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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: michael97123 who wrote (20415)	12/18/2003 8:48:56 PM
From: gamesmistress	Respond to of 793717

Posted on Wed, Dec. 17, 2003 Kansas City Star COMMENTARY Wal-Mart is driven by consumers By JERRY HEASTER Columnist As America's shoppers head into the holiday homestretch, it's worth noting how Wal-Mart has come to represent a defining cultural divide between the elites and the common folk. The intelligentsia hate it and the hoi polloi can't do without it. In recent weeks, several major publications have taken shots at Wal-Mart ranging from uncomplimentary to savagely critical. These pieces questioned, in varying ways, whether the retailer's awesome market power is an entirely good thing for consumers. Playboy called Wal-Mart headquarters in Bentonville, Ark., “the epicenter of retailing's Evil Empire.” BusinessWeek was more balanced, but couldn't resist characterizing Wal-Mart's slogan of “everyday low prices” as a “fundamental tenet of a cult masquerading as a company.” Despite saving consumers an estimated $100 billion a year, Wal-Mart's “seemingly virtuous business model is fraught with…perverse consequences,” BusinessWeek said. The New York Times headlined one of several articles, “Is Wal-Mart Good for America?” Time magazine asked, “Will Wal-Mart Steal Christmas?” All of these journalistic efforts seem good examples of why the mainstream media's most powerful players are becoming irrelevant to mainstream America. Those who crafted these reports appear almost angry that average Americans don't share their perceptions of Wal-Mart as the bad guys. The hang-up on which these stories are pegged, however, boils down to the cognitive dissonance generated by two irreconcilable goals pursued by nearly every worker-consumer — low prices and high wages. The implied conclusion of these articles is that if American consumers would smarten up and shun Wal-Mart's low prices, they'd be better off as workers. Given human nature, the chances of this happening are nil. This is just as well because the supposition is flawed. Before discount retailing made the shopper king, there was no evidence retail workers or those who produced the goods they sold were better paid or better off. Average folk intuit this reality even if they can't intellectualize it. This is why Wal-Mart, with $245 billion in revenue last year, has become the world's largest company. This is why nearly 140 million shoppers visit Wal-Mart stores every week. Moreover, if Wal-Mart weren't cutting prices to the bone in its effort to dominate the market, you can bet a competitor would be doing so. It's that Wal-Mart has become the most adept at perfecting the everyday-low-price business model. The elitists also seem to worry about Wal-Mart accruing too much market power, but this is a strawman as well. Wal-Mart's power is consumer power. Nobody is forced to shop at Wal-Mart. If Wal-Mart drove all competitors out of business and jacked up prices, another Wal-Mart would rise to take its place and drive Wal-Mart out of business. This is the way the consumer market works. Retailing history is a story of once-dominant companies making fatal marketing mistakes and fledgling enterprises taking their place by finding a better way to serve consumers. This is the way the world works and nothing can change it — least of all media mavens who are seldom right about anything. Jerry Heaster's column appears Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. Write to him c/o The Kansas City Star, 1729 Grand Blvd., Kansas City, MO 64108; send e-mail to jheaster@kcstar.com; or call (816) 234-4297.

To: michael97123 who wrote (20415)	12/18/2003 9:58:48 PM
From: MSI	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 793717

PS Re MSI aka Krugman, he is dead wrong about jobless recovery. I know a whole host of folks who have been out of work who are now either landing jobs or on the verge. They tell me the tone of employers has really changed in december and like me who has been out of work for four months will be returning to work in january. Congrats. Let's hope your impressions are correct. I'm not yet convinced, either by the numbers or anecdotes. The first quarter economic and employment numbers will make the dems puke I hope so, for two reasons. I'd like to see employment regardless of the cause, and the dems need to puke up all the totalitarian garbage they've been forced to swallow by the GOP. What a bunch of jellyfish. deansdaman@'04.com