Shoppers rush to pyramid Wal-Mart

[russian33]

Bargain-hungry Mexican shoppers have flocked to a new Wal-Mart supermarket that environmentalists claim will threaten one of the nation's treasures.

Around 200 shoppers queued for hours to be the first to enter the store, which is half a mile from the ancient Mexican pyramids at Teotihuacan.

"People need the well-being of their families more than culture," said one.

Environmental groups had argued that the store was too close to the ruins and would erode the local way of life.


While the Wal-Mart store was overflowing with shoppers on its opening day, a handful of local opponents kept a vigil outside the 2,000-year-old Teotihuacan pyramids.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3986729.stm

[LibInternationalist]

1. I need to get off this planet

[da_chimperor]

2. I guess they'll bulldoze the ruins to make way for a shopping mall next

Don't you just LOVE capitalism? :puke:

[bryant69]

3. That's one of those issues where I am conflicted

Because yeah, cheap food and cheep clothing probably will make life easier for the people who live in that area. I really hate the argument that we should consign them to poverty because it pleases our sense of the asthetic.

On the other hand obviously there are huge environmental problems as well. You hope they've looked at them, but there's a long history of this kind of thing happening without anybody looking at them.

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[Heyo]

13. perhaps...

.... they could've just found a better place for it?...

At least it's a half a mile away and not right next to it...

Heyo

[el_gato]

15. the ulitmate effect of wal-mart in increased impoverization

[bryant69]

18. Good assertion

[Bridget Burke]

4. How many of these shoppers are truly the poorest?

"Cheap stuff" for those who need it most is the excuse some give for WalMart's existence in the USA. But most of the people I know who shop there aren't that poor. They just want more, more, more.

[Midlodemocrat]

5. I agree with you. The wealthiest in my community shop WalMart. n/t

[ProfessorGAC]

6. But, Do The Poor Shop There?

We can't have stores that rich people aren't ALLOWED to go into. But, if the people with the least discretionary income can get a better quality of life by shopping there, is the downside really worse than the upside?
The Professor

[GreenPartyVoter]

8. Yes, they do. I know because I have been one of them. I abhor the place

but I don't always have an alternative.

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[ProfessorGAC]

10. Self-Deleted

Double Postings Galore.

[ProfessorGAC]

11. That's Sort Of My Point

Thanks.
The Professor

[ProfessorGAC]

7. But, Do The Poor Shop There?

We can't have stores that rich people aren't ALLOWED to go into. But, if the people with the least discretionary income can get a better quality of life by shopping there, is the downside really worse than the upside?
The Professor

[Midlodemocrat]

9. They do, I think

...but the wealthy in my community also shop Goodwill, which I think is a travesty. If you can afford a new Burberry raincoat, you shouldn't be getting a gently used one for $20.

[ProfessorGAC]

12. I Agree With That

The thrift store thing is a bit much. But, once again, if a store provides an improvement in the quality of life for those with the least, i share the conflict issue brought up by the first poster to mention it.

Like i said, we can't tell rich folks, "You can't shop at this store." So, we live with the notion that rich folks can shop at the same places as poorer people, because the upside for the latter is greater than the downside of the former.
The Professor

[Bridget Burke]

14. Yes, but does WalMart really provide an improvement in quality of life?

What studies have been done in this country? How many have been saved from poverty because they're able to buy toilet paper cheaper? Is it really cheaper?

And how many are stuck in poverty because they work at WalMart?

[ProfessorGAC]

16. That's The Open Question

I didn't say one way or the other. What i am ASKING is whether the upside for the least among us is superior to the downside.

I admit i'm leaning toward yes, and i haven't seen any data either way. But, i do know that anything that stretches the dispensible income of those with the least of it is inherently a good thing. Even if just for that one family, or a hundred families. The broader and longer term impact is where the downside exists, and i don't know if the downside is worse than the upside.

It's why i said i shared the moral conflict brought up earlier.
The Professor

[TO Kid]

17. A new Wal-Mart opened here last month

I'm no fan of them, but the new store in my neighbourhood is an improvement to the area. It was built on the site of a decaying 1960s-era mall that went downhill after a new mall opened ten minutes away. The old mall was an eyesore. The new store opened up the landscape and a lot more people in the area are working now. As for the consumer benefits, even though a lot of the merchandise is low-grade (many manufacturers cut corners when producing goods destined for Wal-Mart) it is still better than the trash found at other discount stores.

[Jim Warren]

19. One can always hope

the Nahualt legend of the plumed serpent returns and swallows them whole.