Friday Blog Round Up: People’s History Edition

Hi!
I’m one of those “EDUCATED MOTHERS” er “PEOPLE WILLING TO WORK FOR FREE” you mentioned above.

This is going to sound really funny to you - but I’m not working “for free” - if I did that, I’d be called a volunteer.
What I’m working for is myself.  I happen to be collaborating with WalMart on this project because the non-monetary compensation that I’m getting is worth the time to me.
That I also get to help out other Moms and people trying to make a dollar stretch in this economy? Side benefit.

Please don’t mistake my disagreement with your pessimism for naivete or being misinformed.  I’m well aware of WalMart’s past history.
What I’m also aware of is that they are currently *trying* to change and learn from their past mistakes.  It would appear that you’re not willing to give the company any room in which to do that.  Once a sinner always a sinner?

No, I am not a paid employee of WalMart - as the previous paid-blogging debacle taught the folks at WalMart that you really can’t pay for good publicity and expect it to mean anything to anyone. 
But I am supporting their current campaign. Why? Because I’m a supporter of other people trying to make it by in this horrid economy and if WalMart is willing to help me to help them? Great.

I hope you’ll take the time to look at the campaign and the website http://elevenmoms.com when it’s fully up & running after the launch - because that would enable you to form a much better personal opinion of it than reading 2nd hand accounts.  If there’s anything further I can explain about MY involvement, please feel free to contact me.  I can’t speak for WalMart - you’d need to contact their public relations folks.  But I’m more than willing to speak on my own behalf.

Thanks!
LMP
aka GeekMommy (one of the 11 Money Saving Moms)

Thank you so much Alex for not including one but two of my recent quotes. 
You see, I am educated and in theory, I am not getting paid.  But the way I see it, you can’t buy this kind of exposure.  What do I want to expose?
The Chief Mom Officer concept.  I am Chief Mom Officer at Wishpot.com where I get paid, competitively, because I’m EDUCATED (BA Communications) and have over eight years EXPERIENCE.  In addition to this job I am working hard to make sure other moms have these paid opportunities too. (via my other site www.chiefmomofficer.org)
I’d much rather have the opportunity to promote this vs. a check.  Because when I make that happen?  You can say I wasn’t paid.  But you can’t say I didn’t pay it forward.

Jessica and Lucretia, how were you chosen by Walmart? From articles I’ve read it appears several of the moms don’t even shop at Walmart , have a Walmart location in their area of the country, or even like Walmart’s policies.  I don’t fault the 12 moms for wanting to increase blog traffic or parlay the exposure into other opportunities. I don’t understand why Walmart didn’t choose moms who were more pro Walmart than the ones selected.  Certainly there were other moms who blog AND shop on a regular basis at Walmart.

“What I’m also aware of is that they [Walmart] are currently *trying* to change and learn from their past mistakes.  It would appear that you’re not willing to give the company any room in which to do that."~LMP
aka GeekMommy (one of the 11 Money Saving Moms)

Nonsense Lucretia Pruitt in Denver CO. Anything Walmart cooks up is just another pr trick. Right now in Canada the former employee’s are taking their case to the Supreme Court of Canada. This involves the Jonquiere Quebec store where YOUR company disrespects the rights of workers and has choosen to shut down the store vs honour employee’s rights.
I am sure that you and the other lucky moms will make a great info commercial for Walmart. That’s about all it will be worth.

Keep pretending.

R E M E M B E R
J O N Q U I E R E
Q U E B E C
Home of Walmart Worker Abuse

R E M E M B E R
J A C K S O N V I L L E
T E X A S
Home of Walmart Worker Abuse

“ Just like anyone reading this, I want to provide good food, nice clothes, and a comfortable home life for my family"~Lucretia Pruitt in Denver CO

Just like the full time Walmart workers who after 3 years are making 9 dollars and change an hour?

Just like the families thrown out of work by this corporate bully in Jonquiere Quebec?

Just like the decadent Walton family who each sit on over 18 billion dollars and the Walmart executives that take up to 20 million in a year. All this while they nickle and dime their rank and file workers?

R E M E M B E R
J O N Q U I E R E
Q U E B E C
Home of Walmart Worker Abuse

R E M E M B E R
J A C K S O N V I L L E
T E X A S
Home of Walmart Worker Abuse

...currently *trying* to change...

I’m afraid I’m going to have to side with Alex Goldschmidt when she drew a line through “EDUCATED MOTHERS”.

If you MOTHERS were truly educated you would know Wal-Mart’s business model doesn’t allow for the kind of change needed. Could Wal-Mart continue to save you pennies if they paid labor what it was worth? The Chinese are figuring it out. Perhaps someday you EDUCATED MOTHERS will as well.

What’s good for Wal-Mart is BAD for America!

Ken V in Texas,
Educated Mothers… Indeed!
My wife is pretty well educated, I guess that makes me an “EMF”

Educated Mother Friend…

Lucretia Pruitt in Denver CO

When Wal*Mart, Inc. Demands from their suppliers that all of the manufacturing jobs they sent to China are returned to the United States. Then I don’t care what they do. “Trying to change” Trying to change what? Wal*Mart has Raped and Pillaged the US middle Class. How do they propose to change that? Slogans and sound bites, mean nothing. Wal*Mart’s business model is bad for America. Wal*Mart want’s to be “good” for America? It’s going to take a hell of a lot more than low prices. Human Dignity and Wal*Mart are like oil and water. You should be doing something worthwhile with your education, that will do some good. But that’s not really what you are about, is it? This EMF is signing out.

“EMF"- Boobie in the Rubber Room

DMF- fits better (DUMB MOTHER FU----)

crawl back under your rock!

Walmart is trying to change?
Even if they did change they have left lasting damage to our economies. They have screwed our workers. The damage is done. Walmart will always have a cloud over it’s legacy.
If Walmart changes it is because we the people have forced change. Walmart culture is what it is. The will never understand what they have done. You have to be outside the picture frame to truely see the picture.

R E M E M B E R
J O N Q U I E R E
Q U E B E C
Home of Walmart Worker Abuse

R E M E M B E R
J A C K S O N V I L L E
T E X A S
Home of Walmart Worker Abuse

well.. I am an insider for certain.  I asked my manager about the new Marketside stores from the Email I received from this site.. he said that it was a completely different company and he knew nothing about it being affiliated with walmart, however I am maintenance in my store and have access to all offices and I am also a Hacker, so I hacked the bosses screenname on his account and found out some nitty gritty.. The local Zoning permission has been granted for a (marketside..LLC) and there was an Email in his system asking what employees he thinks he could spare to assist in the implemintation and setup of this store.  I can’t tell you the location because I will probably get busted, but I can’t stop this either.  oh, by the way.. do not hack into your walmarts computer systems.. that is illegal.. I broke this law because I wanted answers. the land where this new marketside store is going is under “IMMINENT DOMAIN” and there are houses with families living in them, which they will bulldoze to make the new store.  What can we do?

Onward Christian Soldiers in
And you call yourself a Christian…

Note to Wal-Mart Managers in Gilbert, Mesa, Chandler, and Tempe, AZ

I am maintenance in my store and have access to all offices and I am also a Hacker, so I hacked the bosses screenname on his account and found out some nitty gritty..

I can’t tell you the location because I will probably get busted...

You think?

I broke this law because I wanted answers.

Or, at the very least, more than you bargained for!

Too FUNNY!!!  The MOP MAN is a hacker!!!  Shades of WALGATE!!!!  Did you have a flashlight?  Your wasting your time at Wal-Mart...transfer to the CIA!

“oh, by the way.. do not hack into your walmarts computer systems.. that is illegal.. I broke this law because I wanted answers.”

That’s pretty much like saying, “Oh, by the way.. do not rob banks.. that is illegal.. I broke this law because I wanted a lot of money.” or “Don’t do as I do, do as I tell you!”!!

Or, at the very least, more than you bargained for!

If I didn’t know better, bb, I’d say that sounded like a threat. You have enough clout to sic the Wal-Mart SWAT team on Controlled Walmart employee?

I wouldn’t get too upset, fellows. The Wal-Mart ‘system’ gets hacked into daily and we all know Bentonville HO leaks like a sieve.

Behind a fence topped with razor wire just off U.S. Highway 71 is a bunker of a building that Wal-Mart considers so secret that it won’t even let the county assessor inside without a nondisclosure agreement.

Published on Monday, September 8, 2008 by The Seattle Times
David May Talk, Goliath May Walk
by David Sirota

“This is a David-and-Goliath confrontation, but we believe we’ll have enough stones in the sling to knock this out.”

That is a recent statement from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce when asked whether business lobbyists will defeat the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) - a labor-backed bill that cribs from Canadian law and makes joining a union a tiny bit easier. In the imminent confrontation over this almost embarrassingly modest proposal, corporations are actually billing themselves as the underdog - the poor, overmatched peasant David against the Philistine monster Goliath.

To the propaganda-numbed ear, it sounds plausible. History books and Washington news releases have seared a corporate hagiography into the public discourse - one mythologizing business as the brave little guy fighting the good fight against all-powerful union puppet masters - even as labor’s agenda has been stomped for a generation.

In truth, if the EFCA is “a David-and-Goliath confrontation,” then labor is David and the unholy business-politician alliance is Goliath - and that is an understatement. In a political system run by money, this is the United States invading Grenada, Sherman blazing into Atlanta, German tanks challenging Polish horses. This is the NBA All-Star squad playing a high-school team; Hulk Hogan arm-wrestling Gary Coleman; Michael Phelps competing in the Special Olympics.

In short, the struggle pitting Big Business and bought-off lawmakers against workers has been a cruel joke.

According to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics, corporate executives at Goliath, Inc. spent $17 billion lobbying Congress in the last decade. Labor leaders at David’s union hall mustered $333 million. In the 2008 election, business interests have outspent unions 18-to-1 on campaign contributions.(Continued)

ddrb in
Tuesday, September 09 at 10:05 AM

Of course, with Democrats poised to win the election, many believe the EFCA is a fait accompli because of the fallacy that unions own the Democratic Party. What a laugh.

During the 1990s, Bill Clinton helped the Gordon Gekkos crash the Democratic Party, infamously translating his support for NAFTA, telecom deregulation and Wall Street favors into campaign checks. Today, business has given 10 times the cash to Democratic candidates that labor has coughed up. In that context, a Democratic sweep in 2008 automatically assures EFCA’s passage about as much as Chevron’s environmental ads guarantee the oil industry’s commitment to seriously fighting climate change.

That said, corporations’ underdog act reveals their authentic fear that EFCA could pass next year - and it certainly could. That’s because America is not (yet) a pure plutocracy. To the dismay of the country-club crowd, workers still get most of the votes in elections, and this time around, they may actually vote their wallets.

The 2008 campaign has become a referendum on the results of conservative economic policy, and 30 years into Ronald Reagan’s class war, those results are stark. As the government stopped enforcing labor laws, business ramped up union busting, union membership plummeted and workers predictably lost ground. Today, industry profits rise, wages decrease and white-collar theft gets more audacious. Just last week, The Wall Street Journal reported that companies are raiding employees’ pension funds “to finance their executives’ retirement benefits and pay.” (If workers got a dime for every story like this, their pay would be much higher.)

In response to this predatory behavior, the prey is getting smart. Polls now show most Americans say they would join a union if given the chance (i.e., if they could without facing the employer retribution that EFCA is designed to prevent). The country has figured out that in an everyone-for-themselves capitalism, there is safety in numbers.

And so far away from the power lunches and Gucci gulches of Washington, unions have been organizing this realization into grass-roots pressure - and it might be just enough to pass the EFCA. The Davids have discovered that money may talk, but enough voters may be able to make Goliath walk.~~~~~~~~~~Common Dreams

~New York Times Editorial
Published: September 7, 2008
During the boom years of the Bush presidency — remember them? — economic growth was an especially unreliable indicator of how most Americans were doing.

The numbers were impressive, but the gains were lopsided, benefiting executives and investors far more than hourly workers and salaried employees. Because the growth was fueled by reckless lending and borrowing, it created an illusion of wealth even as many Americans lost ground.

The strange and painful disconnect was evident again in recent weeks.

The government reported that the economy grew at a surprising 3.3 percent in the second quarter, while productivity (the measure of how much workers accomplish per hour) soared. Unfortunately, those bounces did not mean a rebound in the lives of most Americans.

Growth rose, but so did unemployment. Productivity surged, but wages fell. Fixing that disconnect is the central economic challenge for the next president.

Increased exports were responsible for last spring’s strong economic growth numbers. But selling more abroad has not led to more manufacturing jobs or working-class pay raises at home.

One reason, as The Times’s Louis Uchitelle reported, is that manufactured goods accounted for an unusually low share of export gains in the first half of 2008, while commodities like corn and scrap metal accounted for an unusually high share. Worse yet, exports are likely to fall as the economies of Europe and Japan slow.

American consumers also helped drive recent growth, spending nearly $100 billion in government-provided stimulus payments. That was only a temporary lift. A true rebound cannot occur until the economy stabilizes. For that, oil prices have to settle at or below their recent levels; housing prices have to bottom out; and emerging economies, like China, have to avoid recession, thus propping up global growth.

Washington has little influence over those factors. But the government can try to stop things from getting much worse, helping to set the stage for a rebound. Congress will likely have to provide another round of stimulus — which should center on bolstered food stamps and grants to state and local governments. It may also have to provide more foreclosure relief.

That’s the easy part. Once the economy stabilizes, the creative and controversial work must begin to build an economy in which all Americans have a shot at sharing in the growth.

Senator Barack Obama has addressed the issue conceptually, rejecting the “you’re on your own” ethos of the Bush years. He has put forth prescriptions, including specific plans to create jobs with public-works investments, and he supports legislation that would make it easier for employees to form unions.

It’s well established that public-works spending yields a big economic bang for every buck and that unions lead to better pay. The politics are difficult. First, Americans must agree that government has a useful role to play in the economy, a notion that has been disparaged for decades. Big employers with powerful friends on Capitol Hill — Wal-Mart comes immediately to mind — can be expected to fight any attempts to foster unions.

Senator John McCain has also pledged to address the struggles of working Americans. Both candidates say their energy plans will create jobs. But Mr. McCain emphasizes more high-end tax cuts as the main engine for new jobs. Tax cuts are always politically popular. As job generators, however, they are a loser strategy, especially now. The Bush era, with its huge tax cuts, has the worst job-creation record of any post-World War II economic cycle.

America needs more jobs and American workers need a raise. Mr. Obama should sharpen his promising ideas. Mr. McCain has yet to address the real economy’s real problems head on.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Note: Well,Rick Davis,McCain’s manager has stated that this election is NOT about the issues!

Personally I’d like to see some of this documented. We had the fake school supplies list but no back up docs. We have a hacker, who is obviously in a possition to disclose some useful information. If this were a court of law, all of this would be hearsay. I think most of us here, Pro Business, Pro Union, Concerned Citizens, Pro Worker or what ever know what Wal*Mart is about. They are the “Bad Guys” Smiley face or not. It would be great to see this evidence put out in public domain. The citizens of the United States have a right to know what the country’s largest employer is up to.

Bravo to “Controlled Walmart employee in Censored, Cannot specify” If you ever get another chance send it out on the internet. If Wal*Mart isn’t up to anything bad, why should they care? I don’t know the legalities of hacking peoples computers. I would not be surprized if Wal*Mart isn’t logged into competitors systems, etc. That certainly is their nature. It’s not like they have always taken the Moral High Ground…
Go get em.

EM*F: Go to Reclaim Democracy website. An absolute essential source of info on WalMart- almost encyclopedic in scope-including internal documents and info.

Thanks ddrb,
Will do. But good lord there are a lot of people out there that need a healthy dose of the truth. More than half of them probably don’t own computers and get their info from FOX news… Gotta roll up the sleeves, I guess.

EM*F,

“Personally I’d like to see some of this documented. We had the fake school supplies list but no back up docs. We have a hacker, who is obviously in a possition to disclose some useful information. If this were a court of law, all of this would be hearsay”

But, it is much easier to pass off BS, without documentation, that’s exactly WHY they don’t allow things like this in court!!

“know what Wal*Mart is about. They are the “Bad Guys” Smiley face or not. It would be great to see this evidence put out in public domain. The citizens of the United States have a right to know what the country’s largest employer is up to.”

If everybody already KNOWS that Wal-Mart is the “Bad Guys”, wouldn’t they already know the evidence?  On the other hand, a hundred+ millions of people SHOP and WORK at Wal-Mart, so maybe they KNOW something people like you DON’T know!!  Maybe, because they WORK and SHOP there, might give them a different ‘take’ on it, from what people who DON’T WORK or SHOP there and only choose to see what groups like WMW and disgruntled employees tell them!!

It has always struck me as strange, how a minority always SEEMS to know what is best for the majority, because somehow, they think they are SMARTER!!

RDS: You mean like the right wing nut job Neo-CONS and the Christian Dominionist Evangelicals? BTW,have you checked out Palin’s churches and their beliefs?John McCain was AGAINST the extremist Evangelicals BEFORE he was FOR them,prior to seeking endorsement of John Hagee,and Ron Parsley.Seems to me this minority ALWAYS seems to think they know what’s best for the majority!

“BTW,have you checked out Palin’s churches and their beliefs?”

That is why there is only ONE God, but, so many different religions, because to one person, the beliefs of others are WACKO!!  I bet YOUR church has beliefs that are ‘stupid’ to some other person’s beliefs!!  Example: When the Catholics couldn’t eat meat on Fridays, most non Catholics saw that as ‘stupid’!!

“You mean like the right wing nut job Neo-CONS and the Christian Dominionist Evangelicals?”

That discription shows that YOU think you are ‘better’ and ‘smarter’ than anyone who doesn’t THINK like you!!  Doesn’t that make you a ‘bigot’?

RDS: Want an example of what I consider bigoted, attitude ,someone who considers themself better and smarter than others,and knows BEST for the majority? Try this on for size:~~~~~~~~~~"BTW: Question, how many wheels does your home have?

RDS in
Sunday, September 16 at 09:55 PM

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thank you for the opportunity,RDS,to provide an observation of mine,and this seems to be the perfect segue.There is a repeated ATTEMPT at insulting me by using references to pickups, mobile homes.  It is evident that you are insinuating that somehow people who like wrestling,pickups,mobile homes are inferior,or you would not keep coming back to these analogies in an attempt to insult me.Has it ever occurred to you that millions of walmart shoppers fit that profile exactlyAre you saying that you revere the business model and revile the very core customer base that built and sustains the loyal customer base?ELTIST indeed.!I do not pass judgments on these people,and i dont shop at walmart,and i dont live in a mobile home and i dont drive a pickup-but i dont ridiule those who do-even if they CHOOSE to shop at walmart-I doubt seriosly that your pro walmart stance is made more credible when you deride many of walmarts own customer base!!(P.S. Im not a wrestling fan,.)r

ddrb in
Tuesday, September 18 at 11:23 AM

P.S.  I neglected to mention the thousands of walmart associates who would also,no doubt,find your elitism unjust and insulting.

ddrb in
Tuesday, September 18 at 01:23 PM~~~~~~~~~~NOTE: These comments were from last fall. Bigotry takes many forms,not exclusively manifesting as religious in tone. You of all people should realize that better than anyone,since you are a consistent offender of those who choose differently than you,ridiculing others for what YOU perceive to be their lack of “personal responsibilty”.

Dominionism, Sarah Palin & the Christian Taliban
Posted by: Red Vixen

We know that Sarah Palin believes in Creationism and thinks that it should be taught as science in public schools.  But she’s not really a Creationist, she actually subscribes to another Christian faction called DOMINIONISM.  Daily KOS is sounding the alarm bells over the dominionist connection, but of what does this doctrine really consist?

Dominionism: (or Reconstructionism)A particular school of evangelical political thought that holds Christians as having rightful “dominion” over the earth- including its political institutions. They wish to make America a “Christian” nation, ruled by Christians, and have stated boldly that the U.S. Constitution should be replaced by Christian sovereignty and Christian principles, including, by the way- the execution of gays.

The fountainhead of Dominionist theology is Rousas John Rushdoony, who held, among other notions, that the principles of Christianity and democracy are enemies.

Pat Robertson is, and Jerry Falwell was….self-avowed Christian Reconstructionists/Dominionists. 

Oh, and you should know that James Dobson (pray to God for political gain, no matter how malicious the consequences) is absolutely THRILLED that McCain has picked Sarah Palin as the VP nomination for the Republican party ticket.

Here’s a further description in laymen’s terms:

Broadly, it’s used to describe Christian conservatives who seek Biblical influence or control over secular government. There are obviously variations on the degree to which they want to influence government. But the fundamental principles are:1. We were founded as a Christan Nation.
2. Christianity is superior to other religions (not all seek convert all people though that varies as well.)
3. Our laws should be based on Biblical law.

This attempt to replace democratic ethics with religion is truly disturbing to citizens who believe that the Constitution SHOULD be the RULE of the land. ~~~~~~~~~~~~Amen to that last sentence!

ddrb,

“It is evident that you are insinuating that somehow people who like wrestling,pickups,mobile homes are inferior,or you would not keep coming back to these analogies in an attempt to insult me.”

I just asked a question, sorry if you took it as an insult!!  And, I never said they were inferior, in fact, it has been your side that called them ‘toothless, hillbillies’!!  I have always been on the side of Wal-Mart shoppers and understand, that Wal-Mart provides a ‘low cost’ place for them to shop!!  It is YOUR side that wants to put Wal-Mart ‘out of business’ and make those people pay higher prices elsewhere!!  It is YOU who doesn’t understand these people!!  And, the FACT that I shop at Wal-Mart, not only makes me understanding of them, but also ONE of them!!

“ridiculing others for what YOU perceive to be their lack of “personal responsibilty”.”

That’s YOUR interpretation, trying to inform people on how to take charge of their lives through ‘personal responsibility’, is NOT ridicule!! After all, I used to be one of them and in some ways, still am, so why would I redicule them!!

BTW:  What would you call a person who lives NEXT to a Wal-Mart store and drives to another store to shop?

“What would you call a person who lives NEXT to a Wal-Mart store and drives to another store to shop?” ~RDS

SMART!

Screwed:~~~ Thanks! And as a little extra, remember to ALWAYS- “ Save more. Live longer. Shop elsewhere!”

“SMART!”

So, you think it’s SMART to use up extra gas, add to air pollution and pay higher prices, when you don’t have to, not to mention wear and tear on your car, and the roads!!  Doesn’t sound very SMART to me!!

Sounds about as SMART as buying something (like CDs) at a high price and then setting them on fire at home!!

Can’t You Find Your Own Issues, RDS?

It never surprises me how you manage to take what we’ve been saying for a long time, and then twist and bend them until they fit your perverted and warped views of the world!

How is ddrb’s shopping decision any different from what people like you do RDS?  You apparently think it’s SMART for consumers to use up extra gas, add to air pollution, put needless wear and tear on their cars and roads just because Wal-Mart says, “Save more.  Live Better”

Wal-Mart’s modus operandi is to locate its Supercenters outside of major cities. How many uninformed consumers think nothing of driving 10 or more miles to shop at Wal-Mart, even when they have other options closer to home?

And don’t give me your specious “argument” that what people “save” at Wal-Mart, more than makes up for their gas and time.  This has never been definitively proven!

Doesn’t sound very SMART to me!!

Screwedby,

“It never surprises me how you manage to take what we’ve been saying for a long time, and then twist and bend them until they fit your perverted and warped views of the world!”

My ‘perverted and warped views of the world’, are the same views that are shared by the majority of people in this country, past and present!!  Even your own mother shares my views, oh, I forgot, you think your own mother makes ‘bad’ choices too!! And, remember, your group of thinkers is much smaller than most Americans!!  And, if your views were ‘valid’, you wouldn’t have so much trouble getting people to listen to you!!

“How is ddrb’s shopping decision any different from what people like you do RDS?”

Are you really that ignorant, that you can’t see that NOT shopping at a store 30 feet from your home, is not the same as driving to a store that is NOT 30 feet from your home?  BTW:  The Wal-Mart I shop at, is only 8 tenths of a mile from my home, so I don’t use that much gas to get there!!

“consumers think nothing of driving 10 or more miles to shop at Wal-Mart”

Think about it, if you get 20 MPG, you would use 1 gallon of gas (with the store 10 miles away), using $3.85 a gallon, all you would have to save, is more than $3.85 and that’s not hard to do on an average weeks worth of items!!

“And don’t give me your specious “argument” that what people “save” at Wal-Mart, more than makes up for their gas and time.  This has never been definitively proven!”

A SMART shopper does a cost comparison and PROVES to themself, if they are saving enough to offset the ‘gas & time’ costs!!