Wal-Mart War Room

[Miulang]

OK, so I decided to play by da rules of dis board and started this thread here instead of putting the article below in the second Walmart at Keeaumoku folder. Just change the country but the issues remain the same...

Miulang :(


Wal-Mart at Mexico Ruins Sparks Protest
By Lorraine Orlandi, Reuters

TEOTIHUACAN, Mexico (Sept. 11) - Burning incense and sounding a conch shell horn, residents of an ancient Mexican city protested on Saturday at the construction of a Wal-Mart store on the edge of the ruins

AP
A Teotihuacan pyramid, the archeological site 18 miles from Mexico City.

The sprawling warehouse-style Bodega Aurrera, a unit of Wal-Mart in Mexico, is due to open in December in Teotihuacan, a major archeological site outside Mexico City.

Opponents say it will ruin a way of life that dates back centuries and have taken legal action to stop it, in a fight that gives a grand dimension to the classic battle between big business and small-town values.

"What they are doing in Teotihuacan is destroying Mexico's deepest roots for short-term interests like lower prices," local teacher Emanuel D'Herrera told about a dozen protesters outside Teotihuacan's town hall. "This is the flag of conquest by global interests, the symbol of the destruction of our culture."

Other protesters bearing placards against the "gringo business" entered the town hall and pledged to stay there until the mayor heard them out.

U.S.-based Wal-Mart, the world's biggest retailer, faces increasing opposition in the United States as it stretches beyond its rural roots and into urban areas. Voters in a Los Angeles suburb recently rejected a Wal-Mart supercenter, and other communities have passed ordinances blocking its so-called big-box stores.

The Teotihuacan construction site lies less than a mile from the gated tourist park housing the main ruins and is visible from atop the Pyramid of the Sun that has defined the skyline for 2,000 years.

UPHILL BATTLE

Local activists know they are fighting a steep uphill battle. Wal-Mart Mexico has local and state approval for the store and construction is well under way.

"I support the store, it will save me time and money," said Camilo Olivas, a father of four who works for the federal electricity commission in Teotihuacan.

He drives 10 minutes every two weeks to shop at a Wal-Mart store in another town to find low prices.

But a handful of opponents say Wal-Mart will kill local family-owned enterprises and erode a lifestyle dating back centuries, while sucking income from locals.

They have filed a criminal complaint, charging authorities with acting illegally in approving the project. They filed a civil complaint on the same grounds and asked the nation's rights ombudsman to step in.

Amid rising controversy, Mexico's government this month said a small pre-Hispanic altar was found buried at the construction site. Plans call for preserving the small structure under plexiglass in what will be the store's parking lot.



"Mexico is one of the few places in the world where the seeds of culture and religion remain," said Tim Sikyea, or Lonely Eagle, a Dene Indian from the Northwest Territories in Canada who came to Teotihuacan this weekend for an annual ceremony with indigenous peoples from across the continent.

"When you have big business come in you lose touch with that culture."

No one knows for sure who founded the ancient seat of power and then abandoned it around 600 A.D. The Aztecs later came upon it and named it Teotihuacan (The Place Where Men Become Gods).


09/11/04 17:44 ET

And something from our friends in the British Press:

The Sun, Moon and Wal-Mart!

The Times, London

TEOTIHUACAN, Sept. 11. — Ancient Pyramids of the Sun and the Moon at Teotihuacan, one of Mexico’s most prized archaeological sites and most popular tourist attractions, have a new neighbour — a Wal-Mart warehouse that has enraged academics and locals in equal measure.
The US retail giant has almost completed its hypermarket, much to the dismay of local residents and cultural organisations. The local office of Unesco, the United Nations cultural body, has joined calls for an investigation into how Wal-Mart was allowed to proceed on 3.7 acres that is part of the archaeological site.
It has taken up the fight of local pressure groups who hope to block the opening of the store, due in December. In response to local protests, the government has promised that the construction permits will indeed be reviewed by the National Council for Culture and the Arts.
But local activists are in no mood to give up the fight.
“We’ll put a stop to this with demolition, because a transnational corporation can’t just come and trample on our historical patrimony,” said Mr Lorenzo Trujillo, the head of the Civic Front for the Defence of the Valley of Teotihuacan, which represents some 100 local residents. In late July, about 50 members of the Civic Front occupied the building site for three days, demanding that construction be halted. The protest ended peacefully but construction continued. Wal-Mart threatened to take the protesters to court.
Critics say the modern warehouse design of the store, which has become a standard bearer of the creeping US cultural invasion of Mexico, clashes with the 1,400-year-old site.
Not everyone in the area opposes the project. Some welcome the store for the low prices, investment and jobs it will bring. “This is a development opportunity,” Mr Jorge Lopez, the town secretary, said. “We need water, drainage, pavement, schools.”
Wal-Mart claims that its own privately-hired archaeologist found few items of archaeological interest while the foundations of the store were being laid.
Mexican officials say a small pre-Hispanic altar was found buried under what will be the store’s parking lot.
-----------
Walmart workers in Las Vegas have started their own website (http://www.walmartworkerslv.com) as part of their campaign to have the United Food and Commercial Workers Union represent them. The website is pretty interesting because it includes all kinds of stuff about anti-union actions that Walmart has taken around the world.

Normally, I'm against unions (I'm salaried, after all) but in cases where a company so grossly violates equal opportunity laws and discriminates against its workers for the sake of making individuals rich, then I say, "Power to the People!"

[kimo55]

residents of an ancient Mexican city protested on Saturday at the construction of a Wal-Mart store on the edge of the ruins

The sprawling warehouse-style Bodega Aurrera, a unit of Wal-Mart in Mexico, is due to open in December in Teotihuacan, a major archeological site outside Mexico City.

Opponents say it will ruin a way of life that dates back centuries


this just absolutely burns my ass.
I need no further provocation to equate walmart with the antichrist. cuz i knew they were already.
But if this doesn't sway any walmart lovers...
well, then, their heart, mind and soul are made of coal. and dense rock.

[Miulang]

"Amid rising controversy, Mexico's government this month said a small pre-Hispanic altar was found buried at the construction site. Plans call for preserving the small structure under plexiglass in what will be the store's parking lot."

This is the other part of that first article I posted that fries me. Does that mean at every new WM site, whenever they uncover relics or artifacts that they're going to encase said relics under plexiglass in the middle of the macadam??? That's supposed to be respectful??? That, and the fact that the Mexican government apparently approved the construction permit based on the say-so of an archeologist who was hired by WalMart!

Miulang

BTW:What did they do with the bones they uncovered at the Keeaumoku site anyway?

[kimo55]

BTW:What did they do with the bones they uncovered at the Keeaumoku site anyway?

they are under plexiglass in the Needless Markups store ala moana

[Miulang]

they are under plexiglass in the Needless Markups store ala moana

Bahahaha! :D

[Mocha]

It's just ashame that nothing happens to those who desecrate gravesites. The building still gets constructed and "life goes on" (is this one of the forbidden phrases)! People too often forget...again keep reminding us Kimo!!! :eek:

[Miulang]

So as not to sully the purity of the other Walmart thread, here's some more fodder for why people should think twice about shopping either at Walmart or Sam's Club:

Pro-subsidy, anti-union

Ironically, founder Sam Walton's rules for building a business retail include valuing "associates" and sharing rewards. Last year, Wal-Mart generated $265 billion in revenue and had about $9.1 billion in net income. Today there are 5,000 stores in 10 countries, including Argentina, South Korea and China. When Walton died in 1992, he was second only to Bill Gates for title of the world's richest man.

The impressive growth has come at a high price. In May, Good Jobs First, a nonprofit research center that promotes corporate and government accountability, released a report showing Wal-Mart received more than one billion dollars in subsidies from local and state governments, including sales tax rebates, free or reduced-priced land, tax-increment-financing, state corporate income tax credits and property tax abatements. The study was partially funded by the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union.

Labor unions have their own fight to pick with Wal-Mart. Although the UFCW recently won accreditation and the right to represent employees in a Quebec Wal-Mart, it has yet to successfully organize in the United States. In 2000, meat cutters in a Jacksonville, Texas store voted to organize and shortly after that the company announced it was closing the department. Wal-Mart's official position on unions is: "We do not believe there is a need for third-party representation."


Read the whole story here: http://www.alternet.org/rights/19901/

Miulang

[kimo55]

Ironically, founder Sam Walton's rules for building a business retail include valuing "associates" and sharing rewards.Miulang


also, Sam Walton started with a BuyAmerican slant and he tried to procure, sell and support american made products.


remniscient of the disney corp. debacle. totally different animal than what Walt Disney "imagineered"

[Miulang]

also, Sam Walton started with a BuyAmerican slant and he tried to procure, sell and support american made products.


remniscient of the disney corp. debacle. totally different animal than what Walt Disney "imagineered"

Heh. Did you notice how quickly they got rid of that campaign? Even back then (wasn't that in the early 90s?) it was damned near impossible to find anything that was manufactured and assembled 100% in the US. Imagine what it must be like now with all the outsourcing going on????

Miulang

As an aside: next time you eat macadamia nuts, see if the label tells where those nuts were grown...they may be from Australia, Central America or Southeast Asia even though they might have a "Hawaiian" logo on the box!

[kimo55]

As an aside: next time you eat macadamia nuts, see if the label tells where those nuts were grown...they may be from Australia, Central America or Southeast Asia even though they might have a "Hawaiian" logo on the box!


I checked a can of mac nuts i have lying around da tiki bar here. saw the address for the orchards and processing offices.. did a search on the internet .
the address found on the internet shows a new Walmart there.

[Miulang]

I checked a can of mac nuts i have lying around da tiki bar here. saw the address for the orchards and processing offices.. did a search on the internet .
the address found on the internet shows a new Walmart there.

ROFLMAO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Miulang]

Haha! Now that growth in the US appears to be slowing down, our buddies in Bentonville now have their eyes on.....RUSSIA!

Holy cow! I never thought WM would bring about detente. A true victory for capitalism if WM gets a toehold in Russia...Capitalism topples Communism! Wow! Would Lenin and Stalin be pickled pink or what???

More here: http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?storyID=6257979

Miulang

Actually, if WM did put up a store say, in Moscow, if ever I visited there I certainly would stop by to pick up a few matryoshka dolls. Those cost a pretty penny here in the States.

[kimo55]

Actually, if WM did put up a store say, in Moscow, if ever I visited there I certainly would stop by to pick up a few matryoshka dolls. Those cost a pretty penny here in the States.


are those the nesting dolls?

[Miulang]

are those the nesting dolls?
Yuppers. Maybe I could pick up a few Ukranian Easter eggs, too.

Miulang

[kimo55]

Yuppers. Maybe I could pick up a few Ukranian Easter eggs, too.

Miulang


we have got some of those;
hawaiian royalty as well as tiki theme russian nesting dolls here in waikiki.

[Miulang]

we have got some of those;
hawaiian royalty as well as tiki theme russian nesting dolls here in waikiki.

You can't call them Russian if they're not made in Russia! (Semionovo). If you want to read about the evolution of the matryoshka, go here:http://russian-crafts.com/nest/history.html#name

Dem dere tiki thangs would be called "Hawaiian nesting tikis".

Miulang

[Miulang]

Shoot..this news story says they're building in St. Petersburg (formerly known as Leningrad). Wonder why they bypassed Moscow? Could Vladimir Putin be against WM?

Miulang

Da link from da Moscow Times: http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?x203073287

[kimo55]

You can't call them Russian if they're not made in Russia! (Semionovo). If you want to read about the evolution of the matryoshka, go here:http://russian-crafts.com/nest/history.html#name

Dem dere tiki thangs would be called "Hawaiian nesting tikis".

Miulang


well, they are russian hawaiian nesting tikis.

[Miulang]

well, they are russian hawaiian nesting tikis.
Heh. I know da Russians wanted to annex Hawaii long time ago. You telling me dis how dey going succeed??? :D

[kimo55]

Heh. I know da Russians wanted to annex Hawaii long time ago. You telling me dis how dey going succeed??? :D


maybe; they send over these lil
trojan horses for us to have in our homes....

come ta think of it. really should look insai all of these nesting tikis!

[Miulang]

You just knew there would be more news about Walmart from some part of the world, didn'tya?

Well, this time it's from Dubya's bruddah Jebbie's state. Jebbie and his cabinet stayed a decision by an administrative judge who determined the 24hour megamart that WM wanted to build in downtown Jacksonville didn't meet the requirements of the city's growth management plan. Hmmm...that ole Jeb Bush is turning out to be quite a little rebel, isn't he? Going against all that is American (like Dubya and the flag)?

Read on: http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/apnews/stories/092104/D858AR500.shtml

Miulang :rolleyes:

[Miulang]

some new observation or conflict!

This from The Chicago Tribune this morning. I had to copy it in its entirety because you can only access this story if you have an account...

Never even thought about the fact that the big box stores might also be killing off local printed newspapers (aw, who cares about them anyway? Just go digital...get rid of all the advertising...)

Miulang

Growth of Wal-Mart bad news for papers
Study shows drag on ad spending
By Leon Lazaroff
Tribune national correspondent
Published September 22, 2004

Newspaper advertising this year has been a major disappointment to both the papers and their investors.

But while everything has been blamed, from the war in Iraq to a struggling economy, a study Tuesday said the problem is deeper and will continue.

Call it the "Wal-Mart effect."

"Wal-Mart and stores like them don't simply advertise in newspapers the way traditional department stores do," said Paul Ginocchio, a Deutsche Bank Securities media analyst and the report's chief author. "Most troubling for newspapers is that this isn't going away. It's actually accelerating."

Since the early 1990s, as big-box stores expanded from small and midsize towns into the suburbs of major U.S. cities, they have changed the face of retailing. By extension, their success cut away at the advertising revenues of newspaper companies.

Coming out of the 1991 recession, big-box retailers such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Costco Wholesale Corp. accounted for about 16 percent of general merchandise sales nationwide; today the figure is nearly 50 percent. That jump in market share, Ginocchio said, is the main reason retail advertising growth at the nation's newspapers is expected to be less than half the 4 percent that the industry forecast at the beginning of 2004.

Newspaper executives have known that some big-box retailers prefer television and radio advertising over print publications. But the Deutsche Bank study quantifies the trend, demonstrating that as those retailers have expanded, their spending preferences have had a big drag on retail advertising.

Between 1993 and 1997, the study said, big-box retailers slowed retail advertising growth by one-half to 1 percentage point. Between 1998 and 2000, the figure reached 1.5 percent. Today, the drag is 2-2.5 percent.

Ginocchio estimates that as big-box retailers continue to take 3-5 percent of market share away from traditional and discount department stores, they will drag down newspaper retail advertising by about 2 percent. Retail advertising accounted for 47 percent, or about $21 billion, of total advertising in 2003.

"The correlation between Wal-Mart exposure and local advertising revenue growth over the last two to three years has been extraordinary," he added.

Wal-Mart, said Deutsche Bank, spends 0.3 percent of its sales--$259 billion worldwide in 2003--on advertising and allocates 3 percent of that budget to newspapers. By comparison, traditional department stores spend 4.6 percent of their sales on advertising, and most significant, appropriate 85 percent of that to newspapers.

Wal-Mart marketing director Troy Steiner said the retailer spends about $100 million a year on newspaper advertising, the bulk of which are inserts.

"Wal-Mart is not reliant on advertising to drive its sales," he said. "We certainly see the value in all advertising media, but we do things based on what's effective."

The chief executive of one of the country's largest media buyers said most advertisers would love not to have to spend money on advertising. "But their reality is much different than Wal-Mart's," said Scott Harding of Downers Grove-based Newspaper Services of America.

Unlike the country's department stores, which largely began in big cities, Wal-Mart grew in rural areas far from metropolitan centers. As the company expanded, it discovered it could drive sales through television advertising and monthly inserts in local newspapers.

"Wal-Mart created a brand and reputation that became larger than life," Harding said. "As they grew, advertising was judged to be an expense that didn't have to be as large as their competitors'."

For newspaper companies with large numbers of Wal-Mart stores in their markets, the drag on retail advertising has been greatest. Media General Inc., a newspaper chain based in Richmond, Va., and E.W. Scripps Co., based in Cincinnati, have been most affected, said the report.

Conversely, newspaper companies that predominantly operate in large cities, such as Tribune Co., owner of the Chicago Tribune, and The New York Times Co., have experienced less of a jolt.

To compensate for big-box retailers, the newspaper industry has countered with a variety of programs aimed at small and medium-size companies. In addition, larger retailers and national advertisers have been targeted with campaigns that mix Internet and print advertising.

"The newspaper community has been dealing with this for a number of years, especially the past three to four years," said Jim Conaghan of the Newspaper Association of America. "When a Wal-Mart comes into a market, the effect on local retail and local advertising is pretty apparent."`


Copyright © 2004, Chicago Tribune

[Glen Miyashiro]

Miulang, one of the web's most convenient ways to get around the mandatory registrations at some websites is BugMeNot.com (http://www.bugmenot.com/). If you run across a site that demands that you register, check BugMeNot to see if someone else has already registered a bogus username for that website, and use that bogus name instead of giving out your real name.

[Miulang]

Miulang, one of the web's most convenient ways to get around the mandatory registrations at some websites is BugMeNot.com (http://www.bugmenot.com/). If you run across a site that demands that you register, check BugMeNot to see if someone else has already registered a bogus username for that website, and use that bogus name instead of giving out your real name.
Ho! Tanks foa da tip, anden, Glen. Us guys gotta be sneaky, yeah, foa stay unda da advertiser's radar, yeah?

Miulang :D

[Miulang]

Oops! They've done it again! Your WalMart news for today.

http://www.forbes.com/home_asia/feeds/ap/2004/09/23/ap1557102.html

[Miulang]

Walmart decides to be a little humble and sends out an open letter in 15 local newspapers to the citizens of Southern CA, hoping to quell the opposition that has prevented them from realizing their manifest destiny of building up to 40 supercenters in the next few years.

In the letter, they also issued a veiled threat of sorts: "...Southern California households can expect to save at least $589 per year, but only once Wal-Mart reaches 20 percent market share in the area."

So let me get this straight: The citizens of Southern California can't expect that whopping $589 per year savings unless they allow WM to build all the stores it wants to????

Miulang

Read here: http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?storyID=6317702

[Miulang]

Your WM news for the day. Could you survive on $10-11 an hour?

Read here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/chronicle/archive/2004/09/24/BUG4I8TRD61.DTL

[Miulang]

Oy gevalt and holy gefilte fish, even!

Walmart.com bows to the angry protests of the Jews and removes from its sales racks a tome called "the Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion" , an anti-semitic book which has long been proclaimed a fake.

The book talks about an international Jewish conspiracy that is supposed to take over the world. According to critics, WM described the book as being genuine (rather than a fake).

Mighty WM kowtowing to the Jews? Hmmmm...perhaps WM is not so dumb after all...after all Jews are notorious for their thriftiness and it looks like WM didn't want to continue to offend the Jews who might want to buy their schmattas from WM online.

On a related front, the conservatives are also lobbying WM to start selling a movie that will counter Michael Moore's Farenheit 911.

Geez...some days WM can't win for losing. Gosh, being PC is sooooo tough when you have your paws in every part of the world, you know? :eek:

More here: http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?x206266893

Miulang

[kimo55]

Oy gevalt and holy gefilte fish, even!
who might want to buy their schmattas from WM online.


Miulang


speak english! or at least pigin!

[Miulang]

speak english! or at least pigin!
OK, oy gevalt=Jewish slang for Jesus Christ!
schmatta=clothes
kvetch=complain (bitch)
verklempt =choked up
And dat. Bruddah Kimo, is your first Yiddish lesson! Hey, if Bette Midler can say dis kine, den so can I!!!

Miulang :D

[kimo55]

OK, oy gevalt=Jewish slang for Jesus Christ!
schmatta=clothes
kvetch=complain (bitch)
verklempt =choked up
And dat. Bruddah Kimo, is your first Yiddish lesson! Hey, if Bette Midler can say dis kine, den so can I!!!

Miulang :D


make that my last, too, k?


I can only say
midler
cuz da sistah steh come from ewa.

[Miulang]

make that my last, too, k?


I can only say
midler
cuz da sistah steh come from ewa.

Eh, Kimo, you gotta learn dakine if you want to be a citizen of da world . Since America stay be made up of all kine peeps who came from all ova da place, in da American vernacular you going see all kine words from odda places, jess like wen we go talk pidgin we go use some fracchured English wit dakine Hawaiian, Japanese, Chinese, anykine words stuck insai, yeah? Da oni reason I stay know lido bit Yiddish is because I wen go live in Boston foa 10 years and I was hanai'd wit one yenta who wen teach me dakine.

And I thought Bette was from Kailua? She always go make jokes about being da only red haired Jew in school!

Miulang

BTW: September is da holiest month of da year for Jews. Get Yom Kippur. I'm kinda surprised no moa moa violence on da West Bank right now.

[kimo55]

Eh, Kimo, you gotta learn dakine if you want to be a citizen of da world . Since America stay be made up of all kine peeps who came from all ova da place,

Da oni reason I stay know lido bit Yiddish is because I wen go live in Boston


you can have america.

besides;
I don't see myself going to bwah stun anytime dis lifetime.
or Yid
I do see myself going to Tahiti.
fiji
Cook islands.
and hitting other polynesian landfalls.
yid ish not needed there.
(or here in hawaii for that matter.)

[Miulang]

you can have america.

besides;
I don't see myself going to bwah stun anytime dis lifetime.
or Yid
I do see myself going to Tahiti.
fiji
Cook islands.
and hitting other polynesian landfalls.
yid ish not needed there.
(or here in hawaii for that matter.)

<sigh> Mieux vait plier que rompre, mon ami. Par ce que tout vent à point à qui sait attendre. Tous les goût, sont dans la nature.

Miulang

Ho'olilo a noho!

P.S. What makes you think there won't be some hot hootchie mama yenta tending bar in Papaete, hmmm? :p

[kimo55]

P.S. What makes you think there won't be some hot hootchie mama yenta tending bar in Papaete, hmmm? :p


the law of averages, that's what.

[Miulang]

I was wrong...there was a WM news story today (er...maybe it's tomorrow...time zones, you know).

A community in NJ says, "Do you know how to spell collusion" with the local planning board?

Miulang

More here: http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?x206679655

BTW: I'm off on a little excursion to SFO for business for a few days so I'll check around down there for more WM tidbits.

[kimo55]

BTW: I'm off on a little excursion to SFO for business for a few days so I'll check around down there for more WM tidbits.


lucky you.
great seedy.
say aloha to da tonga room for me!

[Miulang]

lucky you.
great seedy.
say aloha to da tonga room for me!

Where stay dat place? I staying at da St. Francis (dat's where da conference going be)

[kimo55]

Where stay dat place? I staying at da St. Francis (dat's where da conference going be) it has been long time;
ma wahine and I wen stop ovah at da savoy. Up da hill from union sq. which is of course x da street.

Tonga room
in da fairmont.

no fo get lil it lee. and da buena vista

and fishermans wahff...

and trader vics emeryville

an sausalito

[Miulang]

Hui Kimo:
Just wen go come home (da conference was so boring dat we wen go catch one earlier flight!).

Neva have too much time for do much besides da conference...but we were in da St. Francis, which is just down da street from da Fairmont. One night we wen go eat one expense account dinner at Kutelo's which is one really good Italian restaurant one block down from da St. Francis.

Last night, we wen go eat down Fisherman's Wharf (Sabella's) onolicious kine seafood (again was on one expense account...I like dakine :D !)

Yesterday we had lido bit time, so me and dis coworker who went to da conference wit me wen to up to Chinatown. He one collector, so we wen go to dis place and he wen go buy some glass vases for about 80% discount. I wen go buy one carved jade piece over 100 years old for about 90% discount (da store was going out of business).

Today we cut out of da last session and wen go back to Chinatown for dim sum. Ho da ono was!

I home now (3 hours early) so it's back to da Wal-Mart Room news. Downtown SF no moa WM, but about every block get one Walgreen! PETA was picketing in front of Neiman Expensive, but neva have too many bums lying around Union Sq.

Going be hard to go back hoe hana tomorrow, though :(

Miulang

[kimo55]

Downtown SF no moa WM, but about every block get one Walgreen!

walmart.
walgreens.

same poison.
slightly different name.
same parent.

[Miulang]

In today's WM newsblip, we have a story from India which says WM has now set up the ability to buy goods in India for its stores.

The next time you buy that spatula at WM or that trendy garment, check the label. You might discover that it was manufactured in India!

Read more here: http://www.siliconindia.com/shownewsdata.asp?newsno=25634&newscat=Business

P.S. We now have a group of protestors in Mexico on a hunger strike to try to prevent the opening of the Mexico City WM. Ah, if only Mahatma Ghandhi was still alive. I only hope those people don't get run over by a bulldozer in the parking lot where the plexiglassed pre-Hispanic altar is housed.

Miulang

[Miulang]

Used ta be that shoes came from Brazil or China...now look for shoes from India at your local WM! (http://www.hawaiithreads.com/showthread.php?goto=newpost&t=2601).

Waitaminute! I thought cows were sacred in India! What the hecuba is going on? Where is the leather coming from, then?????? :eek:
Miulang

[Miulang]

In today's episode, we have an article from The Financial Express in India which states that India is hoping to secure $10 billion in trade with WM. OK. First we ship technology jobs over to them, and now we ship American bucks to them. They have a nuclear program that no one seems to want to talk about. They like us for now because we have money. They hate Nepal. Will they use some of the currency they get from us to expand their nuclear capability to become a world power and prove it by dropping the big one on Nepal? Lord knows they have the people...

In other news, Xinhua News (China) reports today that the Mexico City WM construction has been halted. Since I can't read Chinese, I can't corroborate this story until it comes out in some English-speaking (non-American) news story, probably tomorrow.

Miulang

India story: http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?x210110158

[Miulang]

The Guardian (England) just published a story about what the people in Chicago think of WM efforts to build some stores in their community. I believe the reporting is a whole lot more objective than anything the US press could do, so for your edification, read here: http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?x210136999

I like the part about how the rationale that welcoming WM into a community will create more jobs is fallacious...all it does is move customers around and close down other businesses, so the net result is 0 or next to 0 gains in employment opportunities.

Miulang

[kimo55]

Wal-Mart at Mexico Ruins Sparks Protest
residents of an ancient Mexican city protested on Saturday at the construction of a Wal-Mart store on the edge of the ruins

A Teotihuacan pyramid, the archeological site 18 miles from Mexico City.

The sprawling warehouse-style Bodega Aurrera, a unit of Wal-Mart in Mexico, is due to open in December in Teotihuacan, a major archeological site outside Mexico City.

Opponents say it will ruin a way of life that dates back centuries and have taken legal action to stop it, in a fight that gives a grand dimension to the classic battle between big business and small-town values.

"What they are doing in Teotihuacan is destroying Mexico's deepest roots for short-term interests like lower prices," local teacher Emanuel D'Herrera told about a dozen protesters outside Teotihuacan's town hall. "This is the flag of conquest by global interests, the symbol of the destruction of our culture."
The Teotihuacan construction site lies less than a mile from the gated tourist park housing the main ruins and is visible from atop the Pyramid of the Sun that has defined the skyline for 2,000 years.
Critics say the modern warehouse design of the store, which has become a standard bearer of the creeping US cultural invasion of Mexico, clashes with the 1,400-year-old site.



and yet, walmart continues to lie to us and say:
(issues) now raised against Wal-Mart are simply inaccurate and unfair. From the beginning, we have been committed to ensuring that the final treatment of remains is done in a culturally appropriate, respectful and sensitive manner. We are certainly willing to work with recognized descendants to discuss how to accelerate the process of reburial, obviously, in a way that is appropriate and consistent with recognized practices and beliefs."

[Miulang]

and yet, walmart continues to lie to us and say:
(issues) now raised against Wal-Mart are simply inaccurate and unfair. From the beginning, we have been committed to ensuring that the final treatment of remains is done in a culturally appropriate, respectful and sensitive manner. We are certainly willing to work with recognized descendants to discuss how to accelerate the process of reburial, obviously, in a way that is appropriate and consistent with recognized practices and beliefs."

Uhhuh. and that's why the iwi of the kanaka maoli are still in card board boxes somewhere in Honolulu awaiting reburial while WM proceeds with their planning for an Oct. 13 opening at Keeaumoku St. Another broken promise...

Miulang

[Miulang]

Here's a little tidbit about a side of WM you generally never hear about...the perspective of the vendors who supply the megalomonster with its goods...pretty eye opening...

Miulang

http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/77/walmart.html

[Miulang]

WM has announced its expansion plans for FY2005. It ain't gonna be pretty, but it is gonna be aggressive!

Here: http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?x210703887

Miulang

[Miulang]

Here you go...the CEO of WM stating to analysts yesterday that he and his underlings will be monitoring carefully what people who hate them are saying and try to improve conditions for their employees.

You know what the problem/opportunity is when dictums that require major paradigm shifts are uttered in front of a roomful of analysts? Those analysts are going to hold the company to the fire and write stories about "bad" WM if things don't change. In the local WM thread, Ryan printed part of a post from a new WM "employee" at the soon to open Keeaumoku Store. I hope if that was written by a new employee, that this is the first sign of things changing. I'm not going to try to second guess why WM is planning this strategy now, suffice to say that they will now have to be kept honest by their employees and the press.

Here:http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?x211183775

[Miulang]

Looks like WM is holding fast to its plans to open its Teotihuacan (Mexico City) branch even in the face of local protest (a bunch of people on a hunger strike). Well, I guess WM does have a point: there are other "big box" retailers in the general area already, albeit not as big as WM. Wish those danged Chinese could get their stories right (too bad I can't read Chinese---neither can my computer). :p

Miulang

Here: http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?x211738252

[Miulang]

No need to go overseas today for the WM snippet. Right here, in my own back yard, a bunch of WM workers have won the right to file a class action suit against WM in this state because of forced overtime for which the complainants say they were not paid.

Sure hope WM stops this practice and doesn't force their workers in Honolulu to do the same thing that the WM workers in Washington allege.

Here: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2002058257_walmart09.html

Miulang

[Miulang]

Things have been kinda slow on the corporate WM front this month. Lately, besides the Keeaumoku opening this past week and the attempts of WM workers in unionize in Quebec, nothing much has happened. However, things are beginning to heat up again, Teotihuacan (Mexico City), where the next global WM is scheduled to open.

More here: http://www.counterpunch.org/carlsen10152004.html

Miulang

[kimo55]

Things have been kinda slow on the corporate WM front this month. Lately, besides the Keeaumoku opening this past week and the attempts of WM workers in unionize in Quebec, nothing much has happened. However, things are beginning to heat up again, Teotihuacan (Mexico City), where the next global WM is scheduled to open.

More here: http://www.counterpunch.org/carlsen10152004.html

Miulang



It is a depressing prospect to think we live in the day and age where something like this:

"Proponents of pyramid Wal-Mart argue that it will create jobs and serve consumers cheaply-the hallmark of the store's reputation."

justifies the destruction of any respect for ancient cultures.

[Kalihiboy]

I told everyone that Walmart wants to agressively expand on Oahu, here is more proof.

KalihiBoy

Monday, October 18, 2004

Kids miss box car racing track (http://starbulletin.com/2004/10/18/news/index3.html)
A new track planned for Kunia will not be ready until next year as officials raise funds
By Mary Vorsino
mvorsino@starbulletin.com

Krystal Hovious, a budding box car enthusiast, says she misses the hills.

"There's one," said the 14-year-old recently, "where you sit down, brake and then when you're ready you let go of the brake. I was a little scared at first, but after the first try you kind of get the feel of it."

Hovious was one of dozens of kids disappointed this past summer when a nonprofit box car track in Pearl City was forced to shut down to make way for a Wal-Mart.

[Miulang]

I told everyone that Walmart wants to agressively expand on Oahu, here is more proof...

KalihiBoy
It's these kinds of "little" things that can't be measured in dollars and cents but which will make a biiiig impact on the kids who can't have their boxcar races. But who cares about them? All people care about is those lowlow prices! :mad:

Miulang

P.S, what'll probably stop the WM armageddon (maybe not in Hawai'i, but someplace else) is when WM tries to build more urban uberstores. What's gonna stop 'em in their tracks is their unwillingness to let their workers unionize. See, as long as they built their stores in daboonies, people there were just grateful for the job opportunities. People in the city are a whole lot more savvy and worried about things like unsustainable growth, the economic effects of a big box store and the like. If they continue to get the kind of pushback they've been getting from urban areas, more than likely they'll change their business model again and try to find more suburban/country areas to build their 500 stores next year.

[Kalihiboy]

I think Walmart wants Daie badly, close the Waipahu and Kailua stores and convert it into new Walmarts, keep the Kaheka Street store open as Daie
itself.

They want to expand into Hawaii Kai, because even the rich like to save money.

If Walmart doesnt acquire Daie then they will still expand into Kailua-Kaneohe until they have tapped into just about every single community in this island.

Kalihi Boy

[kimo55]

They want to expand into Hawaii Kai, because even the rich like to save money.



that is as stereotypical, prejudicial, shortsighted, myopic, ethnocentric and one dimensional an observation as saying "open up a walmart in kalihi for the only reason that even the poor like to save money."

[Konaguy]

http://www.suntimes.com/output/business/walmart17.html

BY ADAM GELLER ASSOCIATED PRESS

JONQUIERE, Quebec-- The signs topping sales racks wear the same yellow smiley face, but promise "Chute de Prix," instead of price rollbacks. The boxes of Tide lining the shelves in housewares come packed with a bonus CD, just for Canadian stores, inviting shoppers to experience "la passion du Hockey."

But except for a few tweaks, the low-slung gray and blue Wal-Mart store off highway 70 could be almost any one of the retail Goliath's nearly 5,000 discount emporiums in the United States and eight other countries. And that's what worries executives at the Arkansas headquarters of Wal-Mart Stores Inc.

While still not a certainty, the 165 retirees, single moms, students and other hourly workers at this store 2 1/2 hours north of Quebec City could soon become the first anywhere to extract what the world's largest private employer insists its 1.5 million "associates" around the world neither want nor need-- a union contract. A government agency has certified the workers as a union and told the two sides to negotiate.

[Kalihiboy]

Yes the statement was stereotypical, but not prejudice. I cant stand Walmart I make no bones about it at all. I'm actually surprised Walmart hasnt built a Sam's Club to try and pry away some of the Costco customers.

I grew up in a wealthy family I can say about all I want to do about rich people.

I dont think there is any room in Kalihi for a Walmart. But I'm sure they have looked into all options. Walmart is more greedy than Ebenezer Scrooge.

Kalihi Boy

[kimo55]

Yes the statement was stereotypical, but not prejudice.


the statement is prejudicial, as it assumes none but 'the rich' live in Hawaii Kai , ( or that they don't drive to other areas) and as a group, you presuppose they like to do one thing. whereas they reside in all residential neighborhoods of Oahu. It kinda doesn't make sense, cuz, well, errybody likes ta save money... I mean who doesn't? Anyway, doesn't matter. Don't mind me... it's all just wordplay...
semantics...mere semantics.

[Miulang]

Here's another Forbes article directed at potential WM suppliers. This is the side of the WM picture that consumers never think about because they are focused on those lowlow prices.

What happens if a lot of suppliers refuse to sell to WM? Won't the shoppers' selection then be reduced until all that's left is junk from China and India? If they are good businesspeople, suppliers can only sell their goods for a certain price (usually breakeven plus a little profit) or they price themselves out of business. What good does WM's selling a bazillion units of something at $20 do for the manufacturer of the product if it cost that manufacturer $25 to make the product?

The way WM strikes deals with its suppliers requires that every year they are in a business relationship, the supplier is compelled to lower the price of goods to WM even more, so WM can continue to advertise low prices. The supplier is getting squeezed in between the consumer wanting cheap prices and the need to stay in business. If you go walking down the aisles at any WM, notice the products on the shelves and pick up a few and see which company is supplying that bottle. My bet is that as time goes on, all those "brand name" favorites that you love will disappear faster than the Amazon rainforest when the hole in the ozone layer increases.

Companies with established brand names don't need a WM to push their products because they can stand on their own and make more money. The products you're seeing are either made overseas or are "niche" products that haven't yet gained enough marketshare to say "No thanks" to WM. a good example of this is notice that some labels of dishwashing detergent are in Spanish? I can see that that makes sense in maybe Puerto Rico, but most people in this country don't speak Spanish.

Miulang

More here: http://www.forbes.com/home_asia/global/2004/1018/026.html

[kimo55]

Here's another Forbes article directed at potential WM suppliers. This is the side of the WM picture that consumers never think about because they are focused on those lowlow prices.
Miulang

More here: http://www.forbes.com/home_asia/global/2004/1018/026.html



I LUV it!
"So, to avoid being Wal-Marted,"
"Resistance is futile. You will be assimilated." The Borg is unstoppable. The Borg plays hardball. Wal-Mart is the Borg of business today"

[Kalihiboy]

Would you have minded if I had said Walmart wants to build in Malibu or Beverly Hills, California, because even the rich like to shop there?

What is the difference whether it be Kahala or Hawaii Kai, it is a richer area that other parts of Oahu, that is a fact and has nothing to do with being prejudice.

Anyways I apologize for offending anyone based on my comments.

Kalihi Boy

[kimo55]

Would you have minded if I had said Walmart wants to build in Malibu or Beverly Hills, California, because even the rich like to shop there?

What is the difference whether it be Kahala or Hawaii Kai, it is a richer area that other parts of Oahu, that is a fact and has nothing to do with being prejudice.

Anyways I apologize for offending anyone based on my comments.

Kalihi Boy


just like to raise a dialiogue to explore why we have some conceptions..
the more we discuss and even debate, the stronger our convictions, or we learn of possibly more expansive ways of thinking or viewing some subjects.

[Miulang]

Would you have minded if I had said Walmart wants to build in Malibu or Beverly Hills, California, because even the rich like to shop there?

What is the difference whether it be Kahala or Hawaii Kai, it is a richer area that other parts of Oahu, that is a fact and has nothing to do with being prejudice.

Anyways I apologize for offending anyone based on my comments.

Kalihi Boy
Geography really doesn't come into play too much here (unless where WM wants to play is in your sandbox). What matters is the arrogance of a company that has no respect for the land, no respect for its employees or its suppliers. Eventually they will run out of places to expand in the US (or be run out of town, in the process), so guess where their tentacles will reach out to? The rest of the world. That's where the US arrogance becomes very evident. WM and most other multinationals rarely take into account the issues that might result from their moving into "foreign" territory.

Miulang

[Albert]

I think I'll make my first visit to the new Wal-Mart today.

Pray for us sinners, etc. ..... :)

[Miulang]

Here's a very nice, long puff piece about WM that was published in a public relations newsletter. Even though it states that things are turning around and workers' conditions are improving, I'm sorry, but I'm from Missouri.

Until I stop seeing articles about the lack of respect for the past (the iwi at Keeaumoku, the pre-Hispanic altar at Teotihuacan), the lawsuits alleging unfair employment practices (working off the books, lower levels of promotions for women and minorities), strategies by management to stifle unionization, merciless contracts with manufacturers, blah blah blah, I will not be convinced that this particular cheetah has changed its spots.

More here: http://www.prsa.org/_Publications/magazines/strat_inthis_fall04-1.asp??ident=s1

Miulang

[Miulang]

So today's WM news (the only thing on the newswires, anyway) is about the fact that Jon Stewart's new book "America" (on the NYT Best Seller List) has been banned from WM bookshelves because of a fake photo of the Supreme Court judges with their "naughty bits" showing on a page buried somewhere in the book.

That news, in itself is not what's particularly peculiar (except for the fact that WM is now taking on the role of censor) is that they are still offering the book on the Walmart.com website! Their justification: "The shoppers at WM.com are different from the ones who shop in the stores."

Oooooh...could it be that there are closet WM shoppers who would never be caught dead walking through the portals of a store but who might, (gasp!) still want to take advantage of the lowlow WM prices via the Internet? Or is WM not wanting to completely cut off that portion of their customer base who might still like to read a liberal (albeit slightly off-color) parody or two?

Hmmmm... :eek:

Miulang

More here: http://www.cbc.ca/story/arts/national/2004/10/21/Arts/jonstewart041021.html

[kimo55]

That news, in itself is not what's particularly peculiar (except for the fact that WM is now taking on the role of censor) is that they are still offering the book on the Walmart.com website! Their justification: "The shoppers at WM.com are different from the ones who shop in the stores."


Miulang



funny observation.
They also could be implying a slanted predjudicial viewpoint:
Those that shop online are sophisticated intelligent adults that have a decent computer, fast connection, are computer (and otherwise) literate and can handle notty bits in a book that they already paid for, a book containing pics that they, by then, are viewing in their own home.
And the proletariat that walkthru our store are the type that would scream bloddy murder and say they are offended by opening a book themselves and seeing this pic in a store, so now they will sue!

[Miulang]

funny observation.
They also could be implying a slanted predjudicial viewpoint:
Those that shop online are sophisticated intelligent adults that have a decent computer, fast connection, are computer (and otherwise) literate and can handle notty bits in a book that they already paid for, a book containing pics that they, by then, are viewing in their own home.
And the proletariat that walkthru our store are the type that would scream bloddy murder and say they are offended by opening a book themselves and seeing this pic in a store, so now they will sue!
Yeah, Kimo. So that mean's it's OK for us to shop at walmart.com, right? ;)

Miulang

[kimo55]

Yeah, Kimo. So that mean's it's OK for us to shop at walmart.com, right? ;)

Miulang


online, not even that. regardless of the implied compliment to our intelligence level.
and most definitely NOT in person.
Why!?
cuz:
1. I would be em bare assed to.
2. It is an unpleasant experience.
3. I don't really need to save money to that degree.
4. If I were seen there, It might be when I forgot that I am wearing my "WalMart $ux" t shirt.
5. gimme time. I can think of more.

[Miulang]

online, not even that. regardless of the implied compliment to our intelligence level.
and most definitely NOT in person.
Why!?
cuz:
1. I would be em bare assed to.
2. It is an unpleasant experience.
3. I don't really need to save money to that degree.
4. If I were seen there, It might be when I forgot that I am wearing my "WalMart $ux" t shirt.
5. gimme time. I can think of more.
I knew I could get that out of you! :D

[kimo55]

PBS Hawaii channel 10 show last nite;

based from Jefferson Wisconsin wherein they review the debacle of walmart coming into that town and they cover some evidence;
each sprawlmart that enters a town on average causes TWO grocery stores in that town to close.

many wage earners working for walmart are required to supplement their income with foodstamps (to even afford groceries at the very place they are employed!) as well as require other govnmt assisstance.

With all the concessions, tax breaks etc. handed to walmart by each state city and county they enter, along with the assistance local state and federal governments hand their low wage earning employees, it is estimated approx. 2.5 million a year is the cost to the government to have each walmart in the town.
Old longstanding beautiful historic buidildings are torn down, replaced with parking lots.
Many old established businesses shut down; customers flock to walmart to buy the same thing cheaper but that's just part of it; To stay in business manufacturers alter their sales and distibution format and are forced by walmart to implement parameters on their business to the extent this is a standard example; a jefferson Wisconsin shoe store was told by Converse their buyer must now purchase $3000.00 of shoes per month or they will no longer sell to that retailer. This breaks the retailers back and along with many other factors, effected by the introduction of walmart to town, they go under.
Just as in Honolulu; many want the convenience and low prices of the Big Box stores, but when we invite this behemoth to town to satisfy our addiction to consumerism, we lose something else that is far more important; a quality of life and a character of the community.

So we saw on the show last nite; a beautiful old town with fabulous architecture, slowly die. Crumble to dust. Old buildings previously the backbone and center of activity of a town, piece by piece get bulldozed and the remaining storefronts shuttered up, with all the small businesses gone. It's a sad shallow hollow empty shell of a ghost town devoid of life and sipirit just as is the heart of the giant walmart.

Now, it's not so much as a simplistic "we hate walmart" that is the view as much as the widespread easy mental and economic control they have effected on the populace. monster companies like walmart have created other tiny minimonsters, zombies... plodding to the stores on a religious basis regardless of any other evidence or information there is out there to enlighten these minions and show them there it a "better way".
Picture the Eloi silently mindlessly obediently walking toward the huge structure as the sound of the wailing siren beckons them in the Rod Taylor movie; "Time Machine".
They (walmart) have taught (brainwashed) the proletariat with the funny cute family style ads on the telly, that walmart is everyone's friend. So, the masses flock to walmart with blinders on. It becomes an internal conviction as strong as a religious choice or a political affiliation.

more:
http://www.pbs.org/itvs/storewars/talkback.html

funny stuff here!
http://www.phonelosers.org/wal-mart/

[kimo55]

analysis of WalMart impact. published by Congress


http://edworkforce.house.gov/democrats/WALMARTREPORT.pdf

[Miulang]

Over this past weekend, some 300 native indian protestors climbed partway up one of the 2 ancient pyramids that sit within view of the new WM store in Teotihuacan to protest the opening of the store.

They have about as much chance of stopping that opening as the Seahawks have to make the playoffs this year (at the rate they're going, anyway). I just hope the police practice restraint and let the protestors do their thing without bashing anybody's head in. For the indigenous indians, it marks the end of a way of life that they have known forever; for the other more recent settlers, it presents an opportunity (they think) to move up in life.

http://www.canada.com/news/world/story.html?id=781b667d-c435-4824-865f-ea6fb0210c67

Miulang

[kimo55]

Ok, broke a rule of mine which dictates
Don't go to, or anywhere Walmart.
so, sad to say I went to walmart today.

observed:
initally, front entrance rug was trashed. all busup arready.
Dept on left; Hawaiian products and handcrafts.
ok, stuff je'like da kine at Longs.
nothing new here. Same price points.
Aloha shirts; Only one local brand. the rest of the aloha shirts were da fake kine from Thailand. junkalunk designs. (tourists might like 'em.)

Saw some cool lookin bamboo and palm tree motif tableware; plates, bowls etc.. but upon handling them saw they were light cheap plastic. aaagh!
MiniDv camera dept; only had a few models. Not much choice here. mo bettah li dat you go local store. savings? wot, maybe 20 bux per model...


did not notice much at all; any high quality brand name merchandise. This is the evolutionary stage we see wherein as reported on many walmart info web sites:
WM beats the manufacturer's price down til they can not make a profit or stay in business, and when the manuf. can't lower their costs any longer, WM creates a knock off in China (or sometimes India). heck, WM does their own knockoff anyway. The name brands help to pull some customers to the location, and the cheaper WM private label stuff goes home with the customer.

I noticed much China and India origin merchandise.
and the much ballyhooed LLOOOOWWW prices, nah. same as at Longs and Daiei.
(which is a Walmart target; they wanna buy them out.)

Oh wait what's this? "marykate'N'ashley clothing line. A name brand. ok; upon close inspection; looked like a cheap one time use china-made halloween costume quality level piece of cr... clothing...

the WM press release quote: "This new store means that for the first time in central Honolulu, we'll be able to offer customers what they've asked for -- quality merchandise, low prices and Wal-Mart's spirit of aloha."
this is a typical WM spin-doctor/marketing insult to merchants in the area who for years, have offered good quality stuff at good prices. and to add insult to injury, of course, the local merchants are dropping like da cockaroach on da wall hit wit da slippah.

Upon leaving the 4 story parking structure.
Cold design. Tight parking spaces, tight lanes.

People are honking. Hate to see that begin here. Noticed an ocular products and services shop x the street with a going outta business sign.
They been there on Keeaumoku for years.

Just don't like the idea of a huge monolithic mausoleum taking up a whole block in the heart of our Honolulu.
State shoulda created a mini Polynesian Cultural center kine o thing on this block. Or help subsidize a local vendor/maufacturer's shop/village in the old style.

Yes, the state is to blame. They believed the propaganda; Walmart will bring planny jobs to Hawaii. Lotta tax revenue. THAT is all the state cares about. Not the repercussions.

[Miulang]

The WM Teotihuacan store opened without fanfare or protest today. Part of the reason the opening was so quiet is because there was no official announcement of the opening. So now WM can put another notch into its multinational belt. Good job, WM.

http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?x225567298

BTW: Since the Prez has won re-election, one of the first people to offer their congratulations from outside the US was the head of the Outsourcing Office in India, who was probably rubbing his hands with glee, knowing that some of the 100,000 jobs that were cut from the US in the month of Oct. will for sure be headed for the shores of Bangalore.

Miulang

[kimo55]

Since the Prez has won re-election, one of the first people to offer their congratulations from outside the US was the head of the Outsourcing Office in India, who was probably rubbing his hands with glee, knowing that some of the 100,000 jobs that were cut from the US in the month of Oct. will for sure be headed for the shores of Bangalore.

Miulang

India.
hmm.
Used to buy alotta stuff from India Imports there in Ala Moana center, I think they were where old navy is now.
Good hippie dippie junk back then. Now, India along with China supply sprawlmart with all their cheaply make stuff and plastic junk (but walmart passes the savings onto us!)
'course, don't think fer a moment the same wouldn't happen; if Kerry had won, one of the first people to offer their congratulations from outside the US would be the head of the Outsourcing Office in India.

[memorylane]

Awright keikis!! :D back to your corners!

[kimo55]

Awright keikis!! :D back to your corners!


Who's a keiki here?!
I'm kumu.
and why should we put our back to a corner?

[Miulang]

Heehee! Obviously Memorylane doesn't get that we're on the same side, Kimo. ;) "kumu kumu nuku nuku a pua'a"

Miulang

[Mokihana]

maybe; they send over these lil
trojan horses for us to have in our homes....

come ta think of it. really should look insai all of these nesting tikis!

Maybe Wal-Mart is a trojan horse. Waddya think? :confused: :eek: :eek:

[kimo55]

Maybe Wal-Mart is a trojan horse. Waddya think? :confused: :eek: :eek:


ok, i'll bite.
How could walmart be a trojan horse?

[Miulang]

ok, i'll bite.
How could walmart be a trojan horse?
It's got all these little yellow smiley faces :) hidden inside that are programmed to explode when critical mass is reached, so that soon we'll all be wearing little yellow smiley face masks? :p

BTW: Here's a good one: read somewhere the other day that WM is planning to build 10 Superstores in China next year. Wow. So the Chinese will also be able to buy low priced crap that they produce soon!!!! Or will they hold out and demand "quality" goods from India to stock the WM shelves in Beijing? :) :)

Miulang

[kimo55]

read somewhere the other day that WM is planning to build 10 Superstores in China next year. Wow. So the Chinese will also be able to buy low priced crap that they produce soon!!!!
Miulang

ahhh the insidiousness and ego of walmart. for them to think the masses are that gullible! (trouble is, they are right...)
Just three blocks away, i shop at daiei. much better experience and they are one stop shopping. But to look for the cheapest most convenient shopping experience as a major goal in daily life is to sell your soul to hades.

Today's advtertiser is depressingly telling:
too many articles showing peoples want and need to for the above. here on the island, locals expressing their joy and happiness in having so many mainland style shopping choices. It is very depressing.

"....visited Wal-Mart for the first time Tuesday with his family. The downtown Honolulu residents complimented Wal-Mart — a 150,000-square-foot, mammoth store jam-packed with clothing, jewelry, toys, electronics, household goods, food, gardening supplies and more — for its one-stop-shopping convenience.

....offers hundreds of premium sunglasses by designers such as Chanel, Prada, Versace, Salvatore Ferragamo and Dolce & Gabbana. S....opened Oct. 27 at Ala Moana Center.
... offers footwear and accessories by designers such as Matisse, Mephisto, Reed Evins, Sacha London and Giuseppe Zanotti.
"This is excellent," said.... who works at an auto-service shop. He and his wife,....were impressed by the store's size.
Kailua resident.... was in Wal-Mart for the third time since it opened Oct. 13. "It's convenient because the other stores (in Kunia and Mililani on O'ahu) are all the way on the other side, and it's cheap."
Oh, is it, Sherlock!?
..... compared Hawai'i's newest stores to those in Chicago's famed shopping district, Michigan Avenue, which she recently visited. "It's nice to know that we have a lot of stores they have, and we're now on the map as a major shopping destination," she said.
ok. WHY is this "nice"?!

and now our queen of overdevelopment and shopping has something to say;
"Honolulu has been the center of retail in the luxury goods market for many years, said Stephany Sofos, a local real-estate consultant. Sofos noted that the Honolulu branches of Chanel and Hermes have ranked No. 2 in sales worldwide, next only to the companies' Paris stores. Retailers of all kinds, from luxury to discount, "have been banging around, looking for places here" to cater to both residential and vacationing consumers, Sofos said. "It's great for shoppers because anytime you have a smorgasboard of activities, it means you definitely have different opportunities to go shopping," she said.
Uh, yea, Steph; that IS the implication of "smorgasboard". But how can residents celebrate this mindless, thoughtless all consuming deification of mass consumerism?! Why do they not realize the end result and the cost of it all?
Why would we want to destroy our island lifestyle and make Honolulu another ugly suburb of the L.A. basin?!


...the other nite, southpark had an ep on wallmart. I am normally very allergic to this show and its ilk, but scanning the channels, saw their depiction of walmart and hadda watch it. 'course, nachurrlly my I.Q. level dropped, no... plummeted.. greatly, while viewing this junk, but I had to see what their take was on it.

[kimo55]

Heehee! Obviously Memorylane doesn't get that we're on the same side, Kimo. ;) "kumu kumu nuku nuku a pua'a"

Miulang


kumu kumu mo akamai den keiki or any walmaht shoppah apua'a

[Miulang]

ahhh the insidiousness and ego of walmart. for them to think the masses are that gullible! (trouble is, they are right...)
Just three blocks away, i shop at daiei. much better experience and they are one stop shopping. But to look for the cheapest most convenient shopping experience as a major goal in daily life is to sell your soul to hades.
Here's sumptin else hardly anyone is aware of that's going to make NAFTA look like a women's afternoon tea: there's this little trade agreement called the "Free Trade Area of the Americas" (FTAA or FAFTA) that's due to be ratified by the end of this year and implemented in 2005. What the hell is FTAA and why should we care about it? Think of FTAA as the North and South American equivalent of the European Union (EU). It will include every country in North and South America except Cuba. It means that free trade will be open to all countries under the agreement. And if we think NAFTA sent many of our jobs to Mexico and Canada (on top of the high tech jobs going to Asia), we ain't seen nothing yet!

What's really troubling is the Administration has been one of the active sponsors of this pact, and yet there has been absolutely no input from the American public!

When this agreement is passed, many more of our manufacturing jobs will be outsourced to Mexico and points south, and before you know it, we'll just be a nation of consumers with a horrendous trade imbalance. This kind of trade agreement is notgood for the average American; it's only good for lining the pockets of big business who will be able to produce cheap goods "overseas" to sell back to us.

Do yourselves a favor and at least learn a little about the consequences of FTAA: http://www.globalexchange.org/campaigns/ftaa/

Miulang

BTW: All you chocoholics had better start stocking up on your favorite sweet. With all the unrest in Ivory Coast (one of the leading exporters of cocoa), the price of chocolates is going to skyrocket soon.

[kimo55]

"Wal-Mart/Sam's Club this week (11/13/04) announced the layoff of 90 workers..."

So, they actually aren't creating jobs as they said they definitely would.

"local retail consultant Stephany Sofos; "The bottom line is when you're dealing with shoppers today, it's all about convenience."

Doesn't Walmart/sam's club know enuff to cater to their spoiled clientele and NOT put a store on an upper level?!

Cuz it aint the low prices or cheap plastic junk imported from China that draws people, according to Sofos.
It's the convenience. Only the convenience. "It's ALL about convenience"

Don't they know enuff to hire and listen to retail consultants?!


"David Engle was fired by the Ke'eaumoku Sam's Club for falling short of membership sales goals left a job as a full-time cook to join Sam's Club this fall. Engle said he returned to Zippy's as a part-time cook after failing to land a job at Wal-Mart." "I thought I had a good job and that I could go a long way with the company," Engle said of Sam's Club."

another one bites the dust.

http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2004/Nov/13/bz/bz07p.html

[Miulang]

Interesting little analysis of what WM is doing to further increase profits while driving down prices. Apparently, there will come a time soon when suppliers will "own" the products they place upon WM shelves and won't get paid until the item actually sells. WM can do this because they know, to the individual unit, where and when something is sold.

However, what I envision, under this new inventory scheme, is that you won't see the same kind of products on the shelves and those items that are on the shelves will hang around for a longer period of time. This is also going to cause some repercussions for the smaller suppliers who are counting on WM to front the money for the inventory.

http://www.corante.com/customer/archives/what_walmart_knows.php

Miulang

[Kalihiboy]

PBS is doing a story on Walmart:

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/walmart/

KalihiBoy

[Miulang]

PBS is doing a story on Walmart:

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/walmart/

KalihiBoy
Anybody who has an aversion to the tactics of WM really should try to watch the 2 programs listed here. They shows already aired up here on the mainland, and the parts that I saw just made me believe even more that WM is bad for the local economy and for its employees.

Miulang

[Miulang]

One of the WM heiresses got through college by having a lackey do her homework for her. And then her parents were sooooo proud of little missy's graduating from college that they forked over $2 billion to have a stadium named after her! Jeez. What would ol' Sam say? :mad: (well, I guess with a first name of "Paige" what would you expect? Sounds like she and Paris Hilton have a lot in common!)

http://www.nypost.com/news/nationalnews/34680.htm

Miulang

[kimo55]

One of the WM heiresses got through college by having a lackey do her homework for her.


Miulang

he lackey was an "A" student from China.

[memorylane]

Ok, broke a rule of mine which dictates
Don't go to, or anywhere Walmart.
so, sad to say I went to walmart today.

observed:
initally, front entrance rug was trashed. all busup arready.
Dept on left; Hawaiian products and handcrafts.
ok, stuff je'like da kine at Longs.
nothing new here. Same price points.
Aloha shirts; Only one local brand. the rest of the aloha shirts were da fake kine from Thailand. junkalunk designs. (tourists might like 'em.)

Saw some cool lookin bamboo and palm tree motif tableware; plates, bowls etc.. but upon handling them saw they were light cheap plastic. aaagh!
MiniDv camera dept; only had a few models. Not much choice here. mo bettah li dat you go local store. savings? wot, maybe 20 bux per model...


did not notice much at all; any high quality brand name merchandise. This is the evolutionary stage we see wherein as reported on many walmart info web sites:
WM beats the manufacturer's price down til they can not make a profit or stay in business, and when the manuf. can't lower their costs any longer, WM creates a knock off in China (or sometimes India). heck, WM does their own knockoff anyway. The name brands help to pull some customers to the location, and the cheaper WM private label stuff goes home with the customer.

I noticed much China and India origin merchandise.
and the much ballyhooed LLOOOOWWW prices, nah. same as at Longs and Daiei.
(which is a Walmart target; they wanna buy them out.)

Oh wait what's this? "marykate'N'ashley clothing line. A name brand. ok; upon close inspection; looked like a cheap one time use china-made halloween costume quality level piece of cr... clothing...

the WM press release quote: "This new store means that for the first time in central Honolulu, we'll be able to offer customers what they've asked for -- quality merchandise, low prices and Wal-Mart's spirit of aloha."
this is a typical WM spin-doctor/marketing insult to merchants in the area who for years, have offered good quality stuff at good prices. and to add insult to injury, of course, the local merchants are dropping like da cockaroach on da wall hit wit da slippah.

Upon leaving the 4 story parking structure.
Cold design. Tight parking spaces, tight lanes.

People are honking. Hate to see that begin here. Noticed an ocular products and services shop x the street with a going outta business sign.
They been there on Keeaumoku for years.

Just don't like the idea of a huge monolithic mausoleum taking up a whole block in the heart of our Honolulu.
State shoulda created a mini Polynesian Cultural center kine o thing on this block. Or help subsidize a local vendor/maufacturer's shop/village in the old style.

Yes, the state is to blame. They believed the propaganda; Walmart will bring planny jobs to Hawaii. Lotta tax revenue. THAT is all the state cares about. Not the repercussions.


I went to the one in Mililani but the day of my departure on the morning news show, saw sad stuff about that new place having an arrangement where the local places like Jamba Juice were told they would profit by the WM going in there but arent because of the way the doors of WM spill out into the parking area and the carts are electronically juiced up to where they lock up if you do something or other........i was like *sheesh*, thats a drag.........

[memorylane]

Also, was really amazed when i asked a worker how much she got an hour..........only $6 in the great paradise????? I'm not sure but it seems like thats what they start at here in plain ole Oklahoma. :rolleyes:

[memorylane]

Who's a keiki here?!
I'm kumu.
and why should we put our back to a corner?

Keikis= children/babies.........back to your corners for *fighting*, lol
;)

[kimo55]

Keikis= children/babies.........




Oh, is THAT what keikis.... is....


nope; we don't have that here.




back to your corners for *fighting*, lol


But I like fighting lol. Lol takes a punch really well.

[Miulang]

Kimo, you so kolohe, anden! ;)

Miulang

[kimo55]

Kimo, you so kolohe, anden! ;)

Miulang


eh, seestah;
they open the door,
I'm gonna walk right in.

[Miulang]

eh, seestah;
they open the door,
I'm gonna walk right in.
No foget hemo da slippahs first, yeah?

[kimo55]

No foget hemo da slippahs first, yeah?


ahv cahss.
'choo teenk. I steh bockatahdeh, o whot?!

sure is strange to see haoles from da mainland walk into some o da houses heah and leave their shoes on.

too bad some people don't try to learn:
"...when in rome..."

[Miulang]

WM has decided to let WM employees in China organize into labor unions if they want to. I wonder if this has something to do with the fact that the majority of goods sold on WM shelves are now produced in China?

Could this be a harbinger of things to come for US WM employees? You know, once the unions are allowed to organize here in this country, WM will no longer be able to maximize their profits at the expense of its employees. And in Martha Stewart's words, "that would be a good thing." :)

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/business/AP-China-Wal-Mart-Unions.html?ex=1101877200&en=b0125fed074c2e3e&ei=5040&partner=MOREOVER

Miulang

[memorylane]

:cool:
6 bucks an hour in paradise and 6.92 here in Oklahoma.........odd.

[kimo55]

:cool:
6 bucks an hour in paradise and 6.92 here in Oklahoma.........odd.



uuuuh.

Why.

[Miulang]

Boohoo. WM had to revise its sales forecasts for Black Friday wayyyy down, which could impact their stock prices tomorrow. Apparently, they decided to be greedy this year and not do the same kind of deep discounting that consumers have come to expect from them. This effect may also impact their sales (and stock value) throughout the rest of the holiday season, since apparently Sears and other big box stores are deeply discounting merchandise. So go shop at Sears and get better Christmas deals this year! ;)

Miulang

http://www.newsday.com/business/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-wal-mart-stock,0,5897597.story?coll=sns-ap-business-headlines

[Miulang]

Another analysis of why WM failed on Black Friday: not enough discounting on their goods and not enough selection (and perceived lower quality) of goods offered for sale. Interesting to also note that high ticket retailers were having success selling their expensive baubles and bling.

Miulang

http://money.cnn.com/2004/11/29/news/fortune500/walmart_holidays/index.htm?cnn=yes

[Miulang]

Ha. I guess WM isn't as arrogant or stupid as I thought they were. They just announced today that they will start having the same kinds of pre-Christmas sales that their competitors had on Friday to try to make up for their bad start; they just haven't announced what kinds of sales that they are planning.

http://money.cnn.com/2004/11/30/news/fortune500/walmart.reut/index.htm

Miulang

[Miulang]

It's semi official now. Bloomberg is reporting that WM may be bidding for 100 Daie locations. Daie is currently under Japanese government receivership. WM apparently is looking for the Daie locations that have large grocery components. Is that what the Hawai'i Daie locations are known for mostly?(Maui never did have a Daie...they were thinking of buying out Shirokiya, which went out of business 2 years ago but never did) In that case, those local Daie's may end up being called Seiyu, even though WM will control it. So no more real choice between WM and Daie soon. :mad:

Miulang

http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000080&sid=ayu0jGgbmDeo

[kimo55]

If ya can't beat em, join em...
If ya can't kill em, buy em.

Daiei has big grocery dept. here. They are a couple short blocks from Sprawlmart.



Daiei; nice to shop at. lotta cool ethnic foreign kine grocery stuffs.
lotta Local products.


sad to see its possible demise.

[Kalihiboy]

I dont know what Walmart would do with the Kaheka Street location. That was once a drive-in movie theater.

However, I'm sure they would love to convert the Daiea's in Kaliua and Waipahu to Walmarts.

KalihiBoy

[kimo55]

I dont know what Walmart would do with the Kaheka Street location. That was once a drive-in movie theater.

KalihiBoy

ta heck with the drive-inn;

more importantly, it was once a taro farm and village. part of a teeming lifesystem/culture of indigenous people.

before allllll the development and piratical omnivorous corporate infrastructure and accompanying two legged invaders landed here and lay waste to a beautiful land.

[memorylane]

uuuuh.

Why.

Not going to try to guess the context in which you use both uuuuuh. and why.
Also glad i am not petty enough to tell you how you forgot to make full sentences and use correct punctuation.
:rolleyes: ;) :cool:

[Miulang]

ta heck with the drive-inn;

more importantly, it was once a taro farm and village. part of a teeming lifesystem/culture of indigenous people.

before allllll the development and piratical omnivorous corporate infrastructure and accompanying two legged invaders landed here and lay waste to a beautiful land.
Well cannot do nuthin about dat, yeah, except maybe get one bulldozer and go squish everything to da ground. What IS important is preserving da kine open space still get befoa da developers go put buildings on top. Maybe da 'opala problem going make da City Council adopt one "slow growth" policy dat going help keep moa buildings (and maybe moa people) from moving to Oahu.

Eh, it worked in Oregon for lido while! ("Come and visit and spend your money, but go home when you spend all your kala"). And dey still go say dat on Moloka'i. Dat's why I tink Moloka'i stay be da most "Hawaiian" of all da 'aina.

Miulang

[kimo55]

Not going to try to guess the context in which you use both uuuuuh. and why.
Also glad i am not petty enough to tell you how you forgot to make full sentences and use correct punctuation.
:rolleyes: ;) :cool:


eh. dass islan style. we nachurl, li dat.
whassammaddayou!? why you like go make fun o da kine? I spik english gud enuff fo you fo unnastand. No?
eef not, sorry, eh? ainokeah

[kimo55]

Maybe da 'opala problem going make da City Council adopt one "slow growth" policy dat going help keep moa buildings (and maybe moa people) from moving to Oahu.
Miulang


Eh, your heart is in da same place mines steh.
But you know, sistah, dat not goin happen in our lifetime or anyone else's.
Cuz got too much money that can and will be made.
EVERYone is on the take. EVERYone will be greased.
eg:
Not only should they NOT have overdeveloped Hawaii Kai and the main roads going in, to make it resemble anodda suburb of overpopulated san fernando valley, BUT... they hadda go and build the ratrtrap antfarms no more than 5 feet from the sidewalk. Not only is this aesthetically wrong, it is illegal. fraudulent. do they care? no. they are slowly destroying our quality of life.
Da setbacks s/b 25 feet or more. WHY did this happen?!

rhetorical question. The populace can mull it over.

[Miulang]

If da City Council no care, den you guys going get taxed up da okole for building up da infrastructure to support da kine, yeah? And maybe living conditions going get soooo bad and sooo expensive dat people going start jumping ship (watch out, Craig! Dey coming to Kea'au! :) ).

Would be nice if Hawai'i could return to da ahupua'a system though, yeah? Den everybody gotta take care of each other and da 'aina. But like you wen say, Kimo. Nobody cares enough to go try do something about it. Gotta take more den one or two people to pull something lidat off. :(

Miulang

[Miulang]

Is the WM shooting star losing its sparkle? According to Wall Street, it is. Goldman Sachs has downgraded WM stock from "outperform" to "inline". That doesn't mean WM's going to go anywhere anytime soon, but it's an indication possibly that their arrogance is finally beginning to hurt them in the eyes of investors.

Miulang

http://money.cnn.com/2004/12/08/news/fortune500/walmart.reut/index.htm