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Why do intelligent cool people hate Wal-Mart?

N8 v2.0

Not the sharpest tool in the shed
Oct 18, 2002
11,003
149
The Cleft of Venus
I Are Baboon said:
:confused:

Where did I mention the physical appearance of the people who shop there?

My point is, no matter what Walmart I've been in, the shopping experience has sucked.
Didn't mean to single you out with that...
 

Biscuit

Turbo Monkey
Feb 12, 2003
1,768
1
Pleasant Hill, CA
ThePriceSeliger said:
It's trendy to hate walmart.
This is true.

I've met people who talk all sorts of baseless trash about Wallmart and corporate evil, then explain why they like Target so much better.

I've developed a habit of grinding my teeth.
 

Angus

Jack Ass Pen Goo Win
Oct 15, 2004
1,478
0
South Bend
SkaredShtles said:
Interesting view. Replace WT with the "N" word and see how it sounds. :rolleyes:
SS! great point.

I have become a firm believer you can tell alot about a neighbor hood by it's walmart, there is one I frequent, that is rather upscale and the parking lot is full of lexus' & mercedes.
 

Velocity Girl

whack-a-mole
Sep 12, 2001
1,279
0
Atlanta
N8 said:
Of course those could easily be code words for other races too...
I too don't particularly care to shop at certain Wal-Marts for those people stated.....too many people with their heads up their a**, not paying attention to what they're doing, letting their kids run around like wild animals, waiting in line for 20 mins while said kids run into me. :mumble: No different than how I feel about the yuppies sometimes at IKEA who walk around acting like they are gods gift to the world and can be as rude as they want. This type of stuff has nothing to do with me not wanting to be around people of other races, etc....it's me not wanting to be annoyed and feel the urge to pull out a gun and go postal on someone!!! So, in general I just try to avoid crowded shopping places.
 

Archslater

Monkey
Mar 6, 2003
154
0
Indianapolis
I'm suprised no one has pointed out what Walmart does to their suppliers.

From Wikipedia: "With Wal-Mart's supreme buying position, it business relations with suppliers are at times best described as a vigorously monopsonistic. In its negotiations with suppliers, Wal-Mart requires that prices go down from year to year. If a vendor does not comply with Wal-Mart's request for reduced prices, they risk having their entire brand removed from Wal-Mart's shelves in favor of a lower-priced competitor or a less expensive store brand. This can put pressure on suppliers to shift jobs to factories in third world countries or reduce the quality of the product. A CEO of one of Wal-Mart's suppliers said that the price Wal-Mart requested from his company for a particular product was so low that he couldn't afford to keep production in America, even if he didn't have to pay his workers anything."
 

OGRipper

back alley ripper
Feb 3, 2004
10,654
1,129
NORCAL is the hizzle
This is fun but I have to go get a Starbucks coffee so I am energized for my trips to Walmart and Ikea before I go to the Mega-plex to see a movie I read about in a magazine I got at Borders, then after that maybe we'll go to Chili's for some "ethnic" food and then to Hooters for a night cap...

Now, guess what part of the country I'm in?

Nah, nothing wrong here. :rolleyes:
 

Biscuit

Turbo Monkey
Feb 12, 2003
1,768
1
Pleasant Hill, CA
btw, I have a lot of respect for the way WalMart is structured. They are incredibly efficient and innovative.

They do, however, make money off other peoples cheap labor. Just like practically every other store you visit.

People always seem to single out and despise whoever is on top. There are many other companies who are just as bad, if not worse, but the focus is always directed at an easy, big, faceless, corporate monster.
 

N8 v2.0

Not the sharpest tool in the shed
Oct 18, 2002
11,003
149
The Cleft of Venus
Archslater said:
I'm suprised no one has pointed out what Walmart does to their suppliers.

From Wikipedia: "With Wal-Mart's supreme buying position, it business relations with suppliers are at times best described as a vigorously monopsonistic. In its negotiations with suppliers, Wal-Mart requires that prices go down from year to year. If a vendor does not comply with Wal-Mart's request for reduced prices, they risk having their entire brand removed from Wal-Mart's shelves in favor of a lower-priced competitor or a less expensive store brand. This can put pressure on suppliers to shift jobs to factories in third world countries or reduce the quality of the product. A CEO of one of Wal-Mart's suppliers said that the price Wal-Mart requested from his company for a particular product was so low that he couldn't afford to keep production in America, even if he didn't have to pay his workers anything."
Who cares? Wal-Mart can buy toothpaste from anyone so if you want to sell to them, then you have to play by their rules.

Besides, moving factories to some 3rd World country isn't a bad thing. That kid that used to work for $1/month out in some rice paddy in the heat and rain can now work inside a plant out of the weather for $20/month.. and we the American consumer can get inexpensive tee shirts.

Its is win-win.
 

Reactor

Turbo Monkey
Apr 5, 2005
3,976
1
Chandler, AZ, USA
Here are some reasons:

The store is invariably dirty, and I'm talking about one store. I've been to at least five different Walmarts in the Phoenix area and they are all pits.

The clothing they sell is trash, and wears out faster than single pivot bushing.

The electronics are reasonably good, but the staff manages to be incompetent and have a bad attitude at the same time. Most of the time you have to accept a box somebody already opened and hope you don't have a problem, or go somewhere else.

They are China's single biggest trading partner, and yet run a disingenuous ad campaign telling everyone how they support American manufacturing, frequently their poster child one year, is put out of business and outsourced to china the next.

When I go shopping I'm looking for value, not price. I'd rather have a reasonably good time in a nice store and buy a high quality product, than save a few bucks, get a piece of crap and have it break in a few weeks. I also have some products I prefer and Walmart doesn't carry.

So the bottom line is, it wasn't a pleasant place to shop, didn't carry the products I wanted, and their substitutes were quite inferior.
 

Biscuit

Turbo Monkey
Feb 12, 2003
1,768
1
Pleasant Hill, CA
Archslater said:
I'm suprised no one has pointed out what Walmart does to their suppliers.
It's called competition. Pressure sucks, but it often brings out the best in people.

I had a meeting with a "guy" who's small companies products are all on wallmarts shelves. He explained that he actually had to pay for the privelage of putting his products on wallmarts shelves. But... it allowed him the volume and the economies of scale to produce his product much cheaper than before, and become more competetive.

Besides that, if you worked for WallMart corporate, and it was your job to get decent products for your customers as cheap as possible (because that's what your customers want).
You know that you have this power of granting a HUGE market for people to sell items in your stores. Why wouldn't you use it?

It's simply people, who work for a large company, doing their job to the best of their abilities and succeeding.
 

Silver

find me a tampon
Jul 20, 2002
10,840
1
Orange County, CA
N8 said:
So basically people hate Wal-Mart largly because of the people who shop there? Nice! Way to be tolerant of those less fortunate than you are... :rolleyes:
**** em. Poor people are lazy. Goddamn white trash meth head walmart shoppers should all be sterilized so I don't have to pay property tax to send their cough syrup drinking kids to school (until they get pregnant at 12 and drop out, anyways.)
 

OGRipper

back alley ripper
Feb 3, 2004
10,654
1,129
NORCAL is the hizzle
N8 said:
Who cares? Wal-Mart can buy toothpaste from anyone so if you want to sell to them, then you have to play by their rules.

Besides, moving factories to some 3rd World country isn't a bad thing. That kid that used to work for $1/month out in some rice paddy in the heat and rain can now work inside a plant out of the weather for $20/month.. and we the American consumer can get inexpensive tee shirts.

Its is win-win.
N8, you are playing devil's advocate and this is fun and all, but your arguments are self-centered, short-sighted, and so full of BS I just had to roll up my pants.

Walmart is monopolizing retail distribution everywhere they exist. If you think that is free market economics, think again. When there is only one retail outlet, suppliers will not be able to choose who they "want" to sell to, there will be only one option: sell to Walmart. Many will not and their products will no longer be available to you, so you won't have as many choices. Plus when eventually there is no retail competition, Walmart will jack their prices, while still forcing their suppliers to discount their wholesale prices.

So, less choice and less competition. That is not a free market.

I think I need a time out.
 

narlus

Eastcoast Softcore
Staff member
Nov 7, 2001
24,658
63
behind the viewfinder
OGRipper said:
This is fun but I have to go get a Starbucks coffee so I am energized for my trips to Walmart and Ikea before I go to the Mega-plex to see a movie I read about in a magazine I got at Borders, then after that maybe we'll go to Chili's for some "ethnic" food and then to Hooters for a night cap...

Now, guess what part of the country I'm in?

Nah, nothing wrong here. :rolleyes:
quote of the day.
 

HedgeHog

Monkey
Nov 8, 2003
137
0
Atlanta GA
Here is my short list:

1 Long lines at the 3 registers that are open (17 registers closed)
2 Much of the merchandise is poor quality
3 Poor quality staffing which are overworked
4 Local shops going out of business when Walmart opens its doors
5 Majority of merchandise is imported (something like 60%)
6 Underhanded way Walmart tries to get into an area
7 HUGE empty buildings left when New Walmart opens down the street from Old Walmart
 

RhinofromWA

Brevity R Us
Aug 16, 2001
4,622
0
Lynnwood, WA
I went to Walmart on December 31st.

:eek:

I was going for the "experience." I didn't buy anything that time just walked around people/situation watching.

I will buy film there because it is a bunch cheaper than other options around me....and if I get a wild hair I can shoot a fair amount of film. ;) So the money I save pays for a developement or two.

I have found that if I must go to Walmart than I buy my things at the electronics counter. Though my local WallyWorld is a std (non-Super, Mega, Mountainous) Walmart so there is no supermarket items to clog the electronics isle.

Max people in line (even X-mas Eve) was 4 and they only have a handfull of items. Unlike the carts at capacity in the front check out lines.....go the the electronics section to check out and save a half an hour and a lot of stress. ;)
 

kinghami3

Future Turbo Monkey
Jun 1, 2004
2,239
0
Ballard 4 life.
N8 said:
Why do idiots hate Wal-Mart?

Here's a company that sells stuff people want to buy at a price people want to pay. what's wrong with that?

So why all the blind hatred? Is it because Wal-Mart is so sucessful and some people can't stand sucess? Or is it just trendy?


:blah:
We idiots hate Wal-mart because it has a habit of treating its employees poorly, putting people out of business, and severely exploiting overseas workers. I want nothing more than to see Wal-mart's business strategy obliterated, and I boycott it because I cannot morally justify shopping there.

Besides, moving factories to some 3rd World country isn't a bad thing. That kid that used to work for $1/month out in some rice paddy in the heat and rain can now work inside a plant out of the weather for $20/month.. and we the American consumer can get inexpensive tee shirts.
Don't kid yourself. Cutting down prices yearly does nothing good for the vendors or their employees.
 

Toshi

Harbinger of Doom
Oct 23, 2001
38,361
7,760
fwiw, i watched the walmartsucks trailer and was embarrassed by how amateur it looked. bunch of whining. and so far i've seen these arguments, all weak:

1. "keep money in the community". show me the peer reviewed study that demonstrates a net benefit to the consumer's pocketbook through shopping at smaller stores.

2. "i don't like poor people." suck it up, princess.

3. "i like the ambience of Targét". yuppie.

i shop at target, for the record, but seattle doesn't have walmart afaik.
 

ALEXIS_DH

Tirelessly Awesome
Jan 30, 2003
6,147
796
Lima, Peru, Peru
N8 said:
So basically people hate Wal-Mart largly because of the people who shop there? Nice! Way to be tolerant of those less fortunate than you are... :rolleyes:
the n8 spoke.:p

while you make some good points.

i used to buy at walmart. (because its open 24/7, and i went shopping at 2am). shopping at walmart at 2am is not that bad as i read.
always there was this nice guy who stocked the bagels and cream cheese at that hour, and he always got me the blueberry ones and the low fat cream cheese, even if they still were in the back. +10 points for costumer service there.
and if i needed something, they walked me to the aisle.

their on sale bin for video games was good. there was always cheap electronic crap to buy (jacks, cables, cds, little stuff like that).
i never had problems at the registers, always got a smile from the cashier.

but i think they should improve their workers conditions.
but i didnt care enough about that to boycott depriving them from the 150 bucks a month i spent there...
 

OGRipper

back alley ripper
Feb 3, 2004
10,654
1,129
NORCAL is the hizzle
Toshi said:
1. "keep money in the community". show me the peer reviewed study that demonstrates a net benefit to the consumer's pocketbook through shopping at smaller stores.
You and N8 seem to miss the bigger picture issue: Quality of life can't be quantified as a "net benefit to the pocketbook." But maybe you and N8 equate quality of life with "size of bank account" and nothing else. In areas where Walmarts are forcing people out of business, most of the anti-Walmart people are perfectly willing to pay a little more to keep some character in their communities. In my (maybe harsh) opinion it's only short-sighted, cheap and self-centered bastards who are brainwashed into thinking having more stuff equals success, who are not.
 

kidwoo

Artisanal Tweet Curator
N8
If by "trendy and hip" you mean "researched and opinionated appropriately", you have a point.

You're not interested in information however. That's why you post the drivel that you do.

Wrap your brain around this: I despise walmart and absolutely love costco. Could not be forced kicking and screaming into the first but gladly spend thousands annually at the second (and never at walmart's version sam's club).

I would tell you why, since it has nothing to do with such trite malice arising from some business' success, but like I said, I know you're impervious to such a diatribe and you'll just respond with one or more of ridemonkey's assortment of little animated smilies.

Actually, you'll do it now anyway.
 

H8R

Cranky Pants
Nov 10, 2004
13,959
35
I Are Baboon said:
I've been oppressed by Websense.
At work?

I can paste it....




losangeles.craigslist.org > rants & raves > Rules for shopping at Costco
last modified:Mon Sep 01 20:54:29 2003

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Rules for shopping at Costco
Reply to: anon-15672946@craigslist.org
Date: Mon Sep 01 20:49:55 2003


1. After you show your card to the front door babe who is too busy to notice because she is flapping her mouth off to another lazy employee about what went on at the club last night, keep your ass moving. Do not stop at the big gigantic stainless steel tool chest(which is useless) or the 900 inch TV. You cant afford that either. You're in the way of people like me who gots to get to the meat section cause I gots a killer BBQ to do tomorrow.

2. Costco was not conceived, financed and built just for you and your slow ass family. When you show up you do not automatically own the place. There's nothing worse than having an urgent need to get in and out of the damn store and I'm stuck behind your big fat flat ass, your pussy whipped dumb ass drooling husband, your 97 year old grandmother, your stuck up teenage daughter and the the little 6 year old "accident" you proudly call Amy who cant keep her spoiled hyperactive ass out of the way of everyone's shopping carts. Maybe she'll learn when I run her little L.L. Bean ass over with a flat cart with a 500lb gun safe on it. Another little **** raised on Dr. Spock books.

3. There's ALWAYS too many people in Costco. Most of them seem to think this is the greatest thing to come along since the whites moved out of South Central L.A. in '65. Please leave the entire family outside and give them enough money to gorge themselves on cheap pizza and hot dogs. Otherwise, keep them the hell out of my way.

4. You look like **** in any of the new clothes there. Keep moving.

5. Costco is not always a bargain. Neither was Fedco. You dont need to horde everthing for the afterlife. Yes, some stuff is unique but there's a reason they dont put unit pricing on everything like they do in supermarkets. That way you cant compare. And since you cant compare please stop worrying out aloud whether or not the salmon will go with the sourdough bread. I dont give a ****. Put your **** in the basket and get the **** out of my way.

6. You do realize that you have to buy a lot just to break even on you membership fee? Keep moving please.

7. If your stupid ass cant steer a shopping cart then just stay out of the ****in store.

8. If you stop to look at ONE of the 425 different Celine Dionne CD' and you leave your cart in the middle of the aisle AND you ignore everyone who need to pass then your ass needs to be dragged out behind the store and shot. At least you wont be in anyone's way anymore, especially mine.

9. We're finally in the dreaded checkout line and unfortunatley you are in front of all of us and we hate you. You have enought food in two carts to feed all the starving children in South America and most of it is strange, off-the-wall expensive boutique **** no one else ever buys. Your Nextel rings and you decide, for whatever goddam reason, that you have to use the walkie-talkie feature so that everyone around can hear.
As if we all didnt know already, you are a person of privelege. You conversation is peppered with the words "checks", "accounts" and "dividends". We sigh. The rest of this conversation usually goes something like this, complete with Nextel and car keys on a soccer mom lanyard in the right hand while placing the boutique food on the belt wth the left hand:

"Yeah, we'll get the boat when we get there. Steve and Barbara have a place for us on their ranch. No, we'll probably go over to Florida after that. Why dont you all meet us there? What? Oh, sure, they just finished tiling the floor in the master guest room yesterday so by the time you get there everything should be fine. Yeah. No, the horses will be there by Thursday. Uh huh. Yeah, Tina will be coming in from Vermont on Wednesday and she'll bring the papers with her. I know, I can hardly wait...".

10. You know what? **** you, **** Steve and Barbara, **** Tina, **** the guest house, **** the boat, the mother****in horses and **** your wonderful life. Move the goddam baskets forward bitch. I dont have all day for this bull****.

11. Granny is dressed in all black, is obviously from some ancient far away civilization and is staring everyone in the store like they have the plague. Next time, ask her what she wants at Costco and leave her old ass at home next to her alter and candles and ****. She's giving everyone the creeps. She's probably putting a hex on everyone. I thought I saw her sneak into her purse and throw some strange powder on some poor kid when he wasnt looking. I got out of her way. I already have enough damn problems.

12. For the love of Sister Mary Joseph look at yourself in the mirror before you come to Costco. You cant get much worse than somone's 48 year old mom with a gigantic flat ass wearing pink capri spandex pant, toes that hang over the edge of sandals, huge 54DD hanging titties underneath a cheap tank top with no bra and a big ass pale peek-a-boo belly button with a tatto on it. Come on people, give us a goddam break please. I was gonna have a hot dog and pretzel after this. ****.

13. SPEAK ENGLISH. I'd like to know what the hell all the excitement is over a large box of fruit roll-ups and why all twelve members of your family are having a cow over it in the middle of the aisle. Please put the damn box in your cart and dance around it at home. And get the hell out of my way, please.

14. Oops. I just ran over Amy's little L.L. Bean ass with the flat cart that has the 500lb gun safe on it, 20lbs of ribs, various spices, 5 gallons of ice cream, two watermelons and a box of chocolate covered rasins. Lil bitch was in my way.
She'll feel better when she gets to Florida.

Buck the dog





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Copyright © 2003 craigslist
 

scurban

Turbo Monkey
Jul 11, 2004
1,052
0
SC
OGRipper said:
You and N8 seem to miss the bigger picture issue: Quality of life can't be quantified as a "net benefit to the pocketbook." But maybe you and N8 equate quality of life with "size of bank account" and nothing else. In areas where Walmarts are forcing people out of business, most of the anti-Walmart people are perfectly willing to pay a little more to keep some character in their communities. In my (maybe harsh) opinion it's only short-sighted, cheap and self-centered bastards who are brainwashed into thinking having more stuff equals success, who are not.
:stupid:
 

Serial Midget

Al Bundy
Jun 25, 2002
13,053
1,896
Fort of Rio Grande
Walmart ruined the town I live in, at last count over 50 independently owned small retail businesses have closed. Driving through our downtown area is like driving through a modern depression. Walmart can suck my ass.
 

stevew

resident influencer
Sep 21, 2001
40,607
9,617
Their parking lots seem to have a carnival like atmosphere with all the RV's/motorhomes parked in the parking lot and the side show freaks entering/exiting them.

I don't hate WalMart, I just try to avoid going in them.
 

N8 v2.0

Not the sharpest tool in the shed
Oct 18, 2002
11,003
149
The Cleft of Venus
kidwoo said:
N8
If by "trendy and hip" you mean "researched and opinionated appropriately", you have a point.

You're not interested in information however. That's why you post the drivel that you do.

Wrap your brain around this: I despise walmart and absolutely love costco. Could not be forced kicking and screaming into the first but gladly spend thousands annually at the second (and never at walmart's version sam's club).

I would tell you why, since it has nothing to do with such trite malice arising from some business' success, but like I said, I know you're impervious to such a diatribe and you'll just respond with one or more of ridemonkey's assortment of little animated smilies.

Actually, you'll do it now anyway.
Doobie time?
 

Andyman_1970

Turbo Monkey
Apr 4, 2003
3,105
5
The Natural State
I'm no fan of Wal-Mart and try to give my business elsewhere when possible, but sometimes we do end up shopping there.

I'll be the Christian rational version of N8 and post some articles on the subject........all come from www.sojo.net

Wal-Mart proudly touts that it saves consumers money by forcing suppliers to cut the fluff and get competitive. For most clock-punching employees of Wal-Mart’s stores, warehouses, and suppliers, however, lower prices equal lower wages.

The recent raid of Wal-Mart stores by federal agents yielded 300 illegal employees of the cleaning companies under contract with Wal-Mart. Racketeering charges have been filed on the immigrants’ behalf against the cleaning vendors and Wal-Mart. The suit claims Wal-Mart managers were aware of workers’ illegal alien status and cooperated with cleaning contractors to demand extra hours without extra pay.

Wal-Mart benefits from its lower-cost vendors, who manufacture many Wal-Mart products in Mexico, China, and Bangladesh. Laborers in these factories frequently work more than 80 hours per week for a few dollars a day. These factories are the reason apparel-maker Levi Strauss is closing its last U.S. manufacturing facilities this year. After 150 years of making jeans at 60 U.S. factories, Levi’s will sell only imported jeans and has introduced a low-price line at Wal-Mart in hopes of saving its failing business. When manufacturing jobs float overseas, many U.S. workers turn to one of Wal-Mart’s 1.3 million jobs—not much of a consolation prize.

Most "full-time" Wal-Mart employees don’t see 40-hour weeks and, at an average of $7.50 per hour, barely make enough to shop at their own stores. While Wal-Mart is the largest U.S. employer, it is also one of the most controversial, as current domestic labor disputes reveal. For instance, the United Food and Commercial Workers union in Southern California is protesting Wal-Mart’s incoming "supercenters," which will undercut existing retailers in the area.

MEANWHILE, WAL-MART steers employees away from unions, resorting to extremes when necessary. After Wal-Mart opened its first supercenters nationwide, meat workers frustrated by low pay, lousy benefits, and abusive treatment voted themselves into the first successful union presence at Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart responded by closing all of its fresh-meat departments and eliminating those jobs.

Almost 1.5 million current and former female employees are suing Wal-Mart in California’s largest sex-discrimination case in history. The plaintiff’s case, according to Fortune magazine, shows that as Wal-Mart "associate" rank increases, the number of female employees decreases, and that men’s salaries are consistently higher than women’s salaries at all employment levels. Wal-Mart spokesperson Mona Williams told Fortune, "We’ve spent so much time making sure we had a world-class distribution system and supplier network that we probably did not pay as much attention to making sure we got the personnel stuff right." Wal-Mart is now busy trying to change its public image, but Wal-Mart needs more than a makeover. It needs accountability.

Who provides both power and conscience to Wal-Mart? Shoppers and shareholders, so far, have consented that lower prices and more stores are more important than honorable vendor and employment standards. It is inconceivable that Wal-Mart, king of counting the financial cost, is unaware of the human cost of wage levels and working conditions in its suppliers’ businesses. Wal-Mart’s power comes with responsibility to pay just wages. With hundreds of thousands of Wal-Mart employees below poverty-level income, corporate contributions to community and charity are not enough.