There will be Black Friday protests at many Walmarts in support of their workers.
Walmart’s stores have been a bonanza for members of the Walton family. Several are billionaires. The Walton Foundation spends $160 million each year to encourage school privatization and non-union schools, charters, vouchers, and TFA.
With all their billions, they pay low wages to their employees. Some Walnarts are accepting food donations for their employees. The Walmart workers are seeking $15 an hour. Too much for the billionaires of the Walton family
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Just like the Koch Brothers buying propaganda leading up to the elections (TV ads for Koch Industries), Walmart has re-launched their Real Walmart campaign to deflect attention away from the issues surrounding these protests.
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While WORLDOLOGY WORLDOLISM EBOOK-1 OF TIME believes that Walmart ought to pay its hard working employees much better, we equally believe that employees are not in any position to dictate how much they should be paid! A balancing act is needed and sanity must prevail. You’re a very educated woman of substance Ms. Ravitch and you know that is right and wrong! If you own a business, would it be alright for your employees to demand from you how much that you should pay them? Please respond!
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If I owned Walmat and I were a billionaire, I would pay my workers $20 an hour and do my best to build a good culture where they feel valued.
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$20 an hour is hardly a living wage in the US.
If you were a billionaire, why not cap your income at say, $300K a year, stop hoarding your money, spread the wealth toward social equality, and encourage others to do the same. That would certainly create a culture where people feel valued.
Billionaires are dysfunctional because they do not have healthy boundaries, do not know when enough is enough, do not have empathy or guilt, and are motivated by power and greed. A billionaire in America is the biggest red flag for the Dark Triad Personality Disorder. They need to be pointed out as mentally ill, rather than having their photos on Fortune and Time! AMERICA’S MOST WANTED would be more appropriate!
Have you noticed that few billionaires ever put money into prevention and causes of mental illness? Why would they when they have more to gain from creating it and medicating it. Billionaires never invest in any authentic altruistic venture unless they have something to gain, either in fame or fortune. If Dante were alive today, he would most likely devote a special layer Hell to the Billionaire’s of America, and the blind followers who promote their bread & circuses.
Diane, count your blessings that you are not a billionaire.
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Diane;
But you DON’T own Wal-Mart or anything like it….and, given your “talents”, it’s unlikely that you – or anyone like you – ever will. The “gimme, gimme” crowd does NOT normally create the type of economic wealth that employs literally MILLIONS of workers. Instead, it only criticizes those parties that do…the very parties that are ALREADY doing INFINITELY more than the “gimme, gimme” artists themselves could ever dream of doing.
You “would” do something; but you “don’t”. And I think you and I both know WHY you don’t.
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Sam Walton created a business that bankrupts our communities, then the cheapness of his heirs, force taxpayers, who have compassion, to pick up the tab for the food and health needs of the company’s workers.
The billionaires in the hedge funds drag down GDP.To overcome the financial sector’s lack of contribution, workers in other sectors have to work even harder.
If the 1% had shared the nation’s productivity with the people who actually generate GDP, the middle class would be strong enough that their demand for goods and services would have built a strong nation, without rival. And, the country would not be chugging along toward a black tunnel.
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Dienne;
No, Wal-Mart certainly isn’t the world’s first employer. However, currently it probably IS the largest private employer. And where are those OTHER employers you mentioned? Do you think it’s a “positive” that they couldn’t compete and are no longer employing workers? Do you think that being LESS competitive in today’s world is a formula for success…in ANY endeavor?
Also, Wal-Mart probably isn’t the world’s best employer, either…but, then again, my guess is that – in terms of the 1.3 million workers it pays wages to domestically, it’s essentially an INFINITELY “better” employer than you.
So, instead of taking an entity that IS making an economic contribution to society to task, why don’t YOU – and I do mean YOU personally – take things in hand and offer alternative employment to this mass of downtrodden Wal-Mart workers? You CAN do that, can’t you? Or are you just another one of those who’s real quick to criticize those entities that “do”….while lacking the initiative and the ability to accomplish much of anything yourself.
I suspect the latter. But then again I’m prepared to be proven wrong. Show me YOUR 1.4 million employee payroll list…that’ll shut me up fast!
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Walmart pays sub wages, and instructs its employees on how to get food stamps, medicaid, public assistance. You know that, right? Right.
The Waltons spend BILLIONS on elections, and on TFA and TNTP, etc. – on charters, in disenfranchising students and families already i poverty, and trying to bust unions, have teachers fired, and wipe out middle class jobs. Certainly worldolism YOU know that.
The Waltons have monies invested in hedge funds to back charter schools, with a high return on investment, possibly in real estate as well, all paid for by us, the taxpayers. Certainly, YOU know that.
If the Waltons have billions to piss away, they can certainly pay their workers a living wage, and not instruct them how to apply for food stamps and public assistance and live off the government as the working poor.
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The Waltons are an example of the Dark Triad Personality Disorder that fits the profile of Billionaires in the US.
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I get a kick out of how quick you are to make demand on how OTHER people spend their money! Tell ya’ what, “Diane”; why don’t you put YOUR money where YOUR big mouth is and create an alternative entity which you have financed YOURSELF that pays the wages, etc. that you’re constantly advocating that OTHERS – who are ALREADY doing immeasurably MORE in terms of contributing economically to our society – do in your stead?
Sound like a plan? Or is there just going to be more whinning on your part that “the other guy” should be doing it?
I think you know what I expect the answer realistically to be.
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Ken,
So my close reading of your comment suggests that you believe that only other billionaires should be able to criticize fellow billionaires, simply because only someone who can employ millions at low wages and require them to take advantage of public benefits-the very benefits you use your billions to fight-only then can you comment on a fellow bazillions ire.
That is nonsense! If these billionaires can comment on the welfare queens, the lazy underclass, the “it’s their own damn fault” poor through their wholly owned media, if they can go after essentially us then we can certainly do the same to them.
Utter rot and rubbish the notion people can’t comment on, criticize, and tell these oligarchs what they should be doing. They tell us how to spend our money, time, and talents ALL THE TIME.
They have opened themselves up to the same criticism they offer to us daily. Just as you have with your silly comment.
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Ken,
So my close reading of your comment suggests that you believe that only other billionaires should be able to criticize fellow billionaires, simply because only someone who can employ millions at low wages and require them to take advantage of public benefits-the very benefits you use your billions to fight-only then can you comment on a fellow bazillions ire.
That is nonsense! If these billionaires can comment on the welfare queens, the lazy underclass, the “it’s their own damn fault” poor through their wholly owned media, if they can go after essentially us then we can certainly do the same to them.
Utter rot and rubbish the notion people can’t comment on, criticize, and tell these oligarchs what they should be doing. They tell us how to spend our money, time, and talents ALL THE TIME.
They have opened themselves up to the same criticism they offer to us daily. Just as you have with your silly comment.
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rockhound;
No, I don’t believe just “billionaires” have the right to criticize each other. But I *DO* believe that those who – relatively speaking – haven’t done a damn thing in terms of offering employment to the nation’s workers lack the “right” to criticize those who are doing virtually INFINITELY more in that area than they, themselves..
If and when the critics actually DO something themselves over and above bitching and moaning about what their betters are doing, then perhaps they will have earned that “right”. Until then, I consider them just another bunch of losers who are full of sound and fury…and capable of doing nothing but serve as parasites. In context of this blog, perhaps the old saw of “Those that can do, do…while those that can’t teach” might sound offensive. But, when I read posts like yours, it seems emminently sensible and applicable.
Get back with me when you, YOURSELF, have offered Wal-Mart workers a thousand or so alternative jobs. Then I’ll consider you as having responsible grounds for advancing criticism. Think that day will ever come? [smile]
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Ken – two things. First, you do realize that before Wal-Mart came along, people were employing other people, right? Wal-Mart is not the world’s first employer, and most certainly not the best. Before Wal-Mart came along, people were more likely to be employed by local employers who cared about the community and who also benefited from giving their employees higher wages because those employees would spend that money in their community. Such employees were likely to get paid more and get benefits, until Wal-Mart came along and squeezed out those smaller, local employers and started offering slave wages and no benefits (except food stamp applications!).
Second, one need not directly employ people one’s self in order to benefit working people. As just one example, union leaders don’t employ all that many people, but they can benefit thousands, tens of thousands or even millions of workers by keeping wages and benefits strong and working conditions healthy for all (when they don’t sell out to the powerful, that is). Diane isn’t a union leader per se, but as an author and a speaker, she has advocated for workers (especially, but not limited to, teachers) in a way that has served them much like the best union leaders. I think she has earned the right to say a few things to the greedy employers who are abusing their workers.
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Well Ken, I thank you for agreeing with the substance of my comment. I have to ask, are you always that snarky when you agree with your betters? Ok, close reading isn’t your forte. Since you don’t think that only billionaires have the right to comment then who does have that right? It would seem by your logic that it IS only those who create those low paying jobs, at least by the thousands that have earned that right. I wonder, by what twistiness of your “logic” do have the right to criticize my comments, or those of Diane, Donna, or Mille? Are you employed in education, are you a member of the middle class, have you worked or do you work for a government entity? If not, you have no right to comment on us, since ya gotta be a member of the club to comment-again, by YOUR logic.
Even worse would be if you owned a business. Then you would have completely disqualified yourself from commenting here, because again, by your logic, you wouldn’t be a member of our club.
Thankfully you aren’t in charge of determining who has the right to speak on different matters. The losers are the ones disadvantaged by the oligarchs and their apologists-people like you. I’m sure the Walton’s are gratified by your loud and furious defense of their behavior [grin].
Better that we have an open market place of ideas, where everyone can comment, where each comment is respected for its intrinsic value, not by some silly value imposed by you. People like you, sucking the air out of the room like some type of parasite, admonishing people for doing exactly what you are doing…well it’s laughable. But as the old saying says, “Those who can – do, those who can’t – teach, and those who can do neither – criticize the rest”, well I’d forgotten that one…thanks for providing the example I needed to remember it!
What would be eminently sensible and responsible would be for you to go back to school, get that GED, and gain a rudimentary education in economics, logic, and argument. Then you may have grounds for presenting yourself as something other than a troll.
Think that day will ever come? [snicker]
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rockhound;
I think your second-to-last paragraph is indicative of my right to comment…and indicates why those who pay teachers and who teachers are supposed to be responsible to need to take an interest in what they’re doing.
I say that because, from your posts, I gather that you’re not really qualified to do much of ANYTHING….except to repetitiously mouth the mantra “gimme, gimme”.
Got news for ya’ Sport! Already have obtained that “GED” level…and, unlike you, I’m *NOT* parking my deadbeat ass on blogs in an effort to get the world to provide me with a free lunch.
In any case, I’ll let you continue to bitch and moan that the rest of the world isn’t acknowledging the value of your “qualifications” in peace. Gosh knows we wouldn’t want to confront you with more than the bare wisp of reality!
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Ken,
You continue to make up things and draw conclusions that are out of touch with the real world, but probably make sense in the bubble you live in. Come on out into the real world where people work for a living, and are engaged in the important issues of the day. You spend so much time on these blogs…do you do anything remotely productive with your life?
Takers like you are an unfortunate aspect of our society – offering little to the greater culture but taking mightily from the rest of us. We put up with you and the others like you because we both pity and feel compassion for you. The angry stomping of your feet and need for attention has gotten tiresome however. Your constant shrill whining is hard to ignore, but those of us who work for a living have to ignore it.
We support you. We will take care of you, even when you protest that it’s not needed.
Such an angry little man!
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Oh, I forgot….Walmart runs a food drive, so its employees can donate food … to Walmarts employees. Some bad mojo going on there, doncha think?
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Higher level, upper management/executive-type employees routinely dictate how much their employer must pay them. Is that equally wrong?
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BTW, from your website, “…the Official Blog Of Worldology-Worldolism Ebook-1 Of Time that predicts the future world events from 1000 to 10,000 yrs!”
Pretty convenient that no one will ever know if your predictions were correct, doncha think?
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Very, very few small businesses have employees who belong to worker associations, like the AFL-CIO.
Most large private corporations are owned by heirs of the person who actually took the risk to start a company.
Public corporations are owned, in large part, by institutions that provide 401k’s and annuity-like retirement plans.
When heirs/oligarchs threaten a nation’s democracy, as is true in the U.S. (as exemplified by the political activity of the Koch’s and Bill Gates), the nation would be better off if a competitor put the original company our of business. The promise of free enterprise is that consumer profits are used to improve products. Oligarchs have deformed capitalism, by using profits for political power. They lessen opportunity for economic growth, by discouraging new businesses from entering the market and by crushing middle income demand.
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Yes, Diane is absolutely right, billionaires are more than able to pay workers more and to pay tax rates equal to what the 99% pay.(Billionaire Warren Buffett has been calling for Congress to stop “coddling” the super-rich and tax him and others higher since 2006). Did anyone read the NYTimes feature on wages of fast-food workers in Denmark recently? These regular line-workers earn $20/hr and the Burger Kings and McDonald’s there turn profits which allow them to stay in business. The bogus claim that paying working folks at least $20/hr will put these global franchises out of business is pure baloney. Even in the US here, COSTCO pays its employees above the prevailing wage at Wal-Mart and Costco is doing very well. Cry all the way to the bank, if any defenders of capitalism care to do so, but the data show us that indeed another world is possible.
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it appears they display no gratitude to those who helped them make their millions!!!
…have they read their bible?
“Walmart founder Sam Walton, who started the discount retail chain in Arkansas in 1962, gradually tapped into the strong fundamentalist Christian culture across the Sun Belt.”
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Yet, Arkansas remains the 2nd poorest state.
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“Saio Pae had taken him “shopping” during his second week in A-Io. . . . [A]t his request Pae had taken him to Saemtenevia Prospect, the elegant retail street of Nio Esseia, to be fitted by a tailor and a shoemaker.
“The whole experience had been so bewildering to him that he put it out of mind as soon as possible, but he had dreams about it for months afterwards, nightmares.
“Saemtenevia Prospect was two miles long, and it was a solid mass of people, traffic, and things: things to buy, things for sale. Coats, dresses, gowns, robes, trousers, breeches, shuts, blouses, hats, shoes, stockings, scarves, shawls, vests, capes, umbrellas, clothes to wear while sleeping, while swimming, while playing games, while at an afternoon party, while at an evening party, while at a party in the country, while traveling, while at the theater, while riding horses, gardening, receiving guests, boating, dining, hunting — all different, all in hundreds of different cuts, styles, colors, textures, materials. Perfumes, clocks. lamps, statues, cosmetics, candles, pictures, cameras, games, vases, sofas, kettles, puzzles, pillows, dolls, colanders, hassocks, jewels, carpets, toothpicks, calendars, a baby’s teething rattle of platinum with a handle of rock crystal, an electrical machine to sharpen pencils, a wristwatch with diamond numerals; figurines and souvenira and kickshaws and mementos and gewgaws and bric-a-brac, everything either useless to begin with or ornamented so as to disguise its use; acres of luxuries, acres of excrement. In the first block Shevek had stopped to look at a shaggy, spotted coat, the central display in a glittering window of clothes and jewelry. ‘The coat costs 8,400 units?’ he asked in disbelief, for he had recently read in a newspaper that a “living wage” was about 2,000 units a year. ‘Oh, yes, that’s real fur, quite rare now that the animals are protected,’ Pae had said. ‘Pretty thing, isn’t it? Women love furs.’ And they went on. After one more block Shevek had felt utterly exhausted. He could not look any more. He wanted to hide his eyes.
“And the strangest thing about the nightmare street was that none of the millions of things for sale were made there. They were only sold there. Where were the workshops, the factories, where were the farmers, the craftsmen, the miners, the weavers, the chemists, the carvers, the dyers, the designers, the machinists, where were the hands, the people who made? Out of sight, somewhere else. Behind walls. All the people in all the shops were either buyers or sellers. They had no relation to the things but that of possession.”
–Ursula K, LeGuin, The Dispossessed
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Ursula K, #1 SciFi writer & proof that the stranger-than-truth present is found & predicted mostly only by the SciFi & Fantasy writers of decades past. Thank you for this timely reminder!
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Thanks Bob! That’s how I felt when I went into the Christmas Store in Massachusetts recently. I almost had a panic attack from sensory overload. Even though I would never set foot into a Walmart, I get that same feeling anytime I go into other big box stores or nightmare places loaded with novelty crap. How can we educate people to stop supporting destructive consumerism and become minimalist?
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Mammon is the Lord, thy God. Thou shalt have no other gods before him.
Thou shalt make or create no thing; nor shalt thou make do with what thou hast; thou shalt consume anew and continuously with all thy heart and soul.
Thou shalt spend all that thou hast and more.
Remember the holidays (holy days) and keep them for shopping.
Honor thy trend setters.
Thou shalt not reuse.
Thou shalt not share.
Thou shalt not ask from thy job creators more than a fraction of the value of thy labor.
Thou shalt covet that which is thy neighbors’.
Thou shalt covet that which is on sale.
Thou shalt covet the new, improved model.
Thou shalt blame thy condition on poor immigrants.
Thou shalt ravage the Earth and unsustainably plunder its resources, especially those belonging to the weak.
And he who dies with the most stuff wins.
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That is a close association with how indoctrination from authoritarianism in families, schools, and churches has caused children to become sheep. Lack of understanding boundaries, plus mass media advertising, plus ignorance, has led those sheep to become obsessed with consumerism, greed, and self survival, stepping on top of each other to get to the top.
The riots at Walmart on Black Fridays are just a small version of our national race to the top, an insane promotion by insane people.
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This richest family in the world, in conglomerate worth over $143 Billion, does not put a cent into their Walton Family Foundation. It is funded by a corporate entity that of course uses the donations as tax write offs. This was published by I think Forbes, only last week. The greed of these people is mind blowing, and their political control using this Foundation leads to only bad things for society such as parent trigger laws, and Stand Your Ground gun laws, funding charters, and funding death.
If there was any heavenly retribution, they would all be burning in Hell.
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One can never count on human nature to do the right thing. There’s always a Walton! That’s why we have govt. What, in legislation, allowed Waltons to run a nationwide chain that sells cheap goods from abroad & pays its American employees a wage so low that they require food stamps & donations to eat?
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Ellen;
If all of what you say is true, why don’t YOU form a similar foundation that wouldn’t cost you anything, but meanwhile provided substantial benefits to society as the Walton Family Foundation does?
See a problem there, perhaps? I think the more responsible among us do; to wit: you have a big mouth, with very little of the wherewithal (intellectually or economically) to back it up.
That about size the situation up, does it? [smile]
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Ken,
Ellen has way more going on intellectually than you do!
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Ken, go get some therapy. There have always been the haves and the have nots; however, the Waltons and their ilk have circumvented laws and bought regulations that shield their wealth. To create a company and employ people at substandard wages, and at the same time hold conference to literally teach/show those same employees how to get government food stamps, health care and possibly housing assistance is criminal. Who does the government assistance ultimately help? THE EMPLOYER. Its a set up. Then Walmart can pretend to be a hero hiring the poor masses, while literally keeping them poor. Thusly, from the get go, this is a Walmart driven scheme to make money off of government subsidies, yet the Waltons hold the working poor in distain.
OF COURSE, the Waltons are gaming the system, and paying off politicians and opening up charter schools, because that is another stream of government monies, collected from the taxpayers who don’t have loopholes to fall through because we are the working class poor.
You know all of this, Ken. Why so nasty?
GFY–good for you. You’ve shown your colors…now go away.
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First, “NJTeacher”;
SURE she does! She’s amply demonstrated THAT, hasn’t she…..especially if you consider being a dud while criticizing those who are doing infinitely more for society that yourself a matter of “intelligence”.
Sorry, “NJ”, but I judge how much is “going on intellectually” by what is accomplished by those presumably in possession of such intellect; NOT by how boisturously the criticize their betters. And, personally, I can’t see that Ellen has done a damn thing but criticize those who DO contribute to society. I’m willing to have my opinion changed however. Show me how many jobs SHE has to offer American workers!
Now “Donna’;
Not sure how to respond to a comment coming from such an obviously non-judgemental [smile] person as yourself . You PERSONALLY know that the Waltons have “have circumvented laws and bought regulations that shield their wealth”, do ya’? Have you shared that knowledge with the appropriate authorities? I guess I could ask the same about yourPERSONAL knowledge of their “gaming the system, and paying off politicians”. Have an “in” that allowed you to obtain such knowledge, do ya’? And, again, have you shared that knowledge with the appropriate authorities?
I’m sorry, Donna, but unlike you, I don’t believe the Waltons hold the working poor in “distain” [smile]. In fact, I see them as being probably the most beneficial entity the “working poor” generally have available to them. You see, I think that having gainful employment is BETTER than having no employment whatsoever. And, after all, if the Walton didn’t employ these workers, then who would? People like YOU!?!
Yeah….right! [cackle]
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Ken Meyer,
Sorry, I don’t agree that the Waltos are benevolent. They underpay their workers. They don’t buy Anjerican goods because they are not cheapest. They destroy communities by undercutting mom-and-pop stores.they have left Main Street devastated wherever they open. And they use their foubdation to privatize public education and attack unions.
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Diane;
Ask yourself; if the Waltons aren’t benevolent – after providing more than a million workers (and their families) with their means of making a living – then, in comparison, just what does that make YOU…an individual who essentially doesn’t provide anybody with much of anything other than a hard time and a bad “education”? And “no”, I *DON”T* consider constantly asking for handouts a societal contribution! In short, I suggest you take a take a long, hard look in the mirror before criticizing individuals like the Waltons. They, at least, CONTRIBUTE something to society. You don’t.
Beyond that, I’m not quite sure how they (the Waltons) “destroy[ed] communities”, Is providing opportunities for individuals to live better at less cost now a BAD thing? Is successfully competing with those “mom and pops” in a way that ATTRACTED their customers away from them via more accessible pricing a BAD thing? And then there are those million or more jobs the Waltons provide….did those “mom and pops” do better? Or even as well? Think they paid high wages relative to what the Waltons offer, for example, or that – for the most part – they offered any form of benefits as well? If so, think again.
As for your claim that…
“And they use their foubdation to privatize public education and attack unions.” (by the way, that’s a direct “cut ‘n’ paste” quote, in case out of embarassment you try to edit it out later)
…is that a BAD thing? For example, if individuals like you (and most of those who frequent this blog (try to read the comments posted from a responsible citzen/taxpayer’s view) are representative of “public education”, then who needs it? As far as I can tell, society has no obligation to support those who would instill an attitude of “gimme, gimme” in their children and, along the way, “educate” them in such ways as introducing them to terms like “foubdation”. If private education is a viable alternative – and I think you know as well as I that it is – why not look in that direction?
And unions? After the MILLIONS of this nation’s jobs that they’ve pissed away, both for their members (look at their comparative membership statistics over the past few decades) and the public at large, is attacking them a BAD thing? Perhaps to one who is unwilling to EARN a living…but to those whose existence she’s dependent upon, it most definitely is not!
But, again, prove me wrong. Show me how *YOU* can make a more significant contribution to society. Show me how *YOU* can provide a million or more individuals with jobs. Show me how *YOU* can set up a “foubdation” that has a more beneficial impact on society than the Walton Family FOUNDATION. Then maybe I’ll give your criticism some credit. Until then, however, I can’t help but see you as just another parasite trying to tear down what your economic and moral betters have built.
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Ken,
I worked in management at a jet engine factory. When the aircraft manufacturer placed our newly-designed engine in their aircraft, one of the first flights, was a fly-over of our plant. The factory emptied so we could all cheer at our accomplishment, union workers, foremen, engineers, draftsmen, management.
Today’s profit-seekers inspire nothing and they have no sense of responsibility to the system that enables their riches.
I appreciate Dr. Ravitch’s significant work to preserve what little is left of our democracy. She filled a void by providing both a voice and central location to announce opportunities for action. I’ve made a commitment to do one thing for democracy each day so that the next generation can live in a nation that they can respect.
Today, in the cold, I stood with young people at Walmart, as part of the workers’ job action. The young people expressed hope for a system that is not rigged by oligarchs, where those who contribute to productivity, see some of the gains. Tomorrow, I’m going to write a letter to the police who gave us a hard time, addressing their misunderstanding. Scarce dollars that could buy services like law enforcement, instead leave the community for the pockets of the 6 Walmart heirs. Local workers, with pay comparable to output, would, through the multiplier effect, enable the rebuilding of our impoverished towns, cities and an infrastructure that could support new business (instead of acting as a persistent drag on productivity).
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Ken, again, you are forgetting that those workers were making a living – and a much better one – before Wal-Mart came along.
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What if they held a Black Friday sale and no one was so lacking in dignity as to attend?
http://www.theonion.com/articles/nadir-of-western-civilization-to-be-reached-this-f,2812/
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I no longer shop there. I think their stocks are down. I look at it this way . . .If they are messing around with my livelihood, then I will mess with theirs. I know I am only one person, but if teachers united around the U.S. and did not shop there…..it could make a big impact. Honestly, I do not think they are that cheap. Kroger brand in my community does much better with price and quality.
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And while we’re discussing untrammeled capitalism… Case in point: printer ink cartridges. While laptop prices have fallen by a third over the past decade, printer cartridges discount at a much slower rate, & are still expensive. Sure you can get a recycled version for 1/2-1/3 the cost– sacrificing quality (I’ve tried them), but the good ones are expensive for middle-class consumers like teachers, who use them regularly. My husband’s printer cartridge is HP-60; mine HP-75. They appear identical; his is more expensive & both should be far cheaper.
He & I speculate they are in fact identical, distinguished only by an electronically-coded strip somewhere that requires separate purchase. Obviously it is far cheaper to standardize– & quite possibly HP (& other computer/ printer-mfrs) have already reaped the benefits of standardization, but use some cheap electronic trick to avoid passing savings along to consumers
One might wonder why an independent cartridge-mfr hasn’t shown up, w/cartridges that fit every make? Clearly the printer-mfrs have found a technical (or govt-lobbied?) way to keep cartridge-manufacture under their control.
There was a day I’m sure, when competition-enhancing anti-trust & other related laws were enforced, that an upstart American outfit would have short-circuited this monopoly. Today, the hapless American consumer has to wait on China or who-global-ever to put its non-American employees to work on an HP-et-al-compatible printer w/affordable [standardized] ink cartridges for all.
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I will be demonstrating at my local Walmart.
There’s a good piece by Michael Lewis in the new New Republic about studies that show that being rich may incline people to be nasty. It cites studies that show that rich people are much more likely to ignore pedestrians’ right of way when driving; are more likely to take candy from a jar labeled “For children only”; to cheat at games that deal with money; to be stingy w/r to charitable giving; to feel empathy when looking at pictures of kids with cancer. “As you move up the class ladder…you are more likely to violate the rules of the road, to lie, to cheat, to take candy from kids, to shoplift, and to be tightfisted in giving to others.”
Let us raise the marginal income tax rate to save the souls of the rich!
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Here’s Paul Piff talking about his research on this:
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I like it up ’til the end when he suggests the cure for inequality is nudging the rich to give to big charities, a la Gates. Political solutions are off the table for this technocrat.
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In this New Feudal Era we’re living in, it’s always smart to open or to conclude with a nod to one of the great Lords. This is essential if one is to become a public intellectual invited to all the right events.
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Walmart also has a “free breakfast” program in many title one public schools across various districts around the country. This was part of Michele Obama’s “get healthy” campaign. She praised Walmart (but did not care enough to check to see Wamart’s follow through). The food they “donate” to title one schools would not make it past the doors of Sidwell Friends – EVER!!! Walmart decided it would “donate” free breakfasts to title one students and made sure to get publicity for their “noblesse oblige”. “Healthy” according to Walmart is serving kids processed egg “tacos” with grisly gray bits of meat served in microwaved heated plastic bags, or even sweet short bread cookies(yes for breakfast and marked as low in sugar) and are labelled “smart cookies” because they have a picture of a president on them, day glo colored yogurts… everything is very sweet tasting but marked as low in sugar (feeds cravings for more sugar when something is so sweet). When combined, all the foods in the wasteful packaging have a very high sugar content. The fruit component is usually juice but once in a while there is an unripe pear or an apple with leather-hard waxed skin. This doesn’t introduce students to healthy eating. Bravo Walmart for low wages for your workers and DUMPING ON THE CHILDREN OF THE WORKERS with your horrific “breakfast program” all the while getting the unsung praises of Michele Obama.
By the way, the cereal boxes are always marked low in sugar but are so INCREDIBLY sweet tasting once again feeding the craving for more sugar in our little ones who eat them.
breakfastintheclassroom.org
http://news.walmart.com/news-archive/2011/01/13/3-million-breakfast-in-the-classroom-initiative-alters-the-recipe-of-traditional-school-breakfast-programs
http://news.walmart.com/news-archive/2014/10/08/more-than-362-000-votes-cast-to-select-50-feeding-america-food-banks-to-each-receive-60-000 (fighting hunger starts at home… maybe Walmart could pay their workers a living wage so they could afford to eat first before they do “supposed” good by “feeding the world”… leaves us all a bit SUSPECT of their motives doesn’t it??)
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Walmart also has a “free breakfast” program in many title one public schools across various districts around the country. This was part of Michele Obama’s “get healthy” campaign. She praised Walmart (but did not care enough to check to see Wamart’s follow through). The food they “donate” to title one schools would not make it past the doors of Sidwell Friends – EVER!!! Walmart decided it would “donate” free breakfasts to title one students and made sure to get publicity for their “noblesse oblige”. “Healthy” according to Walmart is serving kids processed egg “tacos” with grisly gray bits of meat served in microwaved heated plastic bags, or even sweet short bread cookies(yes for breakfast and marked as low in sugar) and are labelled “smart cookies” because they have a picture of a president on them, day glo colored yogurts… everything is very sweet tasting but marked as low in sugar (feeds cravings for more sugar when something is so sweet). When combined, all the foods in the wasteful packaging have a very high sugar content. The fruit component is usually juice but once in a while there is an unripe pear or an apple with leather-hard waxed skin. This doesn’t introduce students to healthy eating. Bravo Walmart for low wages for your workers and DUMPING ON THE CHILDREN OF THE WORKERS with your horrific “breakfast program” all the while getting the unsung praises of Michele Obama.
By the way, the cereal boxes are always marked low in sugar but are so INCREDIBLY sweet tasting once again feeding the craving for more sugar in our little ones who eat them.
breakfastintheclassroom.org
http://news.walmart.com/news-archive/2011/01/13/3-million-breakfast-in-the-classroom-initiative-alters-the-recipe-of-traditional-school-breakfast-programs
http://news.walmart.com/news-archive/2014/10/08/more-than-362-000-votes-cast-to-select-50-feeding-america-food-banks-to-each-receive-60-000 (fighting hunger starts at home… maybe Walmart could pay their workers a living wage so they could afford to eat first before they do “supposed” good by “feeding the world”… leaves us all a bit SUSPECT of their motives doesn’t it??)
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This is immoral. Children are always the innocent victims of adult ignorance and greed. For example, in Texas, Whole Foods offered to donate FREE salad bars so kids in Austin could have fresh vegetables and fruits. It was to be FREE with no costs to the school district, except they would need to maintain the salad bars. Austin ISD refused WF offer, saying it would be too difficult to maintain the correct temperature in the salad bars. Is that a combination of stupidity and mind blindness. So now, AISD continues to serve elementary children the same junk food like that provided from Walmart. Everything comes in plastic or cans and is dumped onto plastic trays and served with a plastic “spork” . It doesn’t seem to concern AISD that the dead zone in the ocean now has surpassed 1000 miles as a result of plastic. Just as it doesn’t seem to concern AISD that children are captive in a desk for 7 hour days, drilled with test prep, fed junk food, no physical activity, breathing indoor stale air, and living in a STAAR Hell of fear and intimidation.
Does AISD fit the description of Adult Children like that of Walmart?
ps: Texas spent 500 Million purchasing STAAR tests materials from Pearson, but cut fine arts, teachers, and declined healthy options.
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Are we going to wait for a peasants uprising to expose the truth? There are some insane people with a lot of power from wealth in this county. Maybe they started out as normal, but wealth and power have a tendency to cause mental illness which is obviously the case here.
Can we see a connection between these people, and another insane leader called Hitler? We need to put up some barricades in our laws to reign in these folks who are obviously enjoying their Mad Hatters Tea Party!
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Gosh, Mille, aren’t we lucky to have someone so competent as to judge “mental illness” of that type from afar! Quite a talent you must have there…especially to come up with that oh-so-original “HItler” comparison. My compliments! [cackle]
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Ken, your inability to recognize personality traits of Narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy could be because you are not trained in psychiatry? However, it doesn’t take an MD after one’s name to recognize that Hitler was a bit off normal, nor does it take a personal interview with Bill Gates to recognize he doesn’t have both oars in the water. Mental illness can be recognized by relationship dysfunction, and Bill Gates perpetuation of cruelty to children is one of the biggest dysfunctions on the dark side of normal in this century. Bill Gates fits the profile of the Dark Triad with a perfect score!
The question is, what has to happen to take down a mad dictator?
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Ken Meyer, where do I even begin to school you? Can I prove to you how the Waltons skip out on paying taxes? Google that; you’ll find all you need to know. Google the negatives that the Waltons bestow on the rest of us nothings.
I tell you what…clearly, you didn’t get a loving upbringing. Maybe mommy didn’t care and daddy was too busy grifting the government. Maybe you have “things” but you have no integrity. Obviously, you are a troll, perhaps even come here from having used a different name in the past, to personally attack. I could insult you, but what is the point? Better yet, I’d kiss you on the forehead, make you a cup of hot chocolate, tuck you into bed, sing you a lullaby, and you’d know what you missed out on. I’m not wealthy, but I work hard. I’m not stupid…I’m kind and have integrity. I’d give $5 to a hungry person on the street, and not care what they purchased with it, and you’d spit on them. I’d rather be me. Just go away Ken. You are a turd.
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Ha..Ha..Ha…You told him, Donna! I would always want you to be on my side! Thank you for telling him off. What Walmart has done to my downtown, I can’t stand them. What a disgrace to humanity!
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OK….Time Out! Stop acting like Adult Children and keep the discussion healthy. No name calling or put downs! Everyone is entitled to their own opinion on this blog, and if someone’s opinion differs from yours please respect their right and carry on your debate in a respectful manner.
Did you get that children! The beatings will continue until the moral improves.
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Please know that I did not intend for that humor to hurt anyone. If you could watch me and millions of teachers throughout the U.S. during our school days, you would see that we do everything in our power to try to shield our students from the horrible toxic policies from our state legislators that we currently have to live with. I try to keep humor alive in my classroom to help with everyone’s stress level. My students and I are stressed out – that’s for sure.
I guess humor helps all of us cope when crazy things are happening around us. These toxic educational policies hurt our kids, and our kids are not able to fight back. As a child, I never had to sit through 40 hours of online testing in order to make publishing companies even wealthier. As a child, I was able to be a child in school. This is being taken away from our kids. As for Walmart, that mega store has created havoc with millions of downtowns, just like mine. I choose to not shop there. To not give your employees $15. per hour is beyond greed. But, we know that the Walton family is giving all of their extra money to policies which will try to eliminate the public schools once and for all.
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In contrast to the view of uninformed people like Ken, most billionaires (the ones who are not dragging down GDP, from the financial sector) have proven to be far better at cutting costs, than they are, at creating something of value. When growth is an objective, large corporations tend not to develop ground-breaking new products, because top management lacks imagination and, they are risk adverse. Instead, they buy an existing business and try to wring as much profit, out of it, as they can. P&G didn’t develop a pet food line, they bought Iams. Colgate-Palmolive didn’t develop a toothpaste targeted at consumers, seeking natural products, they bought Tom’s toothpaste. Bain Capital didn’t develop a shoe line, targeted at consumers seeking ethical purchases, they bought Tom’s shoes.
The recent history of large corporations is replete, with examples of the businesses they purchased, but, it is largely devoid of examples of new product generation. The current batch of billionaires, are living on the past laurels of captains of industry. But, they are nothing like them.
Entrepreneurship In the tech or bio industries, usually takes the form of a guy building a product in his garage or in a university-supported lab. He sells the idea in an IPO. He ends up a multi-millionaire, having created a minimal number of jobs. If a corporation sees the idea as a competitive threat, they buy the company to channel the idea into their stable of products.
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