Lee Scott: “Bottled water might be bad for the environment, but we make a TON of money on it.”

So let me get this straight.... Walmart sells bottled water.... a product the consumer wants.... but since they sell bottled water (mind you, just like every other retailer), they should not be considered a “green” company.

Yea I see.  Nice logic.  That’s a great piece of writing Alex Goldschmidt.  Are you sure you are getting paid enough?

I demand that Walmart sell hashish.  It costs a lot more than water, they’ll make a ton of money.

Giving the customer what the “want” is the oldest excuse in the book. We managed to get along for thousands of years without bottled water. This was a product that was pushed onto the customer, especially with claims that it was more “pure” than municipal water. This is, demonstrably false, as many studies have shown. In addition most people live in an urban environment and their access to water is close by. They aren’t trudging through the desert and need to carry water with them.

There are very few products in modern life that aren’t supply driven. You can tell which ones they are because you don’t see ads for the on TV. When was the last time you saw an ad for broccoli?

When it comes to translating what someone said, I guess it depends on who is translating it!!  The headline here, doesn’t exactly repeat what was actually said, minus spin!!

robertdfeinman,

As far as I know, WATER is a legal substance, HASHISH isn’t!!  And, isn’t the PRIME purpose of a business, to meet the consumers wants and needs, within the confines of the law?

An environmental conference bashing Walmart for selling bottled water while having bottled water at the conference.  That is the problem with environmentalists they yap a lot but when it comes down to it they do the things that they criticize others for doing.  That being said, my water tastes like crap and isn’t drinkable, unless you like the taste of sulfur.  As long as the consumer recycles there is really that big of a negative impact by selling bottled water.  Which means once again the consumer needs to take some responisbility for their own actions.

But they’re not being recycled, Dave.  According to a 2007 NPR report, “Today, consumers can take water on the go. But the bottles don’t always get tossed into recycling bins. Only about 23 percent of bottles, including soda, are recycled.”

You can’t fault Wal-Mart for selling bottled water when consumers want to buy it.  Even Wholefoods sells bottled water (which I find completely outrageous).  But Wal-Mart could play a tremendous role in reclaiming used bottles for the purpose of recycling.  The reason recycling works is not because recycling companies are benevolent and want to do good for the earth, but because recycling is profitable.  So many people go to Wal-Mart every week – encouraging them to bring their recycling there – (and possibly giving these consumers a discount on the bill) would create lots of revenue for Wal-Mart.

In the capitalist market, it’s unreasonable to ask Wal-Mart to do things that cut into profits unless it’s a matter of following government regulations.  But, as Wal-Mart has begun to see, being sustainable can be wildly profitable.  With the right determination and innovation, a lot of things could change.  If this is more than a PR campaign - which they haven’t proved yet - huge changes could make a huge difference.

axn;

[But the bottles don’t always get tossed into recycling bins.]

Isn’t that the fault of the consumers and not walmart?

[But Wal-Mart could play a tremendous role in reclaiming used bottles for the purpose of recycling.]

So, you are saying that walmart should take on the process that the public doesn’t seem to care about, right?  Should walmart set up a complete recycling department, that takes in everything that could be recycled from the products they sell?  And, then, how do you get the consumers to bring that stuff back to the store, if you can’t get them to throw it in a recycle bin, a small reduction on their bill? I don’t think that is enough to get them to do it, if it was, more aluminum cans would be recycled.  Would the next step, be for walmart to go door to door and pick through everybody’s trash to obtain those items that need to be recycled?  Why should walmart be held responcible, and not the consumer who actually has control after the product leaves the store?

[If this is more than a PR campaign - which they haven’t proved yet - huge changes could make a huge difference.]

The main problem is, that the anti people seem to find something wrong with everything walmart does.  Look at the recent statement that walmart could put up windmill recharging stations in their parking lots to promote electric and hybred cars, the anti group, put out that walmart was trying to influence the auto industry and, they might even be getting in bed with the auto industry to fleece the public.  Or, look at the “green’ light bulbs that walmart sells, here it was claimed that walmart was pushing the poisoning of the environment with ‘mercury’.  And, their fuel efficent trucks weren’t coming out ‘fast’ enough, the list goes on and on.

[So, you are saying that walmart should take on the process that the public doesn’t seem to care about, right? ]

No.  What Wal-Mart can do is what is profitable for them.  What they can do is make commitments that they follow through on.  Sustainable business practices are profitable.  What we need to do is to stop making excuses for Wal-Mart not to develop in ways and possibilities that you can’t fathom. Just because you can’t think outside the box, doesn’t mean that Wal-Mart shouldn’t try.

[The main problem is, that the anti people seem to find something wrong with everything walmart does]

This is a pretty lame “main problem”.  But I think it’s testament to how much strength the “anti-walmart” movement has.  But really, to dismiss the critiques of Wal-Mart just because they’re coming from the “anti” side doesn’t make sense.

axn;

Did you actually watch the above video?  In it, Lee Scott addressed the fact that walmart is working on doing more, it all just doesn’t happen overnight.  It’s that ‘bad’ PR, that makes it appear that walmart isn’t doing anything at all.  But, as long as people feel that walmart has to be the leader and solution to all of the world’s problems, and their competitors, should just sit back and wait until walmart does it first, nothing much will be accomplished.  Where is the PR against Costco, Target, etc., or are they already doing everything that is being asked of walmart?

“Giving the customer what the “want” is the oldest excuse in the book”

This post is so dumb, I’m not even sure where to start . . .
Are you suggesting that consumers shouldn’t be trusted to know how to spend their own money?? or that companies can be blamed for “forcing” it’s products on people?? or that the needs of the consumer should NOT be a factor in which products are made available to them?? Freedom means that people can make their own decisions about what they buy, even if they are “bad” decisions by your definition. Can you name one successful buisness that does NOT cater to the needs of the consumer??? I mean, besides Soviet Russia . . .

I can get in my car and drive to literally 500 businesses within a 5 mile radius that sell bottled water . . . and yet when Walmart does it, they’re the bad guys???? Expalin that please.

“I demand that Walmart sell hashish”
Another dumb comment - not quite as offensive as the first, but close. You are in no positoin to “demand” anything from anyoone - be it an individual or a large company. All you can do is make your preferences known, and wait for someone to provide it. Again, it goes back to freedom - you can’t force someone to do something against their will, any more than they can force you. Also, selling of hash happens to be forbidden by the federal government. Whether it should be, that’s a different topic altogether.

Oh yeah, the broccoli thing . . .
Yet another dumb post. Broccoli is a generic product. Nobody talks about “which brand of broccoli” they’re buying, because no on cares. That doesn’t mean that people don’t want broccoli. Obviously, they do or no one would buy it. Very few generic products ever advertise. The one notable exception is Perdue chicken. One of the reasons Perdue was such a good businessman was because he was able to turn a generic product into a brand name. Whether Perdue chicken is any better than any other chicken, and whether it is a “good” purchase is open for debate. Some people felt it was, and they bought it. I don’t judge them - it was their choice. Other notable exceptions are when several producers of generic products get together and do a general advertisement for their product, NOT for specific brands. Milk is a good example of this. How many thousands of “got milk” ads have you seen in your life?? There’s no company attached to these ads.

“There are very few products in modern life that aren’t supply driven”

Can you name one. Please, the anticipation is killing me - which products are being forced down our throats against our will????

I must admit, I have a problem with this one.
Bottled water has only replaced declining pop sales. Water is a lot healthier and people need it. I can’t speak for other locations however full recycling programs seem to be everywhere for such things such as water bottles.
What about past times when you would find pop cans thrown all over the place? Maybe the future will bring a more environmently friendly solution to the plastic water bottle as citizens become more aware.

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

robertdfeinman,

“Giving the customer what the “want” is the oldest excuse in the book”

Name ONE business, whose prime purpose isn’t to give the customer what they ‘want’?  Who would ever open a business that sells only things that customers DON’T ‘want’!!

BTW:  I don’t use bottled water, because I think it’s stupid to pay a ‘buck’ for something you can almost get for ‘free’!!  I choose to use a water filter and fill my own bottles and reuse those bottles, so they don’t get in the trash!!

Choice and RDS:

There is a vast literature extending over a century which documents how consumer preferences are manipulated.

You can start with Thorsten Veblen from 1902, “The Theory of the Leisure Class”. He coined the phrase “conspicuous consumption”.

Then you can try Vance Packard from 1950, “The Hidden Persuaders”.

I’ll leave the flood of books published since then for you to discover for yourselves. Do you think that your tastes and preferences just appear from nowhere?

If advertising didn’t work then it wouldn’t be such a big industry.

Of course advertisements work. Companies are free to SUGGEST to consumers that their product is good and worth buying. That’s how the system works. If you want to consider this “manipulation”, you are free to do so. I don’t.

“Do you think that your tastes and preferences just appear from nowhere?”

No, I think there are countless influences on what a consumer chooses to buy - income, culture, ethnicity, peer pressure, advertising, where you live, who your parents were, what TV shows you watched as a kid, etc. But at the end of the day, it’s still MY hand that reaches into my wallet. Is my decision “influenced” by some greedy businessman in a Manhattan high-rise?? probably, to some degree. But again, it’s my mind making the choice, and my hand reaching for the money.

As is usually the case, differences in opinion come down to differences in philosophy. What I find bothersome about your posts is that you are suggesting that my “choice” is nothing more than veiled coercion, that I (read, everyone) don’t possess the mental autonomy to think for myself, choose for myself, make my own decisions, and to take responsibility for those decisions. I, on the contrary, believe that this is the ONLY thing I truly possess.

ASK YOUR DOCTOR, BLAAAAAAAAAAA, BLAAAAAAAAAAAA, BLAAAAAAAAAAA.

robertdfeinman,

I agree fully with your point about advertising and how it influences people’s choices.  I myself, don’t fall for it and therefore don’t buy most Name Brands!!

But, advertising can take on many forms, this site is one example, trying to get you to buy into the idea that Wal-Mart is ‘bad’ and should be unionized to make it ‘better’!!  Al Gore advertised that we ‘needed’ to go GREEN right now and people bought it like something on sale, ‘half off’!!  Basically, people figured out, that “If you tell someone something OFTEN enough, they will eventually believe it’s true”, the Democrats have done that for years, telling the poor and middle class that they are FOR them, while doing everything they can to make sure they don’t get any farther in life than they are, (just look at welfare dependency)!!  How about unions telling people they need more and more, while we watch prices go higher and inflation constantly rises, causing people to need even more and more (the vicious cycle)!!

And, lastly, you mentioned 2 books, which you read and bought into, which means that you too are subject to the power of advertising, I could look and find 2 other books that would promote the opposite view!!  Take the books of Ayn Rand that have been mentioned on this site, why haven’t they been embraced, after all, they promote the idea of NOT buying into “business as usual” and are anti Class Warfare!!

We are NOT for Wal-Mart, but rather against the “False Advertising” presented here, that twists the truth, to get you to buy into the unions underlying agenda, of unionizing Wal-Mart workers!!  We want the workers and consumers to decide for themselves what they want, without others telling them what they SHOULD want and treating them like they are ‘stupid’ and need to follow like sheep!!

All we are trying to say, is that asprin, is asprin, while people like Ken are saying that the largest selling asprin needs to be ‘better’ than the others or taken off the market!!  Just WHY does Wal-Mart have to be ‘better’ than any other retailer or be put out of business?  Why does Wal-Mart have to take the blame for and try to cure all the world’s ills, while all the others get a free pass?  Whatever happened to creating a ‘better mousetrap’, where is the new competition to PROVE that what Wal-Mart is doing is WRONG?

Choice,

Wonderful post, kudos!!

Have either of you read the books I mentioned? I read Ayn Rand. It is widely recognized by everyone except her devoted followers that her superman vision of the world is a utopian dream.

I have had years of debating with libertarians, they always make the same points, they always are blinded by their ideology and think that they are superior people who are not influenced by social pressures, but manage to ignore the mythology that they have swallowed is just one such influence.

I’m bored. There is no convincing you, and to make sure that you never change your minds you will continue to refrain from educating yourselves. Dream on.

You can blame it on advertising all you want, but if that is the case then the blame is on the top water bottling companies not on Walmart.  Whether Aquafina created the demand or the demand was originated by the customers, there still is actual demand there for water, and Walmart isn’t the one that created the demand.  In reality though there was little advertising for water til bottled water was already a big seller.  The demand was mostly created by liberal elitists who are the same ones saying that it is evil right now.  10-15 years ago the ones that were drinking it were the type that are now eating organic foods because they were convinced that bottled water was so much healtheir for them, and somehow along the way more and more people bought into it.

I read Ayn Rand.

I have too* and I’d bet if she were alive today she would be concentrating on intellectual property rights more than her romantic “superman vision”.

*If you’re not up to plowing through her most famous, but rather lengthy fiction, Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead**, you might consider a short nonfiction distillation of her basic philosophy The Virtue of Selfishness.

**The hero of The Fountainhead is an architect because Ayn had the hots for Frank Lloyd Wright.

“The modern conservative is engaged in one of man’s oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness.” ~ John Kenneth Galbraith

“You can blame it on advertising all you want, but if that is the case then the blame is on the top water bottling companies not on Walmart."~Dave

What you can blame Walmart for is lack of leadership and vision. Stores here have are becoming bagless when it comes to plastic here. Walmart does have control when it comes to how they send the customer on their way but doesn’t do the right thing. They are all talk, little real action.

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

Ken V,

First, you are right, the novels by Ayn Rand are fiction and are based on her basic philosophy ‘The Virtue of Selfishness’!!  But, the underlying premise is, that you can’t love another, if you don’t have love for yourself first!!  Also, you can’t help others, unless you help yourself first!!

If you read these novels, with a pure mindset of ‘we are all our brothers keepers’, and no personal responsibility, it is easy to disregard her philosophy!!  But, if you read it with the mindset, that each person has most of the responsibility for their welfare and charity should be extended only to those who are truly helpless and not the able bodied who choose to have others take the responsibility for them, you can start to see where she is coming from!!

Our Social Security program is a good example of what can happen, when you follow the path of selflessness, when the many were supporting the few, there was little problem, but, when we had a birth ‘boom’, because conditions allowed it to happen, it created a situation, where in the near future, it will be the few who are trying to support the many and that won’t work!!  Bad family size decisions back in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s, without corrections in the S.S. system to allow for it, is what will cause the problems down the road!!  Therefore, people who didn’t save money independent of the S.S. system, will be virtually helpless in the future and where will the money come from, to support this huge group of helpless people?  Our country will become more like Africa, with a bunch of starving people!!  That is why we need to promote more personal responsibility right now, because tomorrow will be too late!!  Ayn Rand, saw that 50 years ago!!  She also saw what can happen, when government gets too much control over peoples lives and removes personal responsibility and replaces it with government welfare type programs!!

Lack of savings and high credit card debt, are the result of the modern idea of, in the words of QUEEN, “I want it all, I want it all and I want it NOW”!!

You can only take so much from the rich, before they become as poor as everyone else, at that point, who will the dependent rely on to take care of them?

If everyone handled money their money in such a perfect way according to rds you wouldn’t need soc sec, also people wouldn’t need to rent from slumlords.

...you can’t love another, if you don’t have love for yourself first!!

Our country will become more like Africa, with a bunch of starving people!!

Ridiculous is the only word that comes to mind. Like I said in another post, RDS, you need a long rest.

[url="http://www.nrdc.org/water/drinking/bw/chap1.asp" ]
Bottled Water:Pure Drink or Pure Hype?[/url]

Bottled Water:Pure Drink or Pure Hype?

I sure hope RDS donates his brain to medical science when he goes through THE BIG CHECKOUT LINE.  I for one want to know how it’s possible for anyone to think like he does!

I know it was too much to ask for those who know everything to do a bit of research towards finding more recent books on consumer behavior, so here’s a link to a recent sample.

It turns out consumers aren’t as “rational” as they think they are.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/14/AR2008031403389.html

As I said above, advertising works, just because it targets the emotional level in people.

Mac,

“If everyone handled money their money in such a perfect way according to rds you wouldn’t need soc sec, also people wouldn’t need to rent from slumlords.”

Right on, glad to see that someone ‘gets it’!!

Ken V,

“Ridiculous is the only word that comes to mind.”

So, you are denying that ‘Homelessness’ can happen in America and people aren’t going hungry here, right?  Who really needs the REST?

robertdfeinman,

“It turns out consumers aren’t as “rational” as they think they are.”

Watch it, I have been saying for quite awhile and have been told I’m nuts for thinking that way!!  Is it ‘rational’ to think that because something ‘costs more’, it ‘must be better’?  Take the recent announcement of the car from India, the TATA MICRO at a price of $2,500.00, it was instantly labeled as “junk’, because of the price, but, if the price point were put at $9,000.00, you would have heard that the car was a ‘low priced alternative’ for low income people!!

“As I said above, advertising works, just because it targets the emotional level in people.”

Which group of people here, have been acting on their personal ‘emotions’?  This bottled water thing is a good example!!  Where is the outrage about all the other ‘plastic’ bottles, milk jugs, packaging and jars, that gets thrown in the trash every week?  Would you expect Wal-Mart or any other retailer to STOP selling everything that is packaged in ‘plastic’?  Other than the value of recycling, what is the problem with ‘plastic’ in landfills?  I have heard that it takes 100 years for a ‘plastic’ bottle to decompose in a landfill and that’s the problem, but, really, in the life span of the earth (billions of years), what is 100 years to the planet?  Isn’t basing something on our own HUMAN life span, being rather ‘emotional’ and ‘irrational’ as well?

“‘Homelessness’ can happen in America” --RDS

And, receiving a “kudo” from you, RDS is like a wino receiving a bottle of cheap wine.  That’s not something I’d be proud of.

So, you are denying...

I’m not denying anything, I’m merely pointing out that you are rididulous.

I have heard...

As usual, you’ve heard wrong. Many types of plastic never decompose. They break down but remain chemically the same no matter how small the granules.

Words like “decompose,” “disintegrate,” “degrade,” and “biodegrade” do not all mean the same thing. Suppose you put a piece of plastic in a compost heap and found no visible trace of it six months later—does that mean it has biodegraded? And if so, can we safely say we’re talking about an environmentally safe product? The answer to both questions is “not necessarily.” Some so-called “biodegradable” plastics, for instance, are made of a blend of starch derivatives and conventional petroleum-based polymers. The action of bacteria in warm, moist soil breaks down the starches in these materials, but leaves countless tiny particles of plastic that have a mass only slightly less than that of the original product. And all those parts that don’t break down continue taking up space without contributing any nutrients to the soil—in fact, they may actually contribute toxins.

LINK

...in the life span of the earth (billions of years)...

We’re not talking about the ‘lifespan’ of the planet, you dunderhead, we’re talking about the lifespan of life in general and human life specifically (considerably shorter than billions of years).

Robert,

“they always make the same points, they always are blinded by their ideology and think that they are superior”

“There is no convincing you, and to make sure that you never change your minds you will continue to refrain from educating yourselves”

Indulge me - look at the above words from a 3rd person perspective - how are you ANY different???? 
Hmmm, let me guess . . . oh, because you’re right and I’m wrong . . . .  right???

You think I haven’t heard it all too??—no morals, no choice, no responsibility, no absolutes, no principles, we need big government to save us from ourselves - why don’t you ask the 300 million+ people of Soviet Russia what “the Motherland” did for them???? I’ve heard it a thousand times, bro.

As RDS deftly pointed out, quoting some academic from 1902 does little to help your cause - academics in this country can and will print anything, especially if it gives them a headline. The Post piece was an interesting little sidepiece, good for an afternoon cocktail party, with virtually no bearing on reality. How often does a consumer get to choose what price he pays for a product???

Oh, the irony - author of 70+ homecooked essays on economic and public policy accusing SOMEONE ELSE of being superior . . . . .

Ken V,

“Many types of plastic never decompose.”

And, how do you KNOW this, have you been around for millions of years, to prove this, has ANYONE ever tested this theory?

“We’re not talking about the ‘lifespan’ of the planet, you dunderhead, we’re talking about the lifespan of life in general and human life specifically (considerably shorter than billions of years).”

Mankind has revealed something great about the planet earth, it is able to FIX itself, it has ecosystems to do just that!!  Funny thing is, anything that man makes comes from the Earth and can be reincorporated back into the Earth given time, RUST is a good example of this!!

As for talking about the lifespan of humanlife, how do you know exactly how long that will be?  In a landfill, things are buried and you no longer have to look at them!!  Look at how many things have been uncovered from ancient civilizations, that we didn’t even know were there, until someone dug them up!!  People have been putting things in the ground for thousands of years and somehow we are still here!!

“in fact, they may actually contribute toxins.”

Doesn’t the word ‘MAY’, usually mean, they don’t know for sure?  Funny, how those ‘toxins’ aren’t a problem when people consume the product from the plastic containers!!  Most of it is just pure speculation!!  I think you just WORRY about unknowns and maybe’s too much!!

Your all-encompassing ignorance is stunning. You seem to know nothing about anything. You are willing to deny everything that threatens to interfere with your comfort and convenience.

In the old days you would be accused of burying your head in the sand. In today’s parlance I think the place your head is buried is even darker.

P.S. Funny, how those ‘toxins’ aren’t a problem when people consume the product from the plastic containers!!

Too bad you refuse to do any research, RDS. If you had bothered to read the “Hype” link I provided above you wouldn’t have displayed your ignorance...again.

...and several brands of bottled water contain synthetic organic chemicals (such as industrial solvents, chemicals from plastic, or trihalomethanes --

We’re not talking about the ‘lifespan’ of the planet, you dunderhead, we’re talking about the lifespan of life in general and human life specifically (considerably shorter than billions of years).

Name calling never gets anyone anywhere.

I don’t suffer fools gladly, bbrd, and that includes you.

Just where is it I’m trying to get? Talk you into boycotting Wal-Mart? I don’t think so, Tim.

Ken V,

“You are willing to deny everything that threatens to interfere with your comfort and convenience.”

No, I just don’t prefer to alter my lifesytle based on faulty research!!  Remember: Don’t eat eggs, bacon, red meat, sugar, and breast milk was bad for babies, etc.?  Then later, in the words of Roseanna, “Never mind”!!  When the meteor hits and extincts mankind or the Ice Age comes, all this research will mean absolutely nothing!!  How about when they insisted the world was flat?  Oops, “Never mind”!!  No one can ever prove “NEVER”!!

You forgot about global cooling in the 60’s and 70’s.  :) Some experts say that that one is coming back in the near future.

Dave;

How about all those religious people who have claimed ‘The end is near’ for the last 100 years, based on their predictions from the Bible?

And, if the ice cap is melting and California will soon be under water, why aren’t those people moving to higher ground?

An article on the inventor of the internet and the ‘King’ of Global Warming:

Breaking news from Newsmax
_________________________________

Gore to Rake in IPO Millions

Former Vice President and global warming crusader Al Gore stands to make close to $50 million when the TV channel he co-founded goes public with an Initial Public Offering.

Current TV, which debuted in August 2005, has been billed as “television for the Internet generation” of tech-savvy 18-to-34 year-olds, and allows viewers to contribute much of its content.

But it currently is available in only about 19 million U.S. homes, and has lost $31.5 million over the last three years, Ron Grover discloses in BusinessWeek.

Current Media, Current TV’s parent company, hopes to raise $100 million in a public offering it filed on Jan. 28. Some of the money raised will go to lenders, who include a few major Democratic Party fundraisers.

“Something about this deal just doesn’t sit right with me,” Grover observes.

He notes that Gore and co-founder Joel Hyatt not only will take “piles of cash,” but they also collect “hefty salaries for a company that hasn’t shown a profit in three years — taking down $491,677 apiece last year in cash.”

Gore and Hyatt also collected $550,000 bonuses for, in Gore’s case, helping get the company new affiliate agreements and putting together a management team. The two currently receive $600,000 a year in salary and can collect additional bonuses.

“What really sticks out to me,” Grover writes, is that Gore and Hyatt, “who jumpstarted the company with a broken-down Newsworld International channel they bought for $70.9 million, will have the kind of hammer-lock control over the company decried by shareholder rights activists and many of the same unions that supported Gore for years.”

Gee, Al Gore, gets $1.15 million salary and bonuses, a year for ‘putting together a management team’ from a company that ‘hasn’t shown a profit in three years, how’s that for ‘Pay for performance”?

And, what’s that part about “decried by shareholder rights activists and many of the same unions that supported Gore for years.’, sounds like Al is biting the hand that fed him!!

I’m so relieved. After reading this thread I now realize:

1. The economy is fine!

2. The environment is fine!

3. Wal-Mart is fine!

A trifecta of delusion, or an axis of ignorance? You be the judge! :o)

I’m not sure anyone even said anything about the economy in this thread, but you just aren’t that good with your reading comprehension are you.  Actually the reason the economy is bad is because of all the people that follow the crowd out there like so many on here.  Follow the crowd build up a falsely inflated market and then watch it crash and screw up the economy.  It happened in the 90’s with tech stocks, and now again with the housing market.  You’d think people would learn, but there are still those who follow everything the media tells them with global warming so clearly no one has learned a thing.  The only question is what will be the next sector to get falsely inflated and then crash and when it will happen because most Americans are stupid.  That’s what happens when you never learn to think for yourself and only do what your union rep tells you to, and believe anything your favorite group tells you.

Dave,

“because most Americans are stupid.”

Some Canadians fall into that same catagory!!  Take Alex for instance, I tried to explain how the world was changing it’s game plan and he thought it was funny, he chooses to think the ‘protectionist’ plan will win out over the Global Economy!!  Why, because some Protectionist Group tells him to believe it!!  Problem is, as long as these groups continue to FIGHT the process, things get worse before they get better!!  These groups tend to ignore reality, example:  They think that if we were to RAISE wages here, companies will come flocking back to the U.S., somehow they can’t understand, that it was high wages that caused them to leave in the first place!!

Also, they can’t see, that unionized companies are cutting back on their work forces and closing plants, while non-union companies are increasing their work forces and building ‘new’ plants!!

“None as so blind, as those who refuse to see”!!

WARNING: The preceeding post contains a toxic number of exclamation points (14).

HE said it was for a personal problem, sticky finger?

JOE,

Spinning again I see, doesn’t that make you dizzy?  Oh, I remember, you were dizzy to begin with!!  When did I ever say it was for a “personal problem”?  I said “personal reason”, you are the one with the ‘problem’!!  Besides, better ‘sticky’ finger, then what YOU have, “Stinky finger” from having your finger stuck up your butt!!

RDS: Could it be just possible that this is JUST what JOE may have had in mind, when he referred to your” personal problem” involving YOUR sticky finger?

He is a dope.