My Wal Mart problem and possible solution

[elfin]

I HATE Walmart and what it has done to our country--- but I find that living in a rural community in the summer that I have little choice unless I drive over 50 miles. with the attendant gas cost.

Soooo --- I am thinking to defray any buys from Walmart by contributing at least $5 to a close contest Dem as determined by Kos or DU.

What do you think about this???? I am "kerfluffled" at this point and needing many basics (ex. toilet paper) which are horrednously overpriced by the local store.

Haven't done it yet, but thinking about it.

[pstans]

1. Good idea

My wife went to Wal Mart last fall and spent $40, so I donated $40 to a Democrat. Now, after a lot of hassling on my part, our entire household rarely (very rarely) shops at Wal Mart.

[Obamarama]

2. I don't think you should worry about it...

I think people who have viable choices other than Wal-Mart should exercise those choices. However, I firmly believe that those who are on such tight budgets and/or location or distance prevents them from logically shopping anywhere else but Wal-Mart ought not cloud their consicence with the "shop-at-Wal-Mart-dilemma." You have the right to shop where ever you need to meet your circumstances and not have to feel guilty about it! :-)

[hopein08]

5. I second that!!

Just do what you have to do. Let those who don't have to worry about budgets & locations take care of the boycott and when it is in your best interest, join in. But don't feel guilty!

[Vidar]

15. Amen to tahat.

[Synnical]

3. Suggest you post this in your state forum

For alternative suggestions.

My two cents.

[elfin]

6. In my summer state

I have checked -- and go to KMart whenever possible - but that store is on its last legs, but I always go there first. NO Costco - NO Target etc. unless I drive over 50 miles. Hence my dilemma.

At my winter home - easy to avoid the Wall - I am distressed that it has a near monopoly in this sparsely populated areas.

[Synnical]

8. Summer State - Winter State?

Pardon me for not giving a shit.

[elfin]

10. Oh. you should give a shit

I am srtaddled between two states having inherited some wonderful lake property from a grandfather which I share with family and friends to the fullest until my meager savings run out or until I go to the Great Mystery -- I am squeezing every last cent to afford the horrendous taxes to be able to secure it for the next generation along with doing the repairs needed. I am blessed - but am counting the pennies to make this blessing last as long as I can. Hence the Walmart question.

[liberaliraqvet26]

4. I went to wal-mart for the first time in 5 years on Friday....

I was really low on cash and thought I would give it a try since I read that they invited Al Gore to speak.

All my negative feelings were reenforced. It took 45 minutes to check out, the store and the parking lot was a mess and it was just a horrible overall experience.

I will begin the boycott all over again.

[politicat]

7. Does UPS/USPS/Fedex deliver to you?

You've obviously got an internet connection. Have 'em shipped. Besides, that's easier on the environment (1 truck running items for 100 households uses less gas than those 100 households driving back and forth to stores.)

We buy our TP in a year lot. We get it from www.shitbegone.com (seriously) and 96 rolls has lasted us a bit over a year. (Two of us, big allergies, lots of friends.) It's post-consumer recycled (i.e. meaning it's made out of phone books and newspapers rather than trees) and it's a small business.

I don't use paper towels anymore. I use flour sacking towels from www.lehmans.com and they're significantly cheaper over a year. Nor paper plates, for the same reason. Restaurant supply houses also deliver.

Food... we do Costco runs for what we can't get really locally. People have to have garden produce in your area - start buying locally. It's not over-priced when you count in the cost of your taxes that pay for what wal-mart doesn't provide in your community.

If you can use a tape measure, you can buy clothes and shoes online, and they'll last a lot longer than Wal-mart stuff does.

What else do you need? I am suburban, but I really hate going shopping (I hate driving and malls make me crazy and crowds overstimulate me and I'm snarly after being in a crowded store) and I am often not available during the day, so I have stuff shipped. Let your fingers do the walking. (Oh, and a lot of the time, you can get a better price online... Remember, Wal-mart jacks up prices after they close out the local business competition.) I am living proof that yes, indeedy, a person can go from naked with a debit card to clothed, sheltered and fed without leaving the house.

[elfin]

11. thanks - I already do a lot online eom

[demosincebirth]

12. Fedex, is not union

Use UPS, DHL OR USPS, if you can.

[politicat]

16. Yes, yes, I know. But I don't get to choose other company's standard

shipping. I use USPS or UPS when I ship out and have a choice on inbound.

[demosincebirth]

19. Yes. I'm glad you know

[Mel]

9. try this

they have free shipping for orders placed that are $25.00 or more
http://www.drugstore.com

[primative1]

24. Ditto ...

That was my first thought. These days you can buy most anything online at a lower cost than the winking yellow dot will ever offer and you never even have to leave the house to get it. Kind of nice to find the box on the porch in a few days ....

[BigYawn]

13. A new Wal-Mart opened 1 mile from home and it has made our lives

much easier. It is bright and clean and SPACIOUS. K-Mart
stores look messy and cramped. Besides Wal-Mart has everything
we need including food, auto service, optician, bank, fast food,
and every imaginable item we need. That is convenience. And prices
are as good as we can find anywhere.

It is saving us gasoline, wear and tear on the cars, & cash.
No wonder Wal-Mart is the most successful business in the world.
They know how to satisfy a customer.

p.s. Even the employees in Wal-Mart are 10 times friendlier than
any other discount retail store in our experience. How can non-union
underpaid & overworked employees be so cheerful I will never understand.

[Bridget Burke]

14. I didn't realize that Portland was so rural & isolated.

I'm glad to live in a big city, where we have many alternatives to WalMart.

(I also thought that Portland was liberal.)

[BigYawn]

18. City of Portland itself is not rural, we are 25 miles from downtown

Portland, and when we moved here there were no stores within 5 miles.
Now the area is booming with lots of new stores including Target and
Home Depot. But none of the stores sell everything including groceries
like Wal-Mart does. So there is no point running all over town to buy
food, clothes, sporting goods, auto service, yard & garden merchandise,
and almost everything else we could possibly need.

So long as the employees at Wal-Mart look happy to work there, I see
no reason to boycott it. Plus it is important to do your part in saving
fuel & save the environment.

You are quite right, city of Portland is mostly liberal, but surrounding
suburbs are barely half liberal.

[ProudDad]

21. It's easy to understand

It's a cult.

It's a VERY dangerous cult.

It's also a very expensive cult.

The wal-mart cult leaders support their huge profits and wealth by ripping off the taxpayer, destroying local economies and exploiting essentially slave labor around the world.

I'd like to pose a challenge to those of our brothers and sisters who shop at wal-mart. Please try adding up how much you spend there and how much you REALLY save compared to other local or internet alternatives. Is it 1 percent, 2 percent, 10 percent of the total???

Frankly, I prefer to spend 10 or 20 or 30 percent more for everything rather than support the evil that wal-mart, target and k-mart represent. For instance, my food and household item expenses TOTAL less than 10 percent of my rent.

Can I afford an additional 1 percent of my rent to live up to my principles? For me, the answer is a resounding YES!

[Greyhound]

17. We so often forget what it is like for those of you that live in the rural

area of the country. It sounds like, thanks to the 17th, 18th, 19th, 20th, and 21st richest people on the planet, you are held hostage in your own community. Either support the continued destruction of America, or pay through the nose. :grr:

[Lydia Leftcoast]

20. The local store maybe "overpriced" because it's trying desperately

to survive with competition from WalMart.

[ProudDad]

22. Yep,

that nasty old local store is trying to supply a living wage to its employees...

[sandnsea]

23. Give to local day care

Find out who most of the moms use for local day care, and see what you can contribute on that front. At least that way you'll be putting something into your local community that Walmart takes out of it. I am lucky that I have two union stores to choose from. I've shopped at the bargain grocery store twice and I just can't bring myself to go back. I only shop sales, so I never save enough there to make it worth my while anyway.