"God Bless America and Wal-Mart" written by Libertad for e:strip™ - Buffalo, NY's Original Neighborhood Blogging Community (estrip v5.0)

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Journal 25754 by Libertad

05/29/06 20:39 - 80ºF - ID#25754God Bless America and Wal-Mart

Today I went to Super Wal-Mart with my mother. She buys EVERYTHING there! It's Memorial Day so they had this TV broadcasting Wal-Mart propaganda about how we need to support our troops.

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My question is if I hate Walmart, does that mean I hate America?

God Bless America, God Bless Wal-Mart.
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permalink: http://estrip.org/articles/libertad/25754.html

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mrdt writes at 12:02:04 06/02/06 - Comment #8414

dear uncut,

I understand you and Libertad are seperate people, I just assumed each of you would walk away with your respective parts.

Getting back to my original question, "if you hate large globalized department stores shouldn't you also hate other large and diversified brands like LG, General Mills, The Limited, Sony, Boeing, Prentice Hall Pub. and Darden Restaurants??? Or did Sam Walton step on your toes or something??"

This is what I wanted to know. AM I comparing apples to oranges, maybe but that's irrelevant and not what I'm getting at. I offered a broad range of businesses to see where Libertad stood on them hoping to understand where his hate comes from.

Sony and LG have brick and mortar retail stores all over the globe not-to-mention full service internet stores available 24/7. The Limited brand can be found in 5 different retail flavors in the malls of America and beyond. Darden restaurants owns many of America's favorite corporate restaurants (Olive Garden, Red Lobster, Smokey Bones and Bahama Breeze).

So to answer your question, I wanted to know if Libertad hated big business and the cookie cutter concept in general or was it just Walmart.

uncutsaniflush writes at 05:24:10 06/01/06 - Comment #8395

mrdt,

just to be absolutely clear, libertad and I are two different people. And I am not the one that has said that he hates Walmart.

As to my feelings on LG and Sony, perhaps that subject deserves a journal entry of its own.

But I do have a question for you, why are you comparing a retailer with manufacturers? As far as I know, neither LG nor Sony have thousands of big box stores located across the U.S. Though I must admit that I have see a small Sony electronics boutique store or two over the years.

So aren't you really comparing apples to oranges? A way better question to ask those who dislike Walmart is "Is Target or Kmart any better? than Walmart?"

But that is just me, as always I could be wrong.

mrdt writes at 04:16:31 06/01/06 - Comment #8390

Yes, I knew about Hillary but what does that have to do with disliking Walmart???

Yes I knew LG was a S Korean Brand and Sony in a Japanese brand with diversification in electronics, movies, television and music. So you should hate them too, right???

I like watching No Reservations and a Cook's Tour and have read 3 or 4 books from Anthony Bourdain. Actually I have all the episodes DVR'd and after I read the books I give them away as rewards to young, dedicated, hard working cooks for inspiration. Anthony definately praises the Mexican workforce. They do not demand high wages that the Americans do and they are not working to achieve high recognition or rank. Compared to kids coming out of culinary school they work a lot harder for a lot less and don't showboat. They do there job day in and day out as cheap labor, which in a NYC restaurant is good because over head is high and profit margins are low. Unfortunately they are draggin down cooks wages. But on the plus side they do disappear as I stated and have a higher rate of absinteeism. One day they work for you the next day they work for your competitor for 15 cents more an hour with out any notice.

uncutsaniflush writes at 01:26:06 06/01/06 - Comment #8383

yes, I know about Hillary and Walmart.

If memory serves she was on the Board of Directors of Walmart when Bill was the gov of Arkansas and she resigned in the early 90s when he decided to run for president

libertad writes at 01:03:34 06/01/06 - Comment #8382

Did you all hear that Hillary was a key player at Wal-Mart before Bill took office?

uncutsaniflush writes at 08:46:39 06/01/06 - Comment #8377

Libertad,

I thought you were being sarcastic but I wasn't absolutely sure; ironically enough I was being sarcastic or at least sardonic with opening "funny you should mention". As you pointed sometimes it is hard to tell if someone is sarcastic if you don't know them well.

But at any rate, I figured that putting in a good word for Mexicans couldn't hurt.

mrdt,

Since I have no idea what kind of chef is an American chef like you, I can't really comment on your assertion.

However, in my personal experience, the cooks and chefs and kitchen staff that I known and met outside of the internet speak highly of their Mexican co-workers. So, I am led to believe that the American chefs that I know are not like you since your experience doesn't mirror theirs.

Hell, Anthony Bourdain praised his Mexican kitchen staff in one of his "No Reservations" shows.

I shop at Walmart. And Sam Walton has been dead for a number of years. I doubt that he is stepping on anyone's toes anymore.

Do you realize that LG is a South Korean corporation? Or are you saying that Mr. Kim is just like Sam Walton, except for the dead part.

libertad writes at 11:56:03 05/31/06 - Comment #8371

uncut,

I'm not sure which of my previous posts you have read, but if you did read them all, I think it would be obvious that I was being sarcastic with my lazy mexican comment. Maybe because you don't know me and because of my wording that you failed to see my sarcasm. Just to be clear, in no way do I think Mexicans are lazy, in fact I believe the opposite.

Mrdt,

I'm too tired right now to even begin with a response to your comment.

mrdt writes at 11:15:03 05/31/06 - Comment #8369

In restaurant kitchens mexicans work there ass off, most of the time. The rest of the time they disappear (get high, phone home, phone mexico, long shit break). But I tell you what, I never stop from the second I walk in the door. Mexicans hate working with American cooks like me cause we make them look lazy.

Also, if you hate large globalized department stores shouldn't you also hate other large and diversified brands like LG, General Mills, The Limited, Sony, Boeing, Prentice Hall Pub. and Darden Restaurants??? Or did Sam Walton step on your toes or something??

uncutsaniflush writes at 10:36:51 05/31/06 - Comment #8367

funny you should mention the words "lazy" and "mexican" in the same sentence.

No one that I have ever met who has actually known, worked with and/or employed people from Mexico thinks they are lazy.

Even the racist crackers in the deep South that I have known say Mexicans "are good enough to hire but not good enough to marry."

And for a cracker, a lazy person just ain't good enough to hire.

Thanks for the Walmex link. I wasn't aware that Walmart did anything other than Sam's Club and Walmart in Mexico. Apparently, they do a clothing store called "Suburbia" (is that store a plot to make Mexicans into Stepford Americans?" and a restaurant chain as well.

I wonder if Americans would think less of Walmart if they knew how many stores Walmart has outside the U.S.

I think that in some ways it is walmart's dirty little secret. I don't think they mention their foreign stores on the U.S. website.

libertad writes at 09:40:14 05/31/06 - Comment #8365

uncut,

Wal-mart de México.

I found no evidence of any mexican flags at the Walmex doing a google search. I did see on their site "Por qué trabajar en Wal-Mart?" (why work in walmart) I think the appropriate response from the company would be; you have no other choice, now get to work you lazy mexican!

uncutsaniflush writes at 07:30:30 05/31/06 - Comment #8356

hating walmart is no more unAmerican than is eating a sandwich cubano. lol

Since walmart is a multi-national corporation with stores in Germany, Brazil, Mexico and who knows where else, it's a bit funny to me that it wraps itself up in the American flag.

I wonder if it wraps itself in the Mexican flag in Mexico?

Words: 75 -- , NY

05/29/06 08:05 - 67ºF - ID#25753Jimmy Hoffa and Joel Giambra

This nightmare I had this morning was cwazy! I have been thinking a lot about Jimmy Hoffa, because they are looking for his body underneath this barn. Anyways, I was walking downtown with my ex, ex, ex (yes dreams are random). These mafia guys asked if I knew about the murder. Of course I did, but I said which one, because there are murders happening all the time. They were referring to the murder that happened in front of my car. I acknowledged that I knew about it and then they offered me a pack of cigarettes to come and talk to them, which I declined. We departed ways, but eventually I ended up in some Guercio type place and the mob guys saw me. They were really mean to me and made me take off my shirt! I don't know why they care about me, I didn't even see the murder that happened in front of my car. Joel Giambra was there. He was wearing a police uniform and was connected with the mob, cause he didn't do anything to help me. They were so going to kill me, maybe even torture me and then I woke up. I like dreams, even the scary ones.

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permalink: http://estrip.org/articles/libertad/25753.html

Words: 214 -- , NY

05/25/06 12:29 - 64ºF - ID#25752News Flash

I wish I had a police scanner right now. Just about every cop in Buffalo just raced down to the Psych Center at about noon. I was driving down Richmond and was almost hit by a cop car head on!

Just a heads up to pay attention to the News today. I'm off to sunny FL, will return on Tuesday.

Libertad

Here is a photo I shot last summer of the HH Richardson Complex.

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permalink: http://estrip.org/articles/libertad/25752.html

Words: 80 -- , NY

05/24/06 18:45 - 62ºF - ID#25751What's cookin good lookin?

What is e:mike cooking?

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It smells good. I'm a little nervous because he keeps screaming in the kitchen and I can't hear what he is saying cause I have the music too loud.

permalink: http://estrip.org/articles/libertad/25751.html

Words: 38 -- , NY

05/24/06 16:16 - 66ºF - ID#25750Not guilty!

This is an update regarding my previous post "Parking Tickets" see

Today I got another ticket. It was so shitty. My friend that is moving to Phoenix gave me some things, so I parked my car in front of my house on Elmwood to run the things inside. All I did was bring the items in and go right back down to take my car to get it inspected, so I wouldn't get any more parking tickets! Of course there was a parking ticket on my car after coming back down the stairs! I was so upset, I was practically in tears. I could see the ticket Nazi ahead of me at the next corner. If he were just a little bit closer I probably would have been arrested for assault.

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Anyways, after I learned that i need $200 in repairs to get my car an inspection sticker to avoid more tickets, I decided to fight both of them at city hall. Let me tell you it wasn't easy, but I was found not guilty on both charges! I won! My defense was that they don't give as many tickets on the East Side because they are too scarred of getting shot. I think he agreed with me. He was going to give me just one ticket, but I was relentless and wouldn't give in. My efforts paid off. He seemed to think that I chose to live on Elmwood because its the "cool thing to do." I was like look I'm poor, I'm a student and its not fair I have to pay for the cities problems. I live on Elmwood because I happen to have an affordable apartment, not because its cool to live on Elmwood. I'll have to admit its nice, but it comes at its price. Anyways, things are looking a little bit brighter now. I was just around the corner from having a complete emotional breakdown.

permalink: http://estrip.org/articles/libertad/25750.html

Words: 339 -- , NY

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