You wait and see...Wally World is not the one forcing small business out of business it is the Federal Government raising taxes on businesses in general. They raise the minimum wage up and up until mom and pop cannot compete with the big boys. Wally World buys their goods from the cheapest markets to keep the prices down. They pass those savings on to us while the mom and pop store can only pass on the extra they have to pay in taxes and wages. When the federal government gets through with taxing the small businesses in this country and they slowly go out of business all you will have left is Wally World and then Michael Moore will be there looking for a job. No this is not Wally World against the small mom and pop stores...it is the servival of the fittest. With more and more government regulations coming down from Washington the companies here in the USA cannot compete with the foriegn markets who have no regulations. So we wonder why Wally World buys from China?? They have the cheapest goods and we demand the cheapest prices...Whos fault is that....our government. And let me tell you this we aint seen the end of this. When they get trough taxing us and our kids and grandkids we will be lucky if we can afford Wally World.

Speedy

I will do some investigating...but I would really like to hear from anyone who has seen the show and get their take on the whole thing. The segment on crime in the parking lots with clips from news stations all over the country should be easy enough to verify. What will be difficult to track down is the segment on their manufacturing plants in China and other countries. But there is plenty of other facts that if they prove to be true would be more than enough to sway me to shop elsewhere...

Research is needed.  If we are to be intelligent shoppers, we must be open minded and look at every source of information that is available.

In that regard, I haven't a lot of knowledge about all the manufacturing facilities that retailers (big or small) purchase from.  I do believe that very few actually "own" their own factories, so they tend to contract from certain facilities.  Naturally, a retailer will order goods based on certain criteria.  Sometimes that criteria is the problem and not necessarily the manufacturer.  For instance, if a retailer tells a supplier that "widget a" must be "x" number of pounds, "y and z" size and have a definite price, then the manufacturer must meet that or not have a source to whom they can sell.  In some respects, discount stores may have that factor to speak against them.

Speaking of parking lot security, I can speak with just a wee bit of authority because I do work for a major law enforcement agency.  It isn't just Walmart parking lots that have problems.  Criminals will target places that make their activity easier.  In some areas, for instance, gangs are robbing and mugging Hispanics because they believe that if the Hispanic individual is illegally in the country, it is unlikely the victim will even report the crime.

THAT is why we must all be vigilant for ourselves and our fellow citizens.  If nothing else, grab your cell phone and call the police if you see a crime committed against anyone.  AND....have the courage and courtesy to stick around for the police to arrive so that your assistance is greatly multiplied.  Just calling the police and then leaving helps little.

Terry

It's the global economy thing.....

How many products or services we use everyday are 100% U.S. ?
-Most clothes are made overseas or the material comes from overseas.
-Most electronics are made in China or Taiwan
-Customer Service centers for computer manufacterers, Insurance companies, Banks, Credit Card companies...etc. have been outsourced to India & other countries
-Lawn Mowers, generators, small & major appliances, food, fresh vegetables, meat...the list goes on and on all come from other countries.

I had bought a half gallon of apple juice the other day and didn't notice until I got it home, that it had been stamped on the bottle in small print, indicating the juice was made from concentrate from China and the U.S.. It showed on the label made in the USA. So I guess if it's 90% China concentrate and 10% U.S. concentrate as long as it's mixed in the U.S. it's made in the USA.

WalMart isn't killing small town America. We are killing small town America by not demanding products and services be performed or made in the U.S. or Canada.

I remember my parents and others in the 50's, refused to buy anything that was made in Japan due to World War II/ Pearl Harbor. That changed when the Japanese cars hit the market, the price was just too good to pass up. It took Toyota 30 years to pass GM in sales.

Adjustments are being made towards a global economy and it will take time for things to improve for us.

We are letting this happen, but we can stop some of the things that are hurting our economy. Here's what a couple of local talkshow hosts are doing about the problems in California and the US.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/curtisgallery/3314367679/sizes/m/
http://www.kfiam640.com/pages/johnandkenshow/index.html

I've begun to pay attention to where my money is going, which companies I deal with that have outsourced, and what the tax dollars I contribute are being used for....I have begun changing my spending habits to try to keep the dollars in the US economy and put an end to wasteful spending in government. California spends 10 billion dollars a year in providing healthcare and eduction plus other services to illegal aliens, not legal aliens but illegal aliens (these are criminals, they have violated state and federal laws by coming across the border illegally). In the meantime, the state government wants to close down state parks due to budget shortfalls.

I say stop the services to the illegals and use the money for legal state citizen services, like state parks.

I didn't mean to jump up on the soapbox, but this has really become an issue for me when I see so many good people falling victims to this mess of an economy we are in. It seems the folks that cheat the system (big business, public figures and citizens) are being treated better than those of us who are honest and pay our taxes and bills and mortgages.....

NorCal Dan, like others have said the documentaries have an agenda.  I have not seen this documentary of which you speak, but did it say anything about how many jobs Walmart provides here in the US.  How about in the New Orleans area after the storm (This I believe was after the doc was made) did they mention the fact that Walmart open it doors and allowed people to take anything they needed, they even shipped in extra stuff just to hand out to people in need. Everybody talks about places goughing people after a storm but did anybody say anything about wally world giving there stuff away.  Also I know for a fact that they work really hard at keeping their prices down so people can afford to buy there things.  Don't get me wrong I'm not saying that wally world is the be all end all but in my opinion they are not nearly as bad as some people make them out to be.  I know a person who worked at a local wally world for 20 years is now retired and living the good life.    
 
Flyone

I went to the link provided and didn't see anything about the safety, or lack thereof, of Walmart parking lots.

As far as the global economy is concerned, it has ever been thus.... the British relied on the 'sugar islands' (those little dots in the Carribean that were once their colonies) to pay for their side of the American Revolution back in the 1700's... just finished reading a most boring book about that called 'An Empire DIvided'.

I've also just about finished reading a book called 'Basic Economics' by Thomas Sowell. I recommend it to all of you. Basically, it's premise is that there is not enough of anything for everyone to have as much of it as they would like. Over and over again he repeats the phrase 'scarce resources that have alternative uses'.

What economics is about is how those scarce resources are allocated. The book goes into great detail about how free markets work (and how government interference doesn't - does that ring any bells? Can you say 'Community Reinvestment Act', required bad loans, housing bubble, housing burst, economic chaos??)

At any rate, Walmart provides goods at prices that people are willing to pay. Why should I pay more somewhere else when I have other NEEDS (like, say, health insurance) that I can pay for by saving money by shopping at Walmart?

NorCal Dan,

Sorry to have taken a tangent in my previous post.

I remember seeing a documentary on WalMart a few years back, it seemed to be aimed at how WalMart has helped kill main street businesses in many small towns.

I don't know if it's the same documentary you wrote about.

I have heard of crime in parking lots and rest stops used by RV'ers and truckers for lay overs. Criminals will always choose an area where it's easy to commit crimes against others.

Easy escape is one of the criteria a criminal will use in targeting an area. Since most Walmarts, rest and truck stops are located near or on interstates or bigger highways it makes it easy to make a clean get away.

A recent story about a Walmart in the San Diego area indicated a gang of several people would work together. They posted lookouts inside & outside the store, the inside criminals, usually a man & woman, sometimes with a child would act like they were shopping. They would identify shoppers that seemed like a good target, usually elderly folks buying more expensive items. They would call out to the lookouts outside and describe the target. The lookouts would follow the target out to their car and offer to help load the purchase if it's a big item or strike up a conversation. When the coast was clear they would rob the target.

norcal - your point on awareness is well taken. Everywhere one goes one must be aware of their surroundings.

That said, I have parked overnight at 58 Wal-Marts over the past few years and NEVER even came close to being concerned at a single one. Usually there is 24hr security and 24hr lights. What could be safer? Frankly, I have been in a few campgrounds (dark, no guards, no lights, far off the beaten path, etc) where I was far more concerned.

There is a continuously updated first-hand source of info that might be useful, http://overnightrvparking.com/ which although there is a nominal annual fee, this is the ONLY source that provide screened and verified first-hand reports. Highly valuable info.


-- Edited by RVDude at 18:07, 2009-03-04

Terry, as I read this thread the thought that was running through my mind concerning "child labor" was summed up by your last post. Were it not for corporations such as Wal-Mart needing their products and giving them a job, as menial as we Americans may see it, what would these "children" be doing to survive? We are a different culture with different values. What may be perceived as slave labor in this country may well be a family/life supporting wage in a Third World country...I speak for myself, but I go to Wal-Mart for a purpose. As shameful as it may sound, I don't give too much thought to the Mom/Pop store that may be suffering by my not shopping there or the "child" that may have had the paying job of creating my purchase. If Wally has what I want at the price I am willing to pay, I buy it...Thereby, relieving me of my money, providing Wally with more spending money and ultimately, the little tyke in some far off land a little income for his/her labors...Just had to throw my stuff out there....Marty