Speaking of Faith: Higher Expectations Week Day 1

YOUR VERY OWN Rev. Johnson?  So you own him?  Or he is on your payroll?  please explain how he is YOUR VERY OWN.  That really disturbs me.

Get with the progrum, huh.  It’s obvious they meant that he works either with Wal-Mart Watch or at Wal-Mart Watch.  Uniformed, yet accusatory.  Nice mix.

People in low-income neighborhoods, in my experience, practically fight among themselves to get a job at the local Wal-Marts. The work is relatively easy, the pay and benefits are good, and the promotions ladder is excellent.

Is Wal-Mart greedy? If being greedy means that they want money, then of course they are; and Wal-Mart makes money by means of providing things that low-income people are willing to buy. If they made poor products, or charged prices too high, then they would lose money and go out of business. Wal-Mart’s supposed greed is also its chain: if it gets too greedy, its competitors take over its business, and so it must restrain itself.

But if being greedy means that they exploit workers unjustly, perpetrating misery in the world just to line their own pockets, then the answer is unequivocally no. Wal-Mart lacks that kind of power. When Wal-Mart offers someone a job, they have two choices: to accept or to not accept. If one accepts the offer, then they believe that they would do better working at Wal-Mart than not working there. The fact that WM has so many employees indicates that very, very many people think that they’re better off working at WM than not working there. Where do their profits come from? When WM offers a product for sale, the buyer has tow choices: to buy or to not buy. If they buy the product, it means that they consider themselves better having bought it than if they had not bought it. The fact that WM makes such huge profits (in quantity; percentage-wise, as has already been mentioned, they make very low profits, about 3.5%) indicates that very, very many people believe that Wal-Mart offers products such that purchasing these items would increase the buyers’ utility.

Just ask yourself: what would happen if Wal-Mart went out of business tomorrow? What would happen if the stock quote, seen on every page of this website, suddenly plummeted, as so many here wish it to do? All of those people who consider themselves better-off working at WM would become unemployed, or at best would be at a second-tier job—the sort that they proved themselves unwilling to work at when they accepted a job with WM. All of those people who consider themselves better-off buying things from WM would become much worse-off, since they would then have to pay higher prices for their goods. And since both Wal-Mart’s workers and Wal-Mart’s customers tend to come from the lower income ranges, a collapse of Wal-Mart would cause immense, disproportional harm to the poor.

But, of course, upper-middle class socialists don’t care about that. Wal-Mart is evil to them, and, no matter how much good WM does, its collapse—and the loss of all that good—would be seen by them to be a cause for rejoicing, nevermind the fact that it would wreak havok among the poor.

Unfortunately those people you think consider themselves as better off because they work for WM, have those jobs because WM put the place that they worked for out of business.  So where else would they go? They are all so lucky that WM has such great work ethics to have hired these people who have just lost their only means of supporting themselves.

I have made several posts on this site but NOTHING INFURIATES ME WORSE then trying to turn the religious community against Wal-mart!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I am a Wal-Mart Associate and a devout Christian.  What’s next, why not make Jesus the devil and say that Jesus is destroying small communities????  Be for real!

The greatest commandment is to “Love your neighbor.” Wal-Mart is the largest contributor of donations in the towns/cities they are in.

Even FEMA recognized Wal-Mart for its selfless and promt response to those areas affected by Katrina, Rita, and Wilma.

Wal-Mart offers a good benefit package.  No Associate starts out at minimum wage.  Add together the whole package..the hourly wage, the profit sharing, the company paid insurance, the Associate discount, etc. etc. etc. and you will see that Wal-Mart treats people very nicely.

Wal-Mart is known for its incredible return policy.  What other large retailer even compares?

Wal-Mart has directly helped lost children be reunited with their families through the Missing Children’s Board in each store.

Wal-Mart is a true friend to us all, even those who bash it.  Through this company, the cost of living is lower for us all.  I guess Wal-Mart and Jesus have quite a bit in common, huh!

Think whatever you want, but don’t desecrate a place of worship by hypocritically criticizing that which embodies christian values!!!!!!!!

Actually, Josh, I had been admiring the accuracy of your post. But I thank you.

Anonymous said, “What you really just said is that walmart workers are poor.”

No, I said that those who work at Wal-Mart tend to be from the lower-income levels. There’s a difference.

Someone who is poor is below the poverty line. Someone who is working even a minimum-wage job full-time makes enough money to put him safely above the poverty line. WM pays above the minimum wage, and so the average worker there is not poor.

Most are, however, from the lower levels of income, and from that I mean only that they aren’t middle or upper class. (They’re often young people on their way up to the middle class, though.) That’s hardly criticizing WM—after all, the majority of working people are neither middle nor upper class. It should be self-evident: the average WM worker isn’t going to earn the money necessary to put him into the upper quintiles of income, simply because the jobs that do pay that kind of money usually require a college degree, something that the average WM employee does not have.

Outside the management levels, few workers of Wal-Mart are middle class. Again, this should be self-evident, in that few workers outside management levels for any company are middle class. WM does, however, pay wages that are significantly above the median wages for similarly-skilled workers, and that doesn’t even take into account the fact that it promotes its employees very quickly.

Someone mentioned that someone who takes a job at Wal-Mart does so only because WM drove out the competition. This isn’t true, since, again, it is my experience that lower-income workers (NOT poor—if you’re working, you are not poor) practically duel with each other to get a positition at WM. But even if it were true… well, how did WM beat its competition? It offered better products at lower prices; that is, it made those people who shop there better off than they were before. The less efficient competition therefore went out of business. If those former employees then took a job at WM, they have the following benefits:

1. Wal-Mart, as a major corporation, can afford to pay—and does pay—wages far above those of “mom and pop” stores. As evidence, I present the fact that the CEO of WM recently spoke out supporting a rise in the minimum wage; WM can afford the increased wage, while its competition cannot.

2. A positition at Wal-Mart offers more job security than the former job did. WM had already shown itself to be more efficient and more competitive, meaning that it would be unlikely to go out of business. As long as WM remains more efficient and competitive, its workers have higher levels of safety, in that they won’t be laid off when their company goes out of business. In other words, stick with the winner.

3. Wal-Mart promotes very well, usually from within its ranks, and the average employee has a very good change of rising to store manager levels, unlike what would be the case in its less efficient competitors with whom jobs are more “dead end.”

4. An employee, remember, is also a consumer. It’s better for the employee that he be able to purchase cheap goods than expensive goods. When a WM enters a new area, the real income of consumers (including the employees in the area) increases relative to the availability of purchaseable goods.

I’ll read it now.

And post a response later.

Josh.

I’ve read too much, posted too much.

One day at a time.

See.

The Funny Thing.

If you read the first line of every first sentence, or the last line of every sentence,

Or everything inbetween - written on the fly ....

You’de have to call headquarters - or ... just maybe ... take every line for everything it’s worth.

That’s neither here nor there - is it.

Thanks Walmart Watch ... sincerely.

Keep this blog -

In the proper forum.

The Board of Directors.

It’s printed by the minute, every fifteen minutes.

25 million vs. 250 million.

Ironically, I’m a Walmart associate - store level.

I hope it reverberates.

A just because post.

“The cookie monster.”

See - I’m smarter and more paranoid than you think.

Even Warren Buffet thinks it’s a good thing.

These unions will go deeper and deeper into the mud to make up BS about walmart just to make themselves look better. Why doesn’t someone do a investigation on where the products sold in a union store come from. Most of the products the ufcw claim walmart buys overseas you can find also on the union shelves. The main reason walmart products are cheaper is because of logistics. They spend more money then any company out there on perfecting their supply chain, which goes along way to cutting cost and making them the premier company when it comes to logistics. If it wasn’t for walmart, the RFID technology that’s coming would have never been developed. With this technology walmart is creating more highend jobs in the manufacturing of these chips.

Also, like I said before, with this dumb protest week that’s coming up, the only place it will be made a big deal about is on this website and the wakeup website. Yea, they might get a couple of their liberal friends in the press to right about the so called sucess they are having, but most people understand this for the union propaganda it is.

sure walmart is great to it’s employees.  when you can actually afford their health insurance, when they are not making you work off the clock, when they pay a living wage.

bob: whether or not it is a living wage depends on your lifestyle choices. It is a very subjective thing.

be real the only reson you are going after wal-mart is because they sell guns and are christian based. Simple as that.

Bob, what’s a living wage? Define it explicitly, please.

Euclidean,
I have put forth the same challenge but no one wants to take it on. I was told $10 dollars an hour but they refused to say if that was for the school kid with no expenses or the single mother of six kids that has to pay everything and if it was a living wage in Chicago Illinois, New York City or Ellisville Mississippi.
I think every employer should be forced to add up all the bills their employees have, figure out how much it will cost them to put food on the table for their entire family, give them an entertainment allowance, clothing allowance, pay their health AND vehicle insurance, put 10% of the total in a savings account for the employee and shoot have a college fund for each of their children. The employee should never have to work overtime, and for pete’s sake the employee should be allowed to write their own schedule (God forbid anyone should be forced to work when they don’t want too). Any company caught making a profit should be forced to give the money away in total to it’s employees and never never never into the pockets of the company owners, they are not entitled.

Oh, yes, Lori, I agree. Anything less than that is exploitation, pure and simple. Cough, cough.

Alright, some facts:

For two wage-earners and two dependent children, the poverty line is set at $24,000 per year. Two parents working full-time, earning minimum wage, make ~$25,000 per year, enough to set them above the poverty line. And that simple calculation doesn’t take into account the fact that someone who works at Wal-Mart rarely works a full year there at minimum wage—it’s fairly standard to be up to $8 or $10 per hour by the end of a year.

Sounds like a “living wage” to me.

Lori, by far that is the funniest thing I have ever read assuming that it was meant as sarcasm.  There is a plan that meets all of the requirements that you put forth.

It’s called Communism.

Didn’t work out too well for the USSR.

Lori, you crack me up.  Very, very true.  And again, Euclidean, nice usage of facts and good reasoning.

OMG I forgot the gasoline allowance. Oh dopey me!

Lori, how dare you forget that noble needs of the proletariat include such necessities as gasoline? No food allowance for you!

Josh, thanks.

I’ll go to my corner and think about my crime now.

Dont worry about the kids getting molested in churches Rev.Frank Alton. Worry about a company that provides jobs and low priced good. Way to focus your efforts. Jesus would be proud.

I have never been to this website before, but yesterday I was given a flyer by a co-worker.  I have worked at wal-mart for three years, and like Dale that posted above, I too am a devout Christian.  But unlike him, I see a direct relationship between my faith and a need for social justice in the world.  Paying workers low wages while executives are walking away with millions and millions of dollars isn’t justice and it there IS a moral connection.  Whether on not someone is a Christian, Muslim, Jew, etc.  all faith is based upon moral absolutes. 
.

Tom, thanks for pointing me to Dales post from before.

Dale,

Review your posting above, you said that the greatest commandment was love thy neighbor...I don’t know what kind of devout Christian you are, but you may want to go to the Alabama Supreme Court and relook the Ten Commandments over, the greatest Commandment of them all...I am the lord thy God, you should have no other God’s besides me.

Go to your local Wal-Mart and pick up a Bible, read it, then you can call yourself a “devout Christian.”

Ryan

Euclidean in Norman, OK
I have a friend that wants to know if you know a Andrew Dunagan from Norman, OK

Ryan,

Thanks for keeping me on my toes.  “Love you neighbor” is actually the second greatest command, at least according to Matthew 22:38-39.  Loving the Lord you God with all your heart, soul, mind is number one.  It’s all love.

No matter how you try to make it valid, bashing a good company like Wal-mart has no place in church.

Lori, no, I’m afraid that I don’t. I’m not really from Norman, just attending the university there.

“Paying workers low wages while executives are walking away with millions and millions of dollars isn’t justice and it there IS a moral connection.”

Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s goods, nor his estate.

everyone really needs to get over this “buy american” crap. There is no true thing. we are standing at the threshhold of global economy....you cant stop it...new world order...embrace it...this is bigger than wal-mart...get in on something that really matters

I want to speak to those who say that Wal-Mart is helping to keep the engine of capitalism running full speed ahead.  Any of us who have taken a few college courses or even high school courses in business know that capitalism involves business making a profit. Nobody says that there is anything wrong with that. However capitalism left unchecked does terrible things.  That’s why we have anti-monopoly laws, laws against slavery, laws against child labor and so on and so fourth.  In this case Wal-Mart is not per taking in any of those illegal activities.  One must remember that the modern form of capitalism is fairly new system, so every new day in America is another new uncharted day in the realm of modern day capitalism.  Things that were never supposed to go wrong with this system do go wrong as evidenced by the laws that we have on the books.  Capitalism was supposed to act as an invisible hand that redistributed wealth among people.  The idea says that if you or someone else comes up with an idea or an invention that they should reap the benefits of that idea or invention through namely making money (profit).  This system helped ensure that no one king or queen or other entity would ever have almost total control over they money in a given economy.  We know that concentrated wealth creates a sort of economic environment seen in the days of kings and queens.  In that system there were a few ultra rich and the rest would be made do without or have very little.  That is exactly what is taking place with Wal-Mart and its small band of shareholders who directly control nearly 10% of the United States Economy and by some estimates, indirectly control 40%.  If one looks at how the wealth of the nation is spread out, it is shocking to see that nearly 70% of the wealth in this country is held by only 5% of the population leaving the other 95% with just 30%.  This wealth centralization has been trending this way since the 1960’s and it really picked up steam in the 1980’s.  Today the laws of economics that are in our text books no longer work.  These mega corporations have become so big that they are now making their own rules of capitalism and are showing us that our view of capitalism needs to be revised. I’m not an economic scholar by any means, but from my standpoint I can see that something is very wrong with the American economy today due to the wealth numbers I just presented. Wal-Mart acts like a huge money vacuum.  They take in nearly $100 million per Super center and they only pay out maybe 2-5% of sales back into payroll and local donations.  Top that off with a very lean work staff and you have the makings for money machine that takes money out of the local economy and sends it straight to the Walton family and their band of shareholders.(note Wal-Mart has millions of outstanding shares with millions of share holders, but the vast majority of the stock is held by only a few individuals or groups). This money vacuum is exactly what capitalism supposed to stop.  The recentralization of wealth in this country is happening before our very own eyes. This is not the way the system is supposed to act. If this trend of wealth centralization continues it will lead many many more people into poverty and low paying jobs.  But what can we do about it?  Again I say, this is another glitch in the capitalism radar.  Measures must be taken to combat this problem.  It’s not just Wal-Mart that is practicing this, its all large corporations.  They have such a dominant hand in the market place now that it’s nearly impossible for small business to compete with them.  Sure small business will continue to be in existence, but they will be much fewer in number and their profits will be much lower, thus ensuring that real profits continue to flow to those top 5% of income holders.  Yes Wal-Mart does give us lower prices, but at what cost?  Are you willing to give up your middle income job to someone who will do it for half the wage in India so that Wal-Mart can lower its price for the rest of us?  I don’t think most of us would do that.  IF left unchecked, that is the fate we all face as the centralization of wealth continues.  This is a brief description of what I believe is happening as huge mega corporations like Wal-Mart force the nations wealth into the hands of a few by paying low wages and demanding even lower prices from suppliers and vendors. Those vendors in turn cut costs and lower wages to meet Wal-Mart’s expectations and thus begins and infinite regress of cost and wage cutting. Excuse grammatical errors or misspellings. 
Thanks for your time.

why do all of you begrudge these exec’s for going to school, making an investment in thier future, and making money.  you will NEVER get rich without an education, and you won’t work at wal-mart as a cashier if you have an education.  right???  dont blame the rest of us because you were too lazy to go to school.

Jeremy wrote:

“ Capitalism was supposed to act as an invisible hand that redistributed wealth among people.  The idea says that if you or someone else comes up with an idea or an invention that they should reap the benefits of that idea or invention through namely making money (profit). “

Being from Fayetteville, you must know that this is exactly what Sam Walton did.  Took a small store and built it into a large business.  Now, you are saying that because others didn’t compete with him, stores like K-Mart, J.C. Penny, Sears, Montgomery Ward, etc., etc., it is Wal-Marts fault that they succeeded while the others failed?  And, so, somehow they should be punished for this?  Punished for having a good business model?  Is that part of your capitalistic system.  If this is followed and achievers are punished to the benefit of the under achievers, what motive is there for starting a business with a new idea in the first place?  What then happens to capitalism then?  It ceases to exist!!

Jeremy, I normally avoid ad hominems, but please, allow me to say that you’re an idiot.

WHY is wealth inequality bad? WHY are large corporations bad? You simply cite random numbers indicating that Wal-Mart is successful (boo for success!), as though the fact that some people are richer than others is the sine qua non of all that is evil. You don’t even attempt a justification.

You’re “not an economic scholar.” I noticed. I am. Allow me to educate you about the above topic.

The amount of economic growth in a country is proportional to the amount of business spending on capital goods, which is proportional to the amount of savings. The more savings, the more economic growth. The poor do not save—everyone in the United States below a family income of $80,000 consumes more than they receive in income (that is, they’re in debt). Only the rich receive more income than they can spend, and they save it.

How? They don’t hide it under the mattress. The two main options are savings accounts and stock investments. If they invest in stocks, then they’ve already made an investment towards economic growth. If they put their money into savings accounts, then: 1) banks loan out this money to businesses for investment, and 2) the increase of loanable funds increases the money supply, driving down the interest rate and spurring investment.

Savings cause economic growth. Only the rich save.

Because of this, there is a direct correlation, I’ve found, between the level of wealth inequality and the rate of economic growth. The more wealth is controlled by the rich, who save the most, the higher the rate of economic growth.

The GINI index is the best measure of income inequality. A cursory glance at its history reveals that it is not constant over our history; inequality varies from year to year. Now, pay very close attention, because this is important. The GINI index is highest during economic booms and lowest during recessions.

Did you get that? The higher the level of inequality, the better the economy; we only have low GINI indexes only in years of recession.

And we all know that high unemployment is the main result of a recession. And, likewise, I found that as the GINI index rises in Western countries, not only does the unemployment rate FALL, but the average wage rate RISES.

The concentration of capital is essential for economic growth. No serious economist disputes that. But even more important is the amount of savings, and only the rich save. If you drag down the rich, you drag down everyone else as well.

Case in point: 1937. The economy had been rebounding from the Great Depression for four years. Roosevelt does three very stupid things at this time: 1) he raised the tax rate, 2) he ordered the Attorney General and SEC to prosecute businesses for things like “unfair competition,” and 3) he proposed a 100% tax on all income over $200,000. As a direct consequence of these actions, the economy fell back into a recession nearly equal to the depths of the Great Depression.

Is spitting in the face of the rich worth widespread unemployment and poverty?

seventeal in dc

I have read all the posting and find some I agree with and some I don’t. I made a choice years ago not to shop at Wal-mart, that is my choice. I have never missed going to WM. I don’t believe I ever will.

Your remark “buy american” crap is a total disgrace to every American that has ever fought and died for our country and everything our fore fathers stood for. I for one could care less where you shop but if you think buying non American products does not effect our entire economy you must live in different world.  I guess you have never heard the saying ‘You’ve got to stand for something or you’ll fall for anything”. I guess you will never know about standing up for what you believe in. Keep on going with the flow and see where our country is headed. Yes this is bigger than WM and unfortunately the fight is not only with those like WM but also those like you that go with the flow and never stand up and fight.

Kay

What is “Buy American”? Do you mean products that are manufactured anywhere in the world by US based companies or do you mean products that are manufactured in the US by foreign companies? Explain that, please.

As for the remainder of the ignorant posters here, you astound me. I don’t know how anyone could make the argument that reducing employment and raising costs is somehow good for the economy. Wal-Mart employs, directly and indirectly, millions of workers. Many of these workers are people who would not otherwise have jobs. As for “cheap foreign labor” that is really just a union invention. Do you really think most Americans care about the treatment of foreign workers? Is there something wrong with lower cost of production? The unions want you to feel sorry for the “exploited” people in these foreign countries not because they actually care but because “cheap foreign labor” undercuts high-priced US labor. We need to ask the question-"Would these workers in China be better off with no job at all? Or are they better off working for Nike?”

Finally, we as a nation spend X amount of dollars on goods and services in any given year. Purchasing goods at Wal-Mart and moving production to cheaper locations drives down the cost of living. Now, we can consume more for the same monetary value or we can invest the savings in our economy, thereby stimulating economic growth. Either through higher productivity or increased domestic investment, or a combination of the two, the US benefits.

What is wrong with that? Please explain it to me using logic and reason, not emotion.

By the way Euclidean, nice post. We need more like that on this board. Keep it coming!

first its sventeal not seventeal… second the TERM “buy american” is crap because there is no true thing…
NWO

The tag line was, “We buy American whenever we can so you can, too” Notice the words “Whenever we can”
If buying American takes the price to an unaffordable range than the company can’t buy that item.  Wal-Mart will pay up to 10% more on the cost of an item to keep it made in the USA, not a tidbit you will see advertised much on walmartwatch.com.  It all boils down to the consumer.  They tell Wal-Mart to buy from China every time they purchase a Chinese item.  If an item doesn’t “Pay its rent”, then that item is cut from the selection.  Our imphatic desire for low cost goods is what causes any company to buy non-American.  Point:  They buy from China because we tell them to.  So does all other retailers.

This is my second posting.  I have two points that I want to make.  The first point concerns my earlier posting.  I have read a few of the comments that I received about my piece about “wealth concentration”.  I will not resort to name calling as some of the “economic scholars” on this blog have done.  The case the “scholar” presented was very persuading, the scholar said, “The more wealth is controlled by the rich, who save the most, the higher the rate of economic growth.” This finding seems to contradict the “invisible hand” of capitalism. The scholar basically says that is okay for the top 5% of income earners to eat 70% of the cake.  The other 30% of us will just have to learn to live with what crumbs fall from their big fat mouths and be thankful we have that $5.15 an hour job. Is this the trickle down effect we hear about from those on the right?  In other words it’s okay for a few to have a lot and a lot to have a little.  The scholar is right in some respects when it comes to the capital markets and so fourth, however my point was that when the wealth concentration becomes so great (all the money in the hands of a few) the system starts to work against itself. The problem with centralized wealth is that when left unchecked, it creates more economic downturns, more poverty, more crime, and has an overall negative impact on society.  When you take money out of the hands of the majority and put into the hands of a few in the rich minority, you essentially run the gas out of the economic engine.  Common Sense. 

My second point is that many of you seem to defend Wal-Mart on all grounds no matter what they have or have not done.  I do not hate Wal-Mart.  Wal-Mart is very convenient and shopper friendly.  However I do feel they can do better.  Every year Wal-Mart continually slash’s benefits and pay to its associates while store sales and profits are soaring. Is this what responsible corporations are about?  It’s about time the associates at Wal-Mart opened their eyes and seen what their company is doing to them.  Why do you let Wal-Mart continue to pull the rug out from under you? You work so hard for your money but you still go along with the lies they feed you.  It’s frustrating to see hard working men and women of Wal-Mart be treated like they are dirt. I care what happens to them. Being raised in Northwest Arkansas, I have several relatives who are employed with Wal-Mart.  They speak of when Wal-Mart was a different company before Sam died.  These are people who attend church, pay tier bills and play by the rules.  They are as American as anybody can get, yet Wal-Mart is continually cutting back their benefits and compensation.  It’s not right, it’s not ethical and most of all its Unchristian.  Asking a company to pay its workers better wages or provide employees with better health care, so that the tax payers are not shouldering the burden, is not a terrible thing to ask of a multi billion dollar corporation.  Wal-Mart is a leader. Is it to much to ask for a few simple reforms?  Its time for Americans and the Wal-Mart Associates to take a STAND!

Thanks for your time
Jeremy

jeremy, assuming that you work at walmart as a cashier, you are thirty five, 2 kids, no spouse, making a realistic $9 dollars an hour.  you have no further education than high school, so you don’t stand out at all to employers.  you have a minimum education.  most people wont even consider you for employment without it.  now, what makes her deserve any more than that?  honestly, i can’t figure it out.  i didn’t CONTINUE to go to college, (i had a free ride on academics)and now, i’m married (to an rn) and i work in a factory.  this was my own decision.  no one forced me, and i made my own decision.  i don’t begrudge my wife for the fact that she spent almost 5 years in school and now makes more than me.  she deserves more.  she/we took out loans, missed out on vacations, lose time with our kids, and many other sacrifices.  i work hard for my money, but i know that i don’t deserve what she makes for the simple fact that i walked in, with basicly no education, and got myself a good paying job.  wal mart was an option, just not a viable one.  as with the thirty five year old person mentioned above.  minimum wage was never meant to sustain a family.  NEVER.  the children should never have been created if you had no way to support them.  but, you can’t federally mandate a woman’s body, can you???  and yes, you can say im sexist, but a man can’t physically have a child.  contraception is key.  minimum wage, should that be all you desire, will get you by, but don’t expect others to feel sorry for you because you didn’t get you’re 50k a year pushing carts ( a job i had at 16) at a grocery store.  get a big boy job.  a big girl job.  a REAL job.

Please allow me this one profanity.

Holy shit Jeremy!

You summed it up - economics 101.

If that’s unclear - I’ll restate it.

You have summed it up.

Furthermore - the difference between betwixt micro and micro-economics.

You left no holes in your argument.

Which is why - the “pro” and I suspect “paid” walmart posters are attempting to attack the messenger - not the message.

Keep posting.

The arsenal of a spinmeister:

1.  Lie, defer, deflect, insult, profane, or change the subject.
2.  See number 1.
3.  See number 2.

The invisible hand ...  and profit.

Keep posting Jeremy.

Addendum - corrections.

Macro.

The arsenal of a spinmeister - add confuse to line 1.

4 posts - 1 thread - peace out :).

anonymous, capitalism.  that is what you are missing.  if you want more, you must better yourself to get more. does a walmart cashier DESERVE forty or fifty thousand dollars a year?  yes or no.  and why??? no attack.  i just want to know.