Is walmart really evil

[MrMacphisto]

History shows that in a capitalistic society once the customer isnt happy the corporation fades into obscurity.

Speaking of the importance of a good education, perhaps you should research what corporations do when they virtually control a market through oligopolies. Customers of Microsoft often hate Windows, but they stick with the OS because there aren't any real alternatives to it. People bring up Macs, but everything about Apple's products is way more expensive and often with less third party software applications. I can assure you that, if Macs were more affordable and had more third party support, Microsoft would lose tons of market share. Of course, Gates (being a major stockholder of Apple) wouldn't allow that to happen. He's basically playing both sides of a market he already dominates, so Microsoft won't be fading into obscurity anytime soon -- regardless of how much many people despise it....

Simply put, modern capitalism is not a mere system of supply and demand, it's a corporate culture that is designed to increase profit regardless of how much it exploits its consumers and working class. Granted, communism is even worse....

So in order to keep the prices low they can't provide the extra stuff non saving employees want. Walmart earned the right to be one of the biggest corps in on earth. Heck they are the single larges employer dwarfing the US army. Apparently 80$ of the population doesnt think their evil since they continuously shop at walmart. Stopping walmart from expanding, is like lowering the standards at school so more can pass, whoops that's going on anyways.

In the grand scheme of things, Walmart's labor practices are pretty tame compared to what goes on in the Third World. Plenty of other companies do much shadier things -- like Monsanto, News Corporation & so many others...

Enron was just the tip of the iceberg....

 

[StephanieLocke]

I think walmart is simply a visionary company, I don't see why people are opposed to having a walmart in their town? I think some of the mom and pop stores that are threatened by it are trying to get by with their less than average establishments.

You are SO wrong. Wal Mart KILLS small towns. As someone from Louisiana, all you need do is drive through my state and spot all the empty main streets and boarded over shops. When someone asks "what happenned?" the answer is invariably the same "Wal Mart came to town."

We can't have lower prices at the cost of entire communities.

Mistress Stephanie Locke
www.mslvideos.com
www.stephanielocke.com

 

[TKpervert]

Walmart helps raise the standard of living for low-income people by giving them a place to buy goods they otherwise might have to go without. That's evil ?

As far as child labor, sweatshops, etc., if Walmart stopped dealing with them they would not go away.

 

[TKpervert]

You are SO wrong. Wal Mart KILLS small towns. As someone from Louisiana, all you need do is drive through my state and spot all the empty main streets and boarded over shops. When someone asks "what happenned?" the answer is invariably the same "Wal Mart came to town."

We can't have lower prices at the cost of entire communities.

Mistress Stephanie Locke
www.mslvideos.com
www.stephanielocke.com

I find it hard to believe that Walmart would 'kill the host' by building in a town that couldn't support it.
They're not stupid.

 

[amk714]

http://walmartwatch.com/pdf/2005-annual-report.pdf

Have some of you even visited the links provided in this thread (by me, Lime, and Venray)?

 

[TKpervert]

http://walmartwatch.com/pdf/2005-annual-report.pdf

Have some of you even visited the links provided in this thread (by me, Lime, and Venray)?

No.

According to Mark Twain, there are three types of lies - lies, damn lies, and websites.

or was it Disraeli.. . or Alfred Marshall.

oh wait, it wasn't websites, it was statistics. 😀

I can find a statistic to support almost any argument I want to make, and I can also find a website to support almost any argument I want to make. I'm not swayed when posters throw links at me. Usually.

I agree that Walmart is causing some problems but they're not evil.
They've developed a business model that works and has competitors worried.
That's evil ?

 

[kcantankerous]

The walmartwatch site seems bias to me. Furthermore, Walmarts chief desire is for the customer. Yeah it strives to lower prices and sometimes at the expense of quality and employees. But again other companies buy sweat shop goods. Common now, all those cloths most by are made in freakin sweatshops. Is it right, who knows, to us it could be a sweatshop by our standards, but it's probably an oppertunity to the people of whatever country the sweatshop is located. Not every country is as over developed as ours. As for small towns, you get more convience and pay lower prices than at competing stores. I read the stuff from that site walmartwatch. I also study business practices and the like. I don't believe that walmart is a shining light in the US but it truely is a visionary company. As for the walton family, they're father created the best retail store in history. If they want to horde their money and not pay workers thats their deal. It will all come full circle if the employees arnt happy as a whole. The government subsides is probly the area I actually am not happy with in terms of walmart.

 

[TKpervert]

The government subsides is probly the area I actually am not happy with in terms of walmart.

What gov't subsidies ?
.
.
.

 

[kcantankerous]

here tkperv

subsidy- Monetary assistance granted by a government to a person or group in support of an enterprise regarded as being in the public interest.

 

[TKpervert]

Yep, I know the definition 😀

But, did you see something that says that Walmart is a beneficiary of gov't subsidys ?? If so please point me to it.

 

[kcantankerous]

good point I made an error. Well I got nothing against walmart then. And the walmart watch is abunch of twisted statistics. I wonder why so many people expect the rich to just give away money for people who arn't as motivated to be rich. I understand that alot of the rich are so by inheratence but thats because their parents or parents parents, worked hard so that their grandchildren or whatever could enjoy wealth. I encourage alot of the anti business type to read the millionaire next door. And yes the majority of the underpaid workers have a highschool level education if that. Believe me if your degreed odds are you don't work as a grunt at walmart I'm sure of that.

 

[amk714]

Wal-Mart is not the only corporation guilty of violating workers' rights, polluting the environment, adding to the trade deficit, and a host of other maladies. I never said it was. I only focused on it because Wal-Mart is the subject of this thread. Any business that uses sweatshops and the like to fuel their profits (like Nike) should come under scrutiny. Businesspeople shouldn't be exempt from following ethics and regulations. Does the rise of companies like Wal-Mart spell the end of civilization as we know it? Of course not. But they sure make it hard for small businesses to thrive.

There are many websites, books, and articles which argue either side of the debate using statistics. It's up to everyone to figure out who's right. I don't care if you don't want to bother yourself with them. By the way, the further in your education you go, the more you rely on statistics to make your points. It's called research. Have fun shopping at Wal-Mart, everyone. I hope you find what you're looking for. Peace out.