Comments on: Observations on Walmart, Women, and Wages

By: Mighty Mike

Mighty Mike — Fri, 26 May 2006 23:48:16 +0000

Very interesting blog either way one stands on the WalMart issue. One thing the detractors have to admit is WalMart & companies like them will NEVER go away as long as your friends and neighbors want their $39.00 T.V.s & $79.00 mountain bikes. Who wants to be the first to protest by bravely standing in front of his neighbor’s car on his way to the Supercenter? ANY TAKERS? I didn’t think so.We all should realize there is a trade-off to bargain buying and people have already voted with their pocketbooks. I daresay many, many more than do at the voting booth!
I run a photography business & could honestly say that a certain percentage of my customers have abandoned me for Walmart’s portrait studio. But I realized picket signs just weren’t going to do a thing for MY bottom line. I simply created a new niche with which WalMart can’t compete. Today I actually rejoice when certain customers who I know can’t afford me go to WalMart & Sears. That way I don’t have to waste my time in a session for a deadbeat and they’re happy with the hideous
bargain portraits they get there! It’s a win! win!

By: Joseph Miranda

Joseph Miranda — Tue, 01 Nov 2005 01:02:55 +0000

My problem with Wall Mart is it’s practice of forcing American companies to ship jobs overseas to keep their contracts and of using taxpayer subsidies.Here in Riverside,Ca they recently announced the closing of a store one week after the last payment of a $26,000,000 taxpayer subsidy.I can’t stand Socialism but using the American taxpayer in this way is nothing but Corporate Socialism.Funny how Target is able to make a profit without resorting to this kind of practice and still offer benefits to it’s employees.

By: Bob Ruth

Bob Ruth — Wed, 13 Jul 2005 12:39:26 +0000

Do you ever take in concideration that there are Wal-Mart employees getting government help like food stamps. Doesn’t that make them a government subsidized co.

By: Michael McKee

Michael McKee — Wed, 20 Apr 2005 00:09:11 +0000

I suppose that you need a token comment from the left. I am not a socialist, though you might consider me one. I simply don't think that the only, or even most important measure of human activity is the bottom line.

Some time ago I RIF'd in a merger, though the term hadn't been coined yet, and chose to spend a couple of years volunteering for V.I.S.T.A., the stay in America version of the Peace Corp. When I returned to the job market I had a surprisingly hard time finding employment. After one interview with a Fortune 100 company, which I thought went well, a V.P. took me aside and told me that I was the most qualified applicant but my time doing good made me look like a 'communist'. He recommended that I downplay my volunteer time saying something like, "I had to get it out of my system," instead of considering it a positive.

What a revelation. I knew business was about making money but never understood the kind of religious fervor capitalism invoked in corporate America. I took the kind advice, albeit in a reverse manner. I applied to the non-profit sector and got two offers out of my next three applications.

In small town America, there may not be an alternative to the minimum wage that WalMart offers. I know. I grew up there. Had I not had the grades and entrance scores to attain a scholarship, I might still be there. Not all of us attended HBS, gaining the attendant open doors that such a degree offers. Choice is wonderful if real. For too many it isn't. The playing field was never level, nor will it ever be.

There is a great deal of value in maximizing profits, but wanting to consider other types of 'good', including championing the less fortunate, of equal value does not make one a socialist.

By: Zoran Lazarevic

Zoran Lazarevic — Mon, 11 Apr 2005 20:20:25 +0000

Nice post. I am learning economics, so my comment here might be a bit ignorant:
1. "In America, people take jobs voluntarily". If we look at an underdeveloped region with only one industry (e.g. a chicken-plucking factory or an automobile-plant), there is only one employer within a decent driving range. Unlike the Vietnamese farmer, an American worker has no farm to fall back to (even if he wanted to). Workers of Flint,MI did not have much choice before the auto industry shut down, as we saw from the aftermath.

2. The Left picks one target company because that simplifies their marketing message. But the major complaint of the Left is not Wall Mart per se, but the fact that the minimum wage is not a living wage. As Dave Schuler noted above, women (and men too) now have to work much more then they did in the 70's in order to achieve decent living (median-income family cannot afford a median-priced house, etc.) When you are defening Wall Mart, you are thus defending all huge corporations (Exxon included).

The problem of the Left is that they see that something is wrong (i.e. workers' income is too low), but do not know how to fix it except blame it on profits. From all I know, creating more efficient method of selling (e.g. Wall Mart store) should create more jobs.

In many of the Wall Mart defense articles, however, I hear the message "our current economy is perfect" and "the workers are doing great". My personal observation is that this country is not doing as well as it can and should do.

By: Dave Schuler

Dave Schuler — Mon, 11 Apr 2005 13:29:34 +0000

I agree with you that the story of the mass entrance of women into the workplace in the United States is remarkable. I disagree with your interpretation. Women entered the workplace for many reasons but a very significant leading indicator was stagnant median incomes. At least in part women entered the workplace so that families didn’t have to accept a lower standard of living.

By: The Fat Triplets

The Fat Triplets — Mon, 11 Apr 2005 04:01:21 +0000

Coyote Blog on Wal-mart

Coyote Blog has a great post on Wal-mart becoming the new “great satan” of the progressive left as well as other observation…

By: TJ's Weblog

TJ's Weblog — Mon, 11 Apr 2005 02:53:33 +0000

Carnival of the Capitalists – Edition 04-10-05

Welcome to the latest edition of the ‘Carnival of the Capitalists/! I hope you enjoy the following hand selected TOP 20 entries below. They represent 20 great and original blog pieces from all over the blogosphere. I actually think that…

By: TJ's Weblog

TJ's Weblog — Mon, 11 Apr 2005 02:53:33 +0000

Carnival of the Capitalists – Edition 04-10-05

By: Luca9200's blog

Luca9200's blog — Mon, 11 Apr 2005 00:29:32 +0000

People I disagree with

I like to read bloggers with opinions different from mine.