people.
A friend of mine once suggested that Wal-Mart is such an intrusive part of our day to day lives that we might as well just slap a roof onto a community and allow Wal-Mart to supply it with everything: electricity, water, housing, health care.
Wal-Mart has a Stepford Wives quality to it. It stamps out that trendy top you like a million times, so not only can you wear it, so can everyone else.
Wal-Mart's reputation is based on its low prices, but at what cost do those prices come?
First off, Wal-Mart provides poorly packaged health care plans for its workers by maintaining strict restrictions on who can qualify.
Some people suggest that this isn't such a big deal because a lot of Wal-Mart's workers are college students who haven't established themselves professionally. But what about the other workers, like the single mothers paying for rent and daycare?
They're paying for the low prices that Wal-Mart offers.
Worth $18 billion, the Walton family’s wallet keeps getting fatter and fatter. They own Boardwalk and Park Place, as well as the green, yellow, red and orange properties, while the rest of us can barely afford to rent Baltic Avenue.
But life, unlike Monopoly, is not a random game of chance. We don't have to roll the dice to determine whom to do business with. We get to decide. But as long as people plunk down their credit cards and dish out the dollars, Wal-Mart will keep growing. And growing.
And growing.
Where does it stop? For me, it stops right here as I decide to just stop shopping there. What do you think?
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9 comments:
I know that Wal-Mart is frequently criticized, and another Wal-Mart in Lawrence may not seem like a great plan. On the other hand, there are some smaller rural cities in Kansas where Wal-Mart is the newest, cleanest business in town. In these areas, a lot of workers seem to enjoy working at Wal-Mart.
I completely agree. After Wal-Mart pitched up one of its stores in my hometown, virtually everything else went out of business.
But really, what are your options? Wal-Mart is the most conveniently positioned store on the map.
People won't stop shopping there, because it's too easy.
Hmm I can understand where your coming from, but like you said, we do it, not them, there not technically the bad guys. We (as society) asked for a place of convience, asked for lower prices, we got what we wanted... and its not just with walmart... theres others places just like it, lets say we got rid of walmart, we would start to complain that if i goto radio shack, im gonna have to pay three times as much for something walmart would of had. Eh i dont know, not a fan of typing out my thoughts but figured it might help ya a little bit. And yeah i dont know who else said it but ive joked about walmart taking over everything, water/electric/gas... court will be there, it will be the city building, popo station, fire, everything, hospital could even be in the walart, one stop for every city for everything, communities could be build around the walmart, being as the focal point, hmmmm yeah.... im not sure where the future is for our ppl, but im sure walmart will be there...
I completely disagree. You can't live in a Capitalist country and not respect Wal-Mart for their success; you can demonize them for some of the things that have been done in their name because of the unethical business practices of certain companies who supply them products, but you can't demonize the Wal-Mart business model itself. It's what every American wants, and I'm of the opinion that people hate it solely for the fact that it's not theirs. You can hate Wal-Mart all you want to, and be the biggest small business supporter on the planet, but it exists because the American government and our economy legislatively willed it into existence. We're a Capitalist country, Wal-Mart is the best it is at what it does... Bottom line. End of story.
Even thought I try to avoid it, I find myself grocery shopping at Walmart. It has become routine. I know it affects smaller shops and stores and ruins small towns.I can't help myself, wherever it's cheap, that's where I am.
I find this an interesting story. I would like to add some of the things that walmart does, or why some people have such "low pay".
first to clarify, over 50% of walmart employees are part time by their own choice. as a part time employee they complain about their small wages neglecting the fact that if they worked an extra 8 or 10 hours a week their paychecks would be closer to $500 instead of $300. I know quite a few walmart employees in kansas that are getting ~$1100 every 2 weeks. that amounts to 550 a week (more than most "good paying" constructions jobs have for starting wages). on top of the standard wages some stores do anual, others quarterly, but employes get a percentage of profits if their store meets the quota. last time I got a nice little $200 bonus in my paycheck when our store barely made it's quota.
also at walmart people have a lot of job security because it is hard to get fired from walmart (I know this after watching several people get terminated on their 3rd offense that most jobs would have fired on the spot the first time)
True the health care plan is not the best. why not do a little bit of shopping and get a blue cross or blue shield plan? Having walmart insurance is optional.
As for having a second store in a city, that just means that their sales are going to bring in more tax $ that will help the community.
Look at all the jobs that will open up when a new Wal-Mart pops. that will help the city plus why do people care so much for small town businesses anyway do they offer you a cut of profit? do they even offer good benefits to there employees? I think small businesses only look out for there own interests if they can steal your money by jacking up prices they will I believe completion keeps them on there toes making them work harder for you business meaning we win. If the little guy convinces you that Wal-Mart is the devil and we all stopped going there what do you think would happen? The little guy would have no one to force him to lower prices and he wouldn't give a fuck if you complained cause where you gonna get your green beans. If you want to eat to got to go somewhere might as well be where there is a floating head that magically makes Hungry man dinners buy one get one free.
I work at walmart i'm a full time worker, i also go to college. Yes walmart has a low prices but people the workers pay for it. I have worked there for 3 years and i barely make seven. The health care sucks big time. Its about 50/50 the way people feel abaut it. I'm on the bad side i hate walmart. Whats sad is i spend all my money there for things
well if people would quit going to walmart and support the local economy it would eventually stabilize itself and we would be making more money to pay for it instead of having to pay less and we wouldn't have to worry about the people in the third world countries that are making 35 cents an hour to make all this stuff we buy
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