What Happened to America?

[Mufasa]

[quote]Wal-Mart has collectivized most of Americas main street shopping districts into one low paying corporate entity that takes all of the profits out of town. This has been devastating to American small towns. Wal-Mart’s monopoly has made it impossible for retailers to sell American made goods which has killed off manufacturing.

America was the wealthiest country on the planet with the highest wages. Signing on to a Global Marketplace of labor that included impoverished third world countries has been very beneficial for consumers of labor. But is has reduced wages to third world levels.

When Henry Ford opened his fourth Model T factory in Highland Park he paid $5.00 a day. Which was an incredible wage for that time. Almost single handedly Henry Ford created Americas middle class. He did it because he cared about America. Todays corporate leaders do not care about Americans making a decent wage and our politicians do not care about protecting American jobs.[/quote]

Sifu:

You really usually have some insightful things to say and write…but I don’t even know where to start with this one…

1. Comparing the marketplace and world that Henry Ford had to operate in to today’s Global marketplace blows me away. Ford didn’t even have much competition from other AMERICAN manufacturers; and his biggest competitors overseas were Horse Breeders.

2. Henry Ford caring about anything but Henry Ford is as revisionist and “pie-in-the-sky” as it gets. Ford had “Goon Squads” that beat the livin’ shit out of, and even killed, anyone who opposed him, his wages and working conditions; and lastly ANY semblance of Organized Labor.

3. The American Middle Class was created by young Americans coming home from WW-II to a manufacturing base that was in place from War Production; was ready, willing and ABLE to employ them in large numbers; and one that was virtually unopposed by any other World Market.

The portions of the World that weren’t in ruins at that time were barely coming out of the 15th Century, much less the 20th.

The World was America’s Buffet. We had jobs. We had work. We had cheap, affordable houses and education…

And we had babies…

4. A little about Sam Walton. The guy was a nobody, driving around in a beat-up car with goods (and eventually a beat up old prop plane) with a business model that the large retailers at that time laughed at him about; sell things that people need and want; buy them in volume; and sell them for less. He was as much the epitome of the American Dream and work ethic as you can get, in that he succeeded against a LOT of odds…many more odds than Henry Ford ever went against.

Wal-Mart today?

You would think that we would celebrate an American Company that is at least surviving in a Global Marketplace (their unit profits are down, like the rest of the economy).

But instead we make them Satan Incarnate because of some far-fetched FantasyLand we have full of mom-and-pop lined main-streets with bubble-gum machines outside and ice-cream soda machines and jukeboxes awaiting us inside, ready to flip the latest '45.

“Mom-and-Pop” RARELY added millions to the tax base of a town; employed hundreds; and yes, provided them with Work and Health Care Benefits.

Sorry…its December 2008…not December 1945…

Mufasa

[JD430]

[quote]Mikeyali wrote:

I’m an OIF and OEF infantry Marine with a degree too. Yet I’m working construction. Hell, I’m having issues with losing work and I’m getting paid less than some knuckleheads with GED’s. But look, I was a grunt and I got a degree in history. How does that make me marketable? It was great when I was planning on going back in, but now I’m not. So my options are to be a cop or use my degree, hit up law school and be a lawyer. I hate cops, so guess how I’m going to make my money?

mike

[/quote]

Get out of here. You don’t hate cops. That is a silly statement. You just dislike some of the retards in my profession…guess what? So do I.

For the record, based on what you have written here, I think you would make a great cop.

[winkel]

[quote]pushharder wrote:
Mufasa wrote:
Wal-Mart has collectivized most of Americas main street shopping districts into one low paying corporate entity that takes all of the profits out of town. This has been devastating to American small towns. Wal-Mart’s monopoly has made it impossible for retailers to sell American made goods which has killed off manufacturing.

America was the wealthiest country on the planet with the highest wages. Signing on to a Global Marketplace of labor that included impoverished third world countries has been very beneficial for consumers of labor. But is has reduced wages to third world levels.

When Henry Ford opened his fourth Model T factory in Highland Park he paid $5.00 a day. Which was an incredible wage for that time. Almost single handedly Henry Ford created Americas middle class. He did it because he cared about America. Todays corporate leaders do not care about Americans making a decent wage and our politicians do not care about protecting American jobs.

Sifu:

You really usually have some insightful things to say and write…but I don’t even know where to start with this one…

1. Comparing the marketplace and world that Henry Ford had to operate in to today’s Global marketplace blows me away. Ford didn’t even have much competition from other AMERICAN manufacturers; and his biggest competitors overseas were Horse Breeders.

2. Henry Ford caring about anything but Henry Ford is as revisionist and “pie-in-the-sky” as it gets. Ford had “Goon Squads” that beat the livin’ shit out of, and even killed, anyone who opposed him, his wages and working conditions; and lastly ANY semblance of Organized Labor.

3. The American Middle Class was created by young Americans coming home from WW-II to a manufacturing base that was in place from War Production; was ready, willing and ABLE to employ them in large numbers; and one that was virtually unopposed by any other World Market.

The portions of the World that weren’t in ruins at that time were barely coming out of the 15th Century, much less the 20th.

The World was America’s Buffet. We had jobs. We had work. We had cheap, affordable houses and education…

And we had babies…

4. A little about Sam Walton. The guy was a nobody, driving around in a beat-up car with goods (and eventually a beat up old prop plane) with a business model that the large retailers at that time laughed at him about; sell things that people need and want; buy them in volume; and sell them for less. He was as much the epitome of the American Dream and work ethic as you can get, in that he succeeded against a LOT of odds…many more odds than Henry Ford ever went against.

Wal-Mart today?

You would think that we would celebrate an American Company that is at least surviving in a Global Marketplace (their unit profits are down, like the rest of the economy).

But instead we make them Satan Incarnate because of some far-fetched FantasyLand we have full of mom-and-pop lined main-streets with bubble-gum machines outside and ice-cream soda machines and jukeboxes awaiting us inside, ready to flip the latest '45.

“Mom-and-Pop” RARELY added millions to the tax base of a town; employed hundreds; and yes, provided them with Work and Health Care Benefits.

Sorry…its December 2008…not December 1945…

Mufasa

Muf, you’ve done a masterful job here.[/quote]

I echo that - excellent mail!!!

[Headhunter]

[quote]Mufasa wrote:

Wal-Mart today?

You would think that we would celebrate an American Company that is at least surviving in a Global Marketplace (their unit profits are down, like the rest of the economy).

But instead we make them Satan Incarnate because of some far-fetched FantasyLand we have full of mom-and-pop lined main-streets with bubble-gum machines outside and ice-cream soda machines and jukeboxes awaiting us inside, ready to flip the latest '45.

“Mom-and-Pop” RARELY added millions to the tax base of a town; employed hundreds; and yes, provided them with Work and Health Care Benefits.

Sorry…its December 2008…not December 1945…

Mufasa[/quote]

Wal-Mart has a policy of cheating its employees. If an employee goes above 40 hours, manager’s are told to not pay for those hours. Since most of the employees are in poverty, they shut up about it or lose their position.

Wal-Mart routinely promotes men over women. Women make excellent assistant managers, but rarely get the top jobs. Guess why.

Those wonderful low prices? Yeah, I guess we all benefit from some poor Chinese girl working for $3 a day and living in a barracks. And it does keep her from begging or prostitution.

Since Wal-Mart has/hd no ethics, they crushed the Mom-and-Pop little guys. Well, bully for them!!

[Mufasa]

[quote]Headhunter wrote:
Mufasa wrote:

Wal-Mart today?

You would think that we would celebrate an American Company that is at least surviving in a Global Marketplace (their unit profits are down, like the rest of the economy).

But instead we make them Satan Incarnate because of some far-fetched FantasyLand we have full of mom-and-pop lined main-streets with bubble-gum machines outside and ice-cream soda machines and jukeboxes awaiting us inside, ready to flip the latest '45.

“Mom-and-Pop” RARELY added millions to the tax base of a town; employed hundreds; and yes, provided them with Work and Health Care Benefits.

Sorry…its December 2008…not December 1945…

Mufasa

Wal-Mart has a policy of cheating its employees. If an employee goes above 40 hours, manager’s are told to not pay for those hours. Since most of the employees are in poverty, they shut up about it or lose their position.

Wal-Mart routinely promotes men over women. Women make excellent assistant managers, but rarely get the top jobs. Guess why.

Those wonderful low prices? Yeah, I guess we all benefit from some poor Chinese girl working for $3 a day and living in a barracks. And it does keep her from begging or prostitution.

Since Wal-Mart has/hd no ethics, they crushed the Mom-and-Pop little guys. Well, bully for them!!

[/quote]

Try again.

These problems are not even REMOTELY unique to Wal-Mart.

I doubt that the computer you are clicking your cynical rant on had all of its components manufactured by a Union Dues paying Middle American.

And when you throw it away, its toxic components will most likely be disposed of by a poor person in China.

Mufasa

[Headhunter]

[quote]Mufasa wrote:
Headhunter wrote:
Mufasa wrote:

Wal-Mart today?

You would think that we would celebrate an American Company that is at least surviving in a Global Marketplace (their unit profits are down, like the rest of the economy).

But instead we make them Satan Incarnate because of some far-fetched FantasyLand we have full of mom-and-pop lined main-streets with bubble-gum machines outside and ice-cream soda machines and jukeboxes awaiting us inside, ready to flip the latest '45.

“Mom-and-Pop” RARELY added millions to the tax base of a town; employed hundreds; and yes, provided them with Work and Health Care Benefits.

Sorry…its December 2008…not December 1945…

Mufasa

Wal-Mart has a policy of cheating its employees. If an employee goes above 40 hours, manager’s are told to not pay for those hours. Since most of the employees are in poverty, they shut up about it or lose their position.

Wal-Mart routinely promotes men over women. Women make excellent assistant managers, but rarely get the top jobs. Guess why.

Those wonderful low prices? Yeah, I guess we all benefit from some poor Chinese girl working for $3 a day and living in a barracks. And it does keep her from begging or prostitution.

Since Wal-Mart has/hd no ethics, they crushed the Mom-and-Pop little guys. Well, bully for them!!

Try again.

These problems are not even REMOTELY unique to Wal-Mart.

I doubt that the computer you are clicking your cynical rant on had all of its components manufactured by a Union Dues paying Middle American.

And when you throw it away, its toxic components will most likely be disposed of by a poor person in China.

Mufasa

[/quote]

‘Cynical rant’? Try again.

Walmart: The High Cost of Low Price

or better yet!

“A recent study by researchers at UC Berkeley’s Labor Center has quantified what happened to retail wages when Wal-Mart set up shop, drawing on 15 years of data on actual store openings. The study found that Wal-Mart drives down wages in urban areas, with an annual loss of at least $3 billion dollars in earnings for retail workers.”

UPDATE: Since the completion of our film, the study has been finalized and published, and the published findings produced a different number for the annual loss in retail earnings than the preliminary figure we used in the film. The published study ultimately found that Wal-Mart actually reduced the take-home pay of retail workers by $4.7 BILLION dollars annually. Unfortunately for the retail workers this statistic concerns, Wal-Mart’s effect on retail wages turns out to be worse than we had anticipated.

Source: Arindrajit Dube, “Impact of Wal-Mart Growth on Earnings throughout the Retail Sector in Urban and Rural Counties” [PDF File], UC Berkeley Labor Center, November 2005.

http://www.walmartmovie.com/facts.php

There’s a lot more, oh Wal-Mart shopper…

[Inner_Hulk]

You know I’m sorry but all this ‘work hard’ and ‘forge your own way’ stuff only holds so much weight.

It’s simple numbers…

150 million adults in the United States…

Only 1.5% of households make over 250,000 a year.

Only 10% of families make over 100,000 a year.

Only 26% of families make over 75,000 a year.

55% of US families make less than 50,000 a year.

My point is that the overwhelming majority of people will never be wealthy, rich, or anything of the sort. There is a finite amount of money, and a finite amount of management and high power positions available, no matter how much ambition one possesses. It just irks me when people say well if you work hard enough and so and so, but that’s not true, that’s not true at all.

And talking about now in comparison to times of old…My old man was making 30,000 a year off a high school degree back in the 80s. So you can say it’s easier to get ahead nowadays, but I definitely disagree.

The minimum wage in my state is $7. Do you know what my mother made as a new secretary 25 years ago? Yes, $7. Twenty five fucking years ago my mother’s dead end secretary job paid as much as a starting wage now does. Twenty five years.

We can continue outsourcing jobs, slashing wages, giving ludicrous fucking asinine salaries to CEOs that no single man deserves, we can keep exporting raw materials…eventually, it’s going to catch up, and I think it’s starting to. An economy can’t survive on peasant wages and the unemployed.

[doogie]

[quote]Inner Hulk wrote:
You know I’m sorry but all this ‘work hard’ and ‘forge your own way’ stuff only holds so much weight.

It’s simple numbers…

150 million adults in the United States…

Only 1.5% of households make over 250,000 a year.

Only 10% of families make over 100,000 a year.

Only 26% of families make over 75,000 a year.

55% of US families make less than 50,000 a year.

My point is that the overwhelming majority of people will never be wealthy, rich, or anything of the sort.[/quote]

50% of all people are below average.

[buffballswell]

Social engineering gone wrong, or right, you tell me.

[Beowolf]

[quote]Inner Hulk wrote:
You know I’m sorry but all this ‘work hard’ and ‘forge your own way’ stuff only holds so much weight.

It’s simple numbers…

150 million adults in the United States…

Only 1.5% of households make over 250,000 a year.

Only 10% of families make over 100,000 a year.

Only 26% of families make over 75,000 a year.

55% of US families make less than 50,000 a year.

My point is that the overwhelming majority of people will never be wealthy, rich, or anything of the sort. There is a finite amount of money, and a finite amount of management and high power positions available, no matter how much ambition one possesses. It just irks me when people say well if you work hard enough and so and so, but that’s not true, that’s not true at all.

And talking about now in comparison to times of old…My old man was making 30,000 a year off a high school degree back in the 80s. So you can say it’s easier to get ahead nowadays, but I definitely disagree.

The minimum wage in my state is $7. Do you know what my mother made as a new secretary 25 years ago? Yes, $7. Twenty five fucking years ago my mother’s dead end secretary job paid as much as a starting wage now does. Twenty five years.

We can continue outsourcing jobs, slashing wages, giving ludicrous fucking asinine salaries to CEOs that no single man deserves, we can keep exporting raw materials…eventually, it’s going to catch up, and I think it’s starting to. An economy can’t survive on peasant wages and the unemployed.[/quote]

People like you end up in that 50%. Wanna know why? Thedy think, “well, it can only happen if I get lucky, so I shouldn’t beat myself up trying to make it happen.” And then, confirming their asinine belief, it doesn’t happen.

Its like the guys who decide that there just not likely to get a hook up because there is a finite number of hot girls in the world. Yeah, THAT guy is totally gonna get with chicks… -_-

Onus of responsibility. Make yours internal. Every psych study ever preformed to study the onus of control has determined an internal onus makes you happier and more successful. When shit goes wrong, you CAN do something. When shit goes well, you DID do something.

I’ve been trying to move my mindset in this direction. It has helped me immensely.

[malonetd]

[quote]Inner Hulk wrote:
The minimum wage in my state is $7. Do you know what my mother made as a new secretary 25 years ago? Yes, $7. Twenty five fucking years ago my mother’s dead end secretary job paid as much as a starting wage now does. Twenty five years.
[/quote]

There’s a difference between minimum wage and starting wage. Furthermore, most jobs don’t start at minimum wage. The people that do work for minimum wage are usually either high school or college kids or they are people that aren’t going to advance very far no matter what field of work they are in.

I’ll grant you, there are many people stuck in the tier above minimum wage. There’s a lot of people making $10-14/ hour that won’t ever make much more despite any level of hard work. That’s a livable wage. It’s not pretty living, but it’s getting by. If it’s a single person, there’s no problem at all.

Someone can easily make $35-40,000/yr working two jobs at that pay rate. If it’s a couple working full time, you’re looking at about $45,000-65,000 a year household. In most parts of the country that’s a comfortable income.

Is it wealthy? No. But like you said, the majority of people are never going to be wealthy. I agree with that, but I also believe most people can live a comfortable life with a little hard work and some frugality.

And don’t tell me jobs aren’t starting over $10 an hour. I worked as a cook at freaking Applebee’s and made $13/hour. I was a bartender in California and made $700-800 a week working less than 40 hours a week.

Statistics are all nice and cute, but if we all listened to statistics no one would ever excel at anything. I’m glad I never listened to statistics regarding my life. I know what they say, and I’m staying far away.

If you want to sit there and let statistics dictate the outcome of your life, have at it. I’m working to avoid that. Hard work might not get me wealthy, but it will me closer than complaining will.

[Inner_Hulk]

I too have been trying to transform my mindset. Seems like I’ve been trying for years. It’s hard though being bombarded with negativity in every direction.

I live in a city that ranks in the top 25 of worst economies in the US. Our unemployment rate last time I checked was 11%. I can assure you Malone that a majority of jobs in my city are not paying more than $10 an hour. We used to be a huge manufacturing economy here, one of the largest in the US, then everything got outsourced.

So it’s not that I’m basing this all on what I read or what statistics tell me, I’m basing this off what I see all around me in my local economy. It’s hard to maintain a positive attitude when you’re surrounded by an incredibly dim light of hope.

[malonetd]

[quote]Inner Hulk wrote:
It’s hard to maintain a positive attitude when you’re surrounded by an incredibly dim light of hope.[/quote]

Then perhaps you should move. I loved California, and I hate cold winters, yet here I am in Milwaukee, because my dollar travels much further here.

[Mufasa]

Are you KIDDING me, HH?

You posted something from the Union Supported UC Berkley Labor Center to bolster your point?

http://benefitslink.com/pr/detail.php?id=38215

This “Tit-for-TaT” can go on for days, so I’m done

Until we buck-the fuck-up and quit blaming Wal-Mart, Mexicans and now the Chinese; and learn to a) live within our means and b) learn to compete within a Global Marketplace…

Open up your wallets and get ready for the next round of “bailouts”.

Peace.

Mufasa

[jayski]

[quote]Inner Hulk wrote:
I too have been trying to transform my mindset. Seems like I’ve been trying for years. It’s hard though being bombarded with negativity in every direction.

I live in a city that ranks in the top 25 of worst economies in the US. Our unemployment rate last time I checked was 11%. I can assure you Malone that a majority of jobs in my city are not paying more than $10 an hour. We used to be a huge manufacturing economy here, one of the largest in the US, then everything got outsourced.

So it’s not that I’m basing this all on what I read or what statistics tell me, I’m basing this off what I see all around me in my local economy. It’s hard to maintain a positive attitude when you’re surrounded by an incredibly dim light of hope.[/quote]

Then move to where the jobs are. very simple

[pittbulll]

[quote]Mufasa wrote:
Headhunter wrote:
Mufasa wrote:

Wal-Mart today?

You would think that we would celebrate an American Company that is at least surviving in a Global Marketplace (their unit profits are down, like the rest of the economy).

But instead we make them Satan Incarnate because of some far-fetched FantasyLand we have full of mom-and-pop lined main-streets with bubble-gum machines outside and ice-cream soda machines and jukeboxes awaiting us inside, ready to flip the latest '45.

“Mom-and-Pop” RARELY added millions to the tax base of a town; employed hundreds; and yes, provided them with Work and Health Care Benefits.

Sorry…its December 2008…not December 1945…

Mufasa

Wal-Mart has a policy of cheating its employees. If an employee goes above 40 hours, manager’s are told to not pay for those hours. Since most of the employees are in poverty, they shut up about it or lose their position.

Wal-Mart routinely promotes men over women. Women make excellent assistant managers, but rarely get the top jobs. Guess why.

Those wonderful low prices? Yeah, I guess we all benefit from some poor Chinese girl working for $3 a day and living in a barracks. And it does keep her from begging or prostitution.

Since Wal-Mart has/hd no ethics, they crushed the Mom-and-Pop little guys. Well, bully for them!!

Try again.

These problems are not even REMOTELY unique to Wal-Mart.

I doubt that the computer you are clicking your cynical rant on had all of its components manufactured by a Union Dues paying Middle American.

And when you throw it away, its toxic components will most likely be disposed of by a poor person in China.

Mufasa

[/quote]

Wal-Mart is not the enemy, China is screwing the American worker, Mufasa, I do not agree totally with you American middle class was born on the back of Labor Unions.