Jump to content

Ithaca Hours money


jeafl

Recommended Posts

If they became too high, other companies would easily open and flourish again.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Wal-Mart buys enough products in the wholesale market to set the retail prices of its competitors. One of Phil Donahue's last episodes before Oprah ran him off the air had, as a guest, a man who owned a Western Auto-type store in a small town. The man could not sell bicycles in his store because his wholesale prices was higher than Wal-Mart's retail price. It was cheaper for this man to buy bicycles from Wal-Mart and resell them than it was for him to buy from wholesalers- but this meant that his own prices were still higher than Wal-Mart

Link to comment
Share on other sites


  • Replies 39
  • Created
  • Last Reply

One of Phil Donahue's last episodes

Jeafl: I must say that by quoting from an episode of Phil Donohue, you lost much credibility. That guy is as leftist as they come. This whole Walmart thing is a myth. If they are so all powerful, how is it that I never go there yet live quite well? And, do you think there is only one builder of bicycles in the world? I need to find some articles I have read on the Walmart hysteria and post them for you. Dont fall for this liberal nonsense, jeafl. And, the so-called "robber barrons" problem is also a myth. They in fact advanced society and were not the evil force that the class warriors of their time (and since) have portrayed them to be.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The book I was thinking of re "robber barons" is The Myth Of The Robber Barons by Dr. Burton Folsom. For more on this, see these articles:

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_...v40/ai_13595225

http://www.liberty-tree.org/ltn/myth-robber-barons.html

http://www.campusreportonline.net/main/pri...ndly.php?id=154

http://utopia-unmasked.us/Fulsom-fullaccount.htm

Ford, Vanderbilt, Hill, Rockefeller, Carnegie and others had amassed fortunes for themselves providing quality services and/or products at the lowest prices. In the process, Fulsom went on, they created millions of jobs and built this country into a power that is still the envy of world.

In fact, men like Carnegie and Vanderbilt greatly advanced the economy specifically and American society generally and did so without government assistance, unlike their adversaries. These men should be considered heroes, not villains.

The attacks on Walmart are in part a continuation on the attacks on these giants of American capitalism. What does Walmart do but provide a good, cheap product for millions of Americans? And, by saving people money, Walmart is in effect giving them a pay raise. The essence of capitalism is creative destruction: new companies rise and destroy old, inefficient companies. It is bad for the companies that go under but, in the aggregate, society advances. For more on creative destruction, read Joseph Schumpeter's Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy or see this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creative_destruction

This will set you free.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What, you just said if their prices get too high and now you are saying they are still lower than wholesale?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

What I am saying is that, because of its size, Wal-Mart can always command the lowest wholesale prices. But, once Wal-Mart has eliminated its retail competitors it will not pass those low prices on to consumers.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Jeafl:  I must say that by quoting from an episode of Phil Donohue, you lost much credibility.  That guy is as leftist as they come.  This whole Walmart thing is a myth.  If they are so all powerful, how is it that I never go there yet live quite well?  And, do you think there is only one builder of bicycles in the world?  I need to find some articles I have read on the Walmart hysteria and post them for you.  Dont fall for this liberal nonsense, jeafl.  And, the so-called "robber barrons" problem is also a myth.  They in fact advanced society and were not the evil force that the class warriors of their time (and since) have portrayed them to be.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Are you saying that the guest was leftist?

If you think being a conservative means you have to accept having the likes of Wal-Mart run rough shod over local interests, then you have a warped idea of what conservatism is. You strike me more as a libertarian meaning you have no commitment to fairness.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

jeafl: I am saying Phil Donohue is an extreme leftist. I dont know about his guest, but you can presume he was no conservative. And, fairness has nothing to do with conservatism. That is a liberal, egalitarian idea. Life is inherently unfair and so is business. Some people work harder and/or are smarter and therefore make more money than others. To ban this is to cross the line into socialism. And, I am not a libertarian - I think they are just cheap liberals who do not want to pay taxes but will allow anything else to go socially. Please read the articles I cited.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What I am saying is that, because of its size, Wal-Mart can always command the lowest wholesale prices.  But, once Wal-Mart has eliminated its retail competitors it will not pass those low prices on to consumers.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

OK, so Wal-Mart raises prices above what old retailers used to charge...boom, a bunch of retailers pop back up that can charge what they used to and be competitive...then Wal-Mart drops their prices againa nd forces them back out of business...but, again, the prices were down.

I don't mind the idea of giving it to the man or kicing the big dog but as RGator said, circumventing profit to all major corps is bordering socialism. Besides, I know of plenty of stores that still thrive well right in Wal-Marts shadow. Some little guys just know business better than others or know how to attract customers better...maybe niche marketing, who knows.

If Wal-Mart gets too big, the gov will slice it up. AT&T knows that all too well.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As long as Wal-Mart can command the lowest wholesale prices, simply by virtue of its size, and none of Wal-Mart's competitors or potential competitors can buy wholesale products as cheaply as Wal-Mart can, these competitors cannot sell their products to the retail public except at a loss, meaning they will not stay in business.

What happens if Wal-Mart goes to a manufacturer and says you will produce this product at $X price and you either will not produce this product for any other retailer or if you do you will charge them more than $x for it. This will prevent any competitor from operating at a profit, thus competitors will either leave the market or not enter to begin with. That means that Wal-Mart can put whatever retail price it wants to on its products and consumers will have no choice but pay Wal-Mart's price and tolerate Wal-Mart's poor quality merchandise and put up with Wal-Mart's non-existent customer service- or do without.

What the libertarians I have encountered on the internet do not realize that when a retailer leave a market it means a reduction in the economic freedom of the consumers because brand selection and product choice have been reduced.

OK, so Wal-Mart raises prices above what old retailers used to charge...boom, a bunch of retailers pop back up that can charge what they used to and be competitive...then Wal-Mart drops their prices againa nd forces them back out of business...but, again, the prices were down.

I don't mind the idea of giving it to the man or kicing the big dog but as RGator said, circumventing profit to all major corps is bordering socialism.  Besides, I know of plenty of stores that still thrive well right in Wal-Marts shadow.  Some little guys just know business better than others or know how to attract customers better...maybe niche marketing, who knows. 

If Wal-Mart gets too big, the gov will slice it up.  AT&T knows that all too well.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Link to comment
Share on other sites

jeafl: When we get to the point that we all actually have to shop at Walmart, I will start to get worried. Since we are nowhere near that point (and this will never happen), I am not concerned. It is just another discount company and I hardly ever shop there. I think you are overly worried about nothing.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

SJTC opens to record sales despite being far more expensive than Wal-mart.

I can shop for everything I want and never have to go to Wal-Mart. If I want to save 2 cents per dollar and deal with no customer service and packed isles, I can go to Wal-Mart.

We still have a choice.....many choices.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

jeafl:  When we get to the point that we all actually have to shop at Walmart, I will start to get worried.  Since we are nowhere near that point (and this will never happen), I am not concerned.  It is just another discount company and I hardly ever shop there.  I think you are overly worried about nothing.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

We are closer to that point than we were 15 stores ago.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

SJTC opens to record sales despite being far more expensive than Wal-mart.

I can shop for everything I want and never have to go to Wal-Mart.  If I want to save 2 cents per dollar and deal with no customer service and packed isles, I can go to Wal-Mart.

We still have a choice.....many choices.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The new will wear off of SJTC eventually, and comparing it to Wal-Mart is like comparing apples to oranges. And since I live near NAS, how could it possibly be worth my while to drive 40 miles to avoid shopping in Wal-Mart?

Wal-Mart

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Shop at the Super Target immediately adjacent to NAS Jax instead of Walmart. Or buy groceries at the Winn-Dixie or Publix on Roosevelt. You fail to mention that stores like Target provide direct competition to Walmart and are, in many cases, beating Walmart for market share. Walmart is not in any sense of the word a monopoly.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Shop at the Super Target immediately adjacent to NAS Jax instead of Walmart.  Or buy groceries at the Winn-Dixie or Publix on Roosevelt.  You fail to mention that stores like Target provide direct competition to Walmart and are, in many cases, beating Walmart for market share.  Walmart is not in any sense of the word a monopoly.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I place Winn-Dixie in the same corporate category as Wal-Mart. Since I was born Jacksonville has lost Pantry Pride, Big Star, A&P, Banner and the groceries at Pic n Save.

I do shop at Target, but not for groceries, and I cannot afford to do normal grocery shopping at Publix. I shop regularly at Savrite, but their brand selection does not compare to what stores like Pantry Pride. So even if I do have cost competitors for Wal-Mart, I have to settle for brands I would not otherwise be buying. So Wal-Mart has reduced my economic freedom.

And the few stores you mention do not provide much in the way of compensation for the 15 other stores Wal-Mart has destroyed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.