Posted on 07/22/2013 4:52:40 AM PDT by Kaslin
Why, when there is no question that nothing has created more wealth and eradicated more poverty than capitalism, do left wing politicians hate it so much?
After all, it’s supposed to be the left that cares about the poor.
The latest chapter in this ongoing saga of economic perversity is action being taken in Washington, DC, to prevent Walmart from opening stores there.
The District’s city council has passed a bill, awaiting signature of the Mayor, specifically targeted to block Walmart. It raises the District’s minimum wage 50 percent to $12.50 per hour only for stores with more than $1 billion in sales and store size of more the 75,000 square feet.
Unionized stores in the District with these characteristics are exempt. In other words, the bill protects special interests and blocks who politicos don’t want -- Walmart.
Walmart promptly announced that if the Mayor signs the bill into law, they will cancel plans to open three stores, each of which would create around 300 new jobs.
Walmart’s “low prices every day” business strategy is one of the greatest success stories in American history.
Opening its first store in 1962, it has grown and grown and grown. Today Walmart has sales of almost a half trillion dollars, putting it number one on the Fortune 500 list.
According to the company, it now has over 10,000 stores around the world, employs 2.2 million people, and serves 200 million customers per week.
Is anyone forced to shop at Wal-Mart? Of course not. Is anyone forced to work at Wal-Mart? Of course not.
This mind-boggling growth happened as result of freedom. Walmart’s huge success is one hundred percent the result of delivering products that people freely choose to buy.
Critics of Walmart claim that the company doesn’t pay enough. The company responds that its average pay is at or above the industry average.
But the real issue is, what is it the business of politicians what Walmart pays? Unlike government, that fines you or jails you if you don’t do what lawmakers want, people work at Walmart because they choose to do so.
Walmart says it gets anywhere from 10,000 to 25,000 applications for 300 to 400 job openings when it opens a store. That’s more than 25 applicants per job.
Doesn’t appear to me like Walmart has trouble convincing people to work there.
Washington, DC, is more than 50 percent black. Its unemployment rate is above the national average. Its poverty rate is above the national average.
Yet Washington, DC’s politicians would rather have no new jobs at $12.50 per hour than 900 new jobs at $10.00 per hour.
Some claim that big discount stores like Walmart go into cities and displace small businesses. This is a claim. There is no definitive study that proves this claim.
But again, even if it were true, it would only be true because free people choose it to be so. What business is it of politicians to tell free people where to shop? What business is it of politicians to deprive people the freedom to go to a store that sells them products at the lowest prices they can find?
Low-income earners, the ones that supposedly the left wing politicos care about, happen to appreciate Walmart’s low prices.
One thing I particularly appreciate about Walmart, where I certainly shop, is the greeters. They are often disabled and other hard to employ individuals. Walmart gives them a chance to work.
Capitalism has been the great success it has because it rewards creativity and hard work.
Socialism has been a failure because it deprives freedom, stifles creativity, encourages envy and covetedness, and it rewards sloth and corruption.
American success is about the miracle of freedom. When freedom is displaced by political power, everyone suffers. In this case in Washington, DC, where politicians are blocking Walmart, those who will suffer the most are the poor.
Democrats just want to destroy this country and everything that made it great. I have family members who actually do believe that Bush is responsible for the state of the USA. You can’t fix stupid........or evil.
union thugary political interference of free commerce from the nations capitol.
DC sez:
we demand the right to be just like Detroit!!!
Now project this over the whole United States. Politicians everywhere prefer to keep union goons happy and the bribes flowing rather than allow employer, employees, and consumers to make choices for themselves.
To Democrats, a capitalistic enterprise is fine with them as long as they submit to fascist control. High wages, unrealistic benefits and local government choosing the ‘workers.’
Profit is fine with Democrats, too. As long as the profits do not go to owners or stockholders, but directly back to the local government.
The truth is government couldn’t even change a damned diaper if its life depended on it, much less respond to legitimate citizens’ needs. Disasters are a prime example.
When Walmart has knowledge of impending disasters their logistics machine gets to work in prepositioning, sustainment for affected areas and in replenishment and rebuilding. What does government do? It puts a do-nothing figurehead on a plane and carts his ass around making promises and posing for photo-ops with other local government no-goods. Weeks, months later the problems they promised to fix still exist.
The truth is DC doesn’t deserve a Walmart - any Walmart, or any other consumer outlet. They vote for corrupt and greedy politicians, let them eat the table scraps their icons leave.
lets not give Bush a free ride either(not a fan, but would vote for him again in a NY minute rather than have the puke material we have in the oval orifice now)....
......but it is the POSOTUS in office today that turned a recovering economy into a possible great depression and he still has 3.5 years to accomplish it....I have faith that the regime will do their damndest to accomplish it...
The politicians are just mad they cant get nough of Walmart’s tax dollars (it ill never be enough) and grandstanding for the brown vote once again. They care nothing about them. Haven’t the browns figured that out? Vote those commie suckers out of office.
Profit is fine with Democrats, too. As long as the profits do not go to owners or stockholders, but directly back to the local government.
Amen! It seems to me the primary differences between the feral government and mafia extortion rackets are:
1.) The feral government has a monopoly on the use of law for extortion.
2.) The feral government is free to call it everything but extortion.
3.) Mafia extortionists have more sense than to try to extract everything from businesses.
Gray's stuck, bug time..he wants to run again. But if he vetoes the bill, he'll be primaried, and lose. That's now he got to be mayor..the previous mayor had appointed Michelle Rhee head of the school system...she tried to clean it up..fire teachers and staff, and she was forced out, and Gray won the primary..
Circle of destruction..
Yet Walmart has provided many jobs in the areas that they are located in.
And now you can easily see why Detroit went under. As the union greed continues, “DC” will soon follow as will numerous other cities run by demodumies.
Party trumps everything, even race.
In plain English:
The Democrats speak often and loudly about their deep concern for the poor, and then formulate plans and schemes that do injury to the poor behind closed doors.
The Republicans speak often and loudly about things that will improve the lot of the poor, but do not speak often enough of their deep concern for the poor.
Guess which is the message getting through to the poor?
It is pretty clear that they are targeting ONE AND ONLY ONE business with this nonsense.
"The sober people of America are weary of the fluctuating policy which has directed the public councils. They have seen with regret and indignation that sudden changes and legislative interferences, in cases affecting personal rights, become jobs in the hands of enterprising and influential speculators, and snares to the more-industrious and less-informed part of the community." - James Madison Federalist Number 44, 1788
Oops, that is “bills of attainder” not “bill’s” of course.
Last time I did that I got yelled at here.
Oops, that is “bills of attainder” not “bill’s” of course.
Last time I did that I got yelled at here.
Even in Detroit you can open a big box store. A new Meijer store has opened or will open soon at the corner of 8 Mile and Woodward. There is no Walmart in Detroit but there is one in Dearborn and another in Southgate.
Meijer is unionized but still keep their prices competitive and they appear to have a good competitive relationship with Walmart. Here in Jackson county there are two Meijer stores, a Walmart and a Sam’s club.
I personally prefer Meijer but have a Sam’s club membership for bulk items.
My, how Detroitesque of the council. Who can blame Wal*Mart for saying FU?
“They” don’t want jobs anyway; they want the gubmint check while being able to COMPLAIN that there are no jobs!
I like Walmart despite the lack of employees when you need assistance and the repeated loss of groceries left in the bag carousel. The reasons? Low prices on most items and, usually, a good selection. And the alternatives have their own drawbacks, plus higher prices.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.