You point the finger at Walmart, but why don't you point to the coercion as the culprit, as the root cause of our ills? Walmart does a great job of ensuring low prices for its consumers. Section-8 housing, food stamps, state funded health care are all different incarnations of the state's power of coercion.
Which is more important - giving a few a decent wage (whether they are worth it or not is ignored for this question) or giving many the buying power no other corporation is capable of doing? A good read is Economics in One Lesson. Eric On Mon, Aug 30, 2010 at 1:27 PM, keith smith <klsmith2...@yahoo.com> wrote: > > > I would say Wal-mart is a great example of true greed. While they provide > stuff at a low price they do so by gaming the system. They require tax cuts > to build in your area and they pay the lowest of low wages. They tell their > employees to get government subsistence as part of their model. > > Basically we subsidize their business model by supporting their employees > with section-8 housing, food stamps, and state funded health care. I have > no problem with the needy being helped however when it becomes part of a > business plan, I am against it. People need to make a living wage. And as > they move up they should make a decent wage. In 2002 I worked with a guy > who had been a department manager at Wal-Mart and he left Wal-Mart because > he was only making $8/hr. Yikes!! > > Walmart is a cancer in my opinion. > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiSmlmXp-aU&feature=player_embedded#! This > movie is available on NetFlix. > > Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price > 2005NR97 minutes > > Filmmaker Robert Greenwald takes aim at the corporate giant that's come to > symbolize big business in America -- Wal-Mart -- blasting the box-store > Goliath for allegedly paying substandard wages, skimping on employee > benefits and gutting communities. This hard-hitting, emotional documentary > profiles the struggle of everyday folks from around the country who've > committed themselves to fighting the mega-retailer. > > And the Waltons claim to be Christian. I think they forgot to read their > Bible - it has become all about them. > > I think CostCo is much better however they need to be watched because they > are trying to be less employee oriented. > > ------------------------ > Keith Smith > > > --- On *Mon, 8/30/10, j...@actionline.com <j...@actionline.com>* wrote: > > > From: j...@actionline.com <j...@actionline.com> > Subject: Re: OT: Plug Digest, Vol 62, Issue 31 - the unfixable problem. > To: "Main PLUG discussion list" <plug-discuss@lists.plug.phoenix.az.us> > Date: Monday, August 30, 2010, 12:48 PM > > > > Responses interspersed below: > > > Its my current view that we all have desires that stem from greed > > I don't think this is a correct observation. > > Surely it is not a true statement that "we ... *all* ... have desires > that stem from greed" > > There are enormous numbers of people who are assuredly *not* driven > by greed or who are even in the slightest tainted by greed. Of course > many are consumed by greed; but many people, many professionals, and > even many profit-motivated businesses are assuredly *not* driven or > even in the smallest way motivated by greed. > > Non-profit organizations are one example. > > Medical "missionaries" and rescuers of many kinds to are quick to dash to > places like Katrina ravaged New Orleans, Haiti, Rwanda, and countless > other places are obviously not motivated by greed. > > One excellent example (close to our hearts ;) is the whole GNU-Linux-FOSS > movement. Most individuals who give enormous amounts of time and effort > trying to continually improve everything about "G-L-F" are obviously not > motivated primarily by greed. > > There are probably even a few (no doubt a pretty small percentage - > perhaps a tenth or hundredth of a percent ;) of lawyers who are not > motivated mainly by greed, but rather by a genuine desire to help people > in need. > > On the other hand, it seems ever-more-increasingly clear that most of the > so-called "medical" profession and related hospital industry, like the > so-called legal (injustice) system, are motivated mainly by greed. > > > the desire to offer our services for as high a price as possible > > AND to desire others' services for as low a prices as possible. > > In the case of businesses and business services, there are many examples > in which owners and managers may be profit-motivated (not non-profits), > but who are sincerely endeavoring to deliver lower prices and lower costs > ... and not merely driven by competitive pressures. Rather, many are the > makers of competitive pressures when they do not necessarily need to. > > Obviously, the petroleum industry is not one of those. > > However (while some may start throwing rotten vegetables at me), Walmart > is an example of a business that is built on continuously working to > deliver the lowest possible prices. Costco is another example where > pressing for the highest possible price that they can get away with is not > their motive. Interesting, too, that the CEO of Costco takes such a > relatively small salary. But I digress. > > > We can't wish these results, but must participate in the market > > to get as close to these desires as willing. > > It's important to understand that the definition of greed necessarily > begins with the word "excessive" ... excessive consumption and/or > excessive desire for wealth, etc. > > And that definition of greed is played out in the building of grandiose > hospital and medical facilities. Recently we saw in the news about a huge > donation of many millions of dollars given to the Mayo clinic. What a > wonderful action, and not one to be denigrated in any way ... however, > just think of how many small, modest clinics could have been built to > provide low-cost health-care for so many in desperate need rather than > building yet another grandiose edifice to be equipped with the most costly > and extravagant futuristic equipment where only the rich and famous can > afford to seek treatment. > > > Coercion is the use of force (noun) to force (verb) you to participate in > > a market you are unwilling to participate freely, either through paying > > higher prices that you would normally, or through receiving a lower price > > for our own service. > > While I certainly agree with this observation, it addresses something > different than the greed that seems to be what is driving the medical and > hospital industry. > > > The former requires mutual benefit for a transaction to take place. The > > latter does not, in fact, it rarely benefits more than one party > involved. > > I'm just not sure how to connect this last statement with the issue of > greed as (what I believe to be) the driving force for the outrageous costs > for so-called "health care" in this country. I don't see how coercion is > driving up the costs, more-so than simply sheer greed. > > > > --------------------------------------------------- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - > PLUG-discuss@lists.plug.phoenix.az.us<http://mc/compose?to=plug-disc...@lists.plug.phoenix.az.us> > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > http://lists.PLUG.phoenix.az.us/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss > > > > --------------------------------------------------- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.plug.phoenix.az.us > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > http://lists.PLUG.phoenix.az.us/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss >
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