The Growth Of Walmart

[frerottenextelway]

Cool site:

http://projects.flowingdata.com/walmart/

[DenverBrit]

Cool site:

http://projects.flowingdata.com/walmart/

Very cool.

The US has become Walmart's pietre dish. Ha!

[NYBronco]

Looked like little chinese bombs being dropped.

[gyldenlove]

I would love to see a similar map with incidents of imported chinese goods containing toxic materials. I bet there would be a correlation.

[Florida_Bronco]

Further proof that the south sucks.

[cutthemdown]

Walmart has some good deals what's the problem? You people don't really think cheap Chinese products are the reason for our problems do you?

[mosca]

Walmart has some good deals what's the problem? You people don't really think cheap Chinese products are the reason for our problems do you?
I hope you're being sarcastic. The trade imbalance with China may not be the #1 reason for our problems, but it's definitely a huge factor.

[Spider]

I hope you're being sarcastic. The trade imbalance with China may not be the #1 reason for our problems, but it's definitely a huge factor.

Not only that , but the outright fiscal slaughter of the mom and pop and the neighborhood store .........killing of production jobs ......

[baja]

Lets see if Walmart will give you food on credit through the coming depression like so many mom & pop stores did during the last one. Good luck with that one.

[Spider]

Lets see if Walmart will give you food on credit through the coming depression like so many mom & pop stores did during the last one. Good luck with that one.

;D I remember as a kid , mom and dad running a tab down at the local store .....and everything was fresh , none of this gassed up meat to extend shelf life , Baja I am sure you remember back in the day when you ate a hamburger it had a different taste then it does now .......Pork , poultry , beef.........your veggies were alot more crisper , you could literally snap a green bean .....

[BroncoBuff]

They are a virus.

[baja]

;D I remember as a kid , mom and dad running a tab down at the local store .....and everything was fresh , none of this gassed up meat to extend shelf life , Baja I am sure you remember back in the day when you ate a hamburger it had a different taste then it does now .......Pork , poultry , beef.........your veggies were alot more crisper , you could literally snap a green bean .....

Spider I've been a vegan for many years now but this fall when I was traveling in Europe I was amazed at how incredible the vegetables tasted even compared to organically grown stuff in the States It can still be done they are doing it all over Europe. The food in Northern Italy is unbelievable. The other amazing part is there very few fat people there, in fact it's rare to see a fat person,on the other hand whenever I go to the States all I see is a sea of fat fuccks.

Guys like Meck that hold to the belief Americans are the smartest, most resilient, most industrious people in the world just haven't gotten out much. ;D America has turned soft,soft, soft I am sorry to say.

[snowspot66]

Right behind the States in fattest country is a slew of European countries. You paint a pretty picture but everywhere has it's own problems. The Italians were burning their garbage in the streets (or just letting it sit there) over the summer from lack of sanitation services.

[baja]

Good idea! misdirect your own country's problems by finding another country with problems.

[baja]

Right behind the States in fattest country is a slew of European countries. You paint a pretty picture but everywhere has it's own problems. The Italians were burning their garbage in the streets (or just letting it sit there) over the summer from lack of sanitation services.

I am only one set of eyes but I waked many streets of European cities and could not help noticing the lack of fat people compared to what I was used to seeing in US cities. It was shockingly different.

[ak1971]

Spider I've been a vegan for many years now but this fall when I was traveling in Europe I was amazed at how incredible the vegetables tasted even compared to organically grown stuff in the States It can still be done they are doing it all over Europe. The food in Northern Italy is unbelievable. The other amazing part is there very few fat people there, in fact it's rare to see a fat person,on the other hand whenever I go to the States all I see is a sea of fat fuccks.

Guys like Meck that hold to the belief Americans are the smartest, most resilient, most industrious people in the world just haven't gotten out much. ;D America has turned soft,soft, soft I am sorry to say.

Figured you for a freaking vegan you ****ing hippie..**** THE USA WE SUCK!!!!

[baja]

Figured you for a freaking vegan you ****ing hippie..**** THE USA WE SUCK!!!!

I built my own house twice I used to keep my cars and motorcycles running. I've rebuilt motors and fixed about anything that can be fixed on a car truck or bike. I've built solar systems water systems earth ships and straw bail houses. I've raised gardens and orchards. I've wild crafted foods and survived in the woods in Maine as a youngster for days at a time. I have live in the wilderness of Baja for 3 years the remote village of Yelapa Mx. for 3 years and on the land of Northern California and in a ghost town in Colorado for most of the seventies. I've been a hard rock miner a carpenter a builder a electronics repair person so if that makes me a hippie I'm damn proud of it. if the world turns to shiit than I like my chances. But mostly I'm not soft. Can you say as much?

[frerottenextelway]

I built my own house twice I used to keep my cars and motorcycles running. I've rebuilt motors and fixed about anything that can be fixed on a car truck or bike. I've built solar systems water systems earth ships and straw bail houses. I've raised gardens and orchards. I've wild crafted foods and survived in the woods in Maine as a youngster for days at a time. I have live in the wilderness of Baja for 3 years the remote village of Yelapa Mx. for 3 years and on the land of Northern California and in a ghost town in Colorado for most of the seventies. I've been a hard rock miner a carpenter a builder a electronics repair person so if that makes me a hippie I'm damn proud of it. if the world turns to shiit than I like my chances. But mostly I'm not soft. Can you say as much?

I made beer from a Mr. Beer kit.

[baja]

I made beer from a Mr. Beer kit.

OK you can come to the bunker.

[frerottenextelway]

OK you can come to the bunker.

;D

[Play2win]

;D

But only if you bring MR. BEER... ;D

[baja]

But only if you bring MR. BEER... ;D

Once we get the beer kit we can kill him and feed his carcass to the pigs.

[DenverBrit]

Once we get the beer kit we can kill him and feed his carcass to the pigs.

Pigs? I knew that vegan thing wasn't going to last. ;D

[enjolras]

I lived in Italy for 3 years, and spend 2-3 months out of every year conducting business in Europe (primarily England, Finland, Sweden, and France).

While Italian food is amazing, I find that I can get ingredients of equal quality at specialty organic providers here in Colorado (like marczyk foods here in Denver). I did not really buy into organic food until I did a blind taste test in Portland Ore. and realized just how much fuller the taste of true organic food is.

I do think that the people of Europe live a healthier lifestyle than we do. European cities tend to be MUCH more dense than our, with a much larger emphasis on walkability. People in Europe tend to spend more time on their feet (As they utilize public transit which requires walking at the end-points). It's part diet, but I think mostly about activity levels. In the United States most suburbanites barely move on an average day.

1. Drive to work
2. Drive to lunch
3. Drive to the store
4. Drive home and sit on the couch.

That's not true for most Europeans (although that is changing as their cities become more automobile centric). It's definitely not true in England where their lifestyle mirrors our own, only with even fattier food :)

[baja]

Pigs? I knew that vegan thing wasn't going to last. ;D

Ha They're guard pigs, they're in the mote.

[baja]

I lived in Italy for 3 years, and spend 2-3 months out of every year conducting business in Europe (primarily England, Finland, Sweden, and France).

While Italian food is amazing, I find that I can get ingredients of equal quality at specialty organic providers here in Colorado (like marczyk foods here in Denver). I did not really buy into organic food until I did a blind taste test in Portland Ore. and realized just how much fuller the taste of true organic food is.

I do think that the people of Europe live a healthier lifestyle than we do. European cities tend to be MUCH more dense than our, with a much larger emphasis on walkability. People in Europe tend to spend more time on their feet (As they utilize public transit which requires walking at the end-points). It's part diet, but I think mostly about activity levels. In the United States most suburbanites barely move on an average day.

1. Drive to work
2. Drive to lunch
3. Drive to the store
4. Drive home and sit on the couch.

That's not true for most Europeans (although that is changing as their cities become more automobile centric). It's definitely not true in England where their lifestyle mirrors our own, only with even fattier food :)

Good points enjolars. I loved how the European cities were set up for walking. New York and to and extent Boston are the only major cities here than I can think of that good walking cities.

I got into a big discussion with a Turkish woman about US organic food vs. Turkish veggies and I was of the same opinion as you but after the discussion I made an effort to pay attention to the taste and after a while I had to admit she was right and I have been eating organic for many many years now. The only thing I can chalk it up to is the soil it self.

[frerottenextelway]

Once we get the beer kit we can kill him and feed his carcass to the pigs.

Perfecting Mr. Beer has taken years of experience and trial and error. Feed me to the pigs at your own flat-beer risk. :approve:

[baja]

OK put the pigs back in the mote for now, we'll watch and learn.

[cutthemdown]

Good points enjolars. I loved how the European cities were set up for walking. New York and to and extent Boston are the only major cities here than I can think of that good walking cities.

I got into a big discussion with a Turkish woman about US organic food vs. Turkish veggies and I was of the same opinion as you but after the discussion I made an effort to pay attention to the taste and after a while I had to admit she was right and I have been eating organic for many many years now. The only thing I can chalk it up to is the soil it self.

My city Long Beach California has tons of walking and biking. Also I heard Austin texas really good for parks and trails etc.

[baja]

My city Long Beach California has tons of walking and biking. Also I heard Austin texas really good for parks and trails etc.

Lots of mid sized cities have walking and biking routes and areas but I am talking about a major city that is a walking city like Manhattan or Venice

[watermock]

Shouldn't you be giving out Shanny's cell # by now? Ha!

[baja]

I only have Peg's

[watermock]

Well?

[baja]

That's a secret.

[watermock]

Ya know now all the pressure is on Bowlen.

Mike can just listen to the surf(like in that Corona ad), fit out his mansion and screen calls from suitors while cashing in 10-20M.

Bowlen needs to babysit the Waterboy and still find a DC that will not be afraid it will ruin his career.

That's why we needed to hire a DC/HC.

[baja]

Want to know something funny I did see Shanny today.

[rugbythug]

So Baja just for the Record who will live longer in a Famine? The Skinny Europeans or the Fat Americans?

[Bronco Bob]

So Baja just for the Record who will live longer in a Famine? The Skinny Europeans or the Fat Americans?

I'd say the Europeans. They are used to doing with less. Take
away the Doritos and McDonalds from the Americans and they
will start doing mass suicide.

[enjolras]

I'm amazed nobody has mentioned Denver as a really superb walking city, particularly the center city. I believe it was #4 on a recent list of walking cities... with the Platte/Cherry creek trails, the pedestrian mall downtown, generally wide sidewalks throughout the interior city, city park, and lots of nice destinations Denver is actually a superb walking city.

I'm biased because I live here, but I really do believe that. It doesn't hurt that it's one of the most active cities (if not THE most active) in the country. Literally 1 out 3 people that we know has run a marathon (most have run double digit marathons). Everyone bikes. Everyone runs. It's all very frustrating for lazy people like me:)

[baja]

Written by Tom Whipple
Wednesday, 31 December 2008 13:49

Before grappling with 2009, it might be useful to remind ourselves that there is a dark side to what lies ahead.

There was a little flurry in the news last week when it was discovered that the Army War College had released a report talking about preparing for civil unrest in the U.S. When you read the report, it turns out to be yet another warning about generals preparing for the last war. It devotes only three pages to the idea that the Army might soon find itself so embroiled in helping local authorities cope with civil unrest that international commitments, such as the war on terrorism, could become secondary concerns.

Since the close of the Civil War, America has enjoyed nearly 150 years of domestic tranquility. There were, of course the Indian wars, some labor disputes and a handful of urban riots in recent decades, but these were isolated and did not last for long. Even during the great depression of the 1930's America's social fabric stayed largely intact. Signs that these idyllic decades may be coming to close are starting to arise. In the last few weeks the deteriorating economic situation has seen serious disturbances in Greece and Thailand. We are beginning to read of disturbances in Russia and China.

Most realists foresee that 2009 will be a bad year with stock markets declining, unemployment rising, real estate values falling, government bailouts continuing, deflation morphing into inflation, the dollar falling, and oil prices rising. Thus far the economic downturn has not had a serious social impact. However, food banks are running short, shoplifting and other property crimes are on the rise, child neglect is increasing as is infant mortality. However, considering the pace at which people have been thrown out of work during the last year most seem to be getting by - so far.

Of all the world's nations, America is probably the worst prepared to deal with deep, prolonged economic hardships, for more of us have disconnected from 19th century, rural, somewhat self-sufficient, lifestyles than in most other countries. In the 1930's many found that they could still return to the family farm, where food, shelter, and meaningful work was available. In 2010 that option exists for very few; we have become dependent on a complex infrastructure fueled by oil for our food, water, clothing and warmth. Start reducing the flow of oil and increasing numbers of us are going to become increasingly desperate.

There are too many turns in the twisting paths that the current economic and oil depletion crises could take to speculate on the details of what is likely to happen. However, there are many potential "failed states" around that we are likely to have concrete examples, shortly, of what happens in the 21st century when civil order breaks down.

It is clear that we are already seeing the opening ripples of what might turn out to be the major social problem of the century - caring for large numbers of destitute people. Most of the social nets in America such as unemployment insurance, charities or shelters have strict time or limited resources. Already charity and religious contributions are starting to drop.

As the situation worsens, it is going to be much cheaper for governments at all levels to provide essential food, shelter and other services, rather than wait for desperate people to start stealing and become ensnared in the criminal justice system. One of the key benchmarks of the next few years is how quickly governments will redeploy resources away from 20th Century priorities such as space travel, expensive weapons systems, and highways towards simply getting people through the decades of transition from current lifestyles. The change will not be an easy one.

Before we get to mobs in the streets, we are likely to go through a time of increasing petty crime and the ensuing pressures on the criminal justice system. Somebody is going to have to think through the appropriate response to major increases in shoplifting and burglaries by people who are trying to feed children after having exhausted all other avenues of assistance.

It is likely that who is kept in prison and for what is going to have to be rethought. State and local revenues are already dropping rapidly and the day is not far away when choices between funding school systems and maintaining vast prison systems will need to be addressed. Alternative forms of deterring criminal behavior and forms of punishment will need to be devised. Indeed the economic situation could deteriorate so rapidly that some of these changes may need to be made in months rather than years.

It is likely that part of the of the solution to getting hundreds of millions through decades of shortages will involve increasing infringement on what many now consider their civil liberties. Better forms of personal identification will be necessary. It is likely that rationing of many things we take for granted such as fuel, food, medical services and travel and even places of residence may become necessary. Other societies have found such measures necessary in times of crisis.

America has not faced a serious domestic crisis for 150 years. We have never faced a situation where 300 million of us bound up in a complex and interdependent society has had to make major involuntary changes in our lifestyles.

[baja]

Paul B. Farrell, MarketWatch
Last update: 6:59 p.m. EST Dec. 22, 2008Comments: 434
LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Historians say Ponzi schemes and con men are a fact of life. The best, the brightest and the richest can all become victims: from President Ulysses S. Grant in 1884 when the partners of his Wall Street firm left him penniless a year before he died of throat cancer to Bernard Madoff's investors, many whom became instantly penniless, just before Christmas and Hanukkah. Greed is a fact of life.
Thomas Friedman said it best in the N.Y. Times: "I have no sympathy for Madoff. But the fact is, his alleged Ponzi scheme was only slightly more outrageous than the 'legal' scheme that Wall Street was running, fueled by cheap credit, low standards and high greed.
Video: Out With the Old

The U.S. stock market has already absorbed the worst of the selling pressure this year and will start to recover in 2009 but any progress might be limited.
"What do you call giving a worker who makes only $14,000 a year a nothing-down and nothing-to-pay-for-two-years mortgage to buy a $750,000 home, and then bundling that mortgage with 100 others into bonds, which Moody's or Standard & Poor's rate AAA, and then selling them to banks and pension funds the world over? That is what our financial industry was doing. If that isn't a pyramid scheme, what is?"
Just when you thought it couldn't get any worse along comes Madoff, the new poster boy for everything that's happened to the America's soul the past eight years: greed, arrogance, stupidity and megalomania.
OK, folks, you're right, maybe it is bad and it could get worse in 2009. But it really is the "season to be jolly." So indulge me. Maybe we can't erase the nightmare of the past eight years. But for a few moments join me, take a trip down memory lane to 2000 as I reminisce on what makes America strong and resilient in tough times.
Noah's Ark Survival Kit for Investors
We moved into our new home a week after Bush was elected in 2000. Maybe we were just focused on adjusting to the new home and community, but for a while America seemed peaceful. Until that turning point a year later. During a moment of heavy grief our president made the decision to focus our anger on revenge, war, evil.
But more significant, we were told to ignore our pain: Spend, "go shopping at the malls." And with that, we lost our moral authority to materialism, consumerism ... now, after eight years, we've paid a huge price. Not in money. No, America entered a Faustian bargain, we traded away part of our soul that made us the moral leader of the world. And now we want it back!
It was late summer when we first saw the house. It had a mysterious spirit everywhere as we got the tour, as if an upbeat "Santa Noah" was silently singing Christmas carols. Yes, Noah, the ark-builder who survived the perfect storm and saved the world. That Noah, the perfect symbol as we navigate the worst economic storm since the thirties.
Yes, it was love at first sight when we saw our new home. The owners had Noah's Arks everywhere: Pictures. Statutes. Ceramics. Tapestry. And on a kitchen bulletin board, an email: "All I Really Need to Know I Learned From Noah's Ark." Now that really got my attention.
The message was from Capt. Jerry Shields, chaplain for the First Marine Expeditionary Force, their son's unit. I'm a Marine veteran, so I stopped, had to read that "thought for the day" emailed for support during troubled times. Today, as the ominous storm clouds continue darkening, that message carries more impact.
So you're tired of endless bad news. Me too. Let's take a brief break. Christmas, Hanukkah and the New Year are times of joy, love and celebration. Laughter, singing, bowl games, presents. And Noah's spirit reminds me of how to navigate successfully through bear markets, economic storms.
Yes, if you want to know how to survive, Noah's got the answer. The ark-builder is one of history's best long-term investors. He thinks like a Coast Guard ice cutter heading through the storm. The ark's the perfect metaphor, a symbol of survival. Noah's message fits today. We paraphrase it, but you'll get his gift. Listen to his survival tips.
Here's how to build your "ark," your very special ark:
1. Plan ahead. It wasn't raining when Noah built the Ark
Yes, we know it'll be raining in 2009. Pouring hard. But the real storm is within you. So is your ark. A state of mind. Like my favorite special forces instructor put it: "If you have a guy with all the survival training in the world who has a negative attitude and a guy who doesn't have a clue but has a positive attitude, I guarantee you that the guy with a positive attitude is coming out of the woods alive." Plan ahead, budget, save. Cut expenses. Build your ark. It's never too late.
2. Don't listen to critics, just get on with what needs to be done
Only one in three Americans were building their retirement ark before the credit crunch. Most have less than $15,000 savings. Most ignored the coming flood, laughing at ark-builders for wasting their money. Don't listen, do what's right.
3. Remember, the Ark was built by amateurs, the Titanic by pros
The Pros: Wall Street, Corporate America, Washington, Cable anchors, White House, Congress, SEC, the Fed. Best. Brightest. Listen to their happy talk ... and you'll sink in the flood. You know what's best for you. Trust your inner voice.

[Meck77]

Yeah yeah yeah. We should all move to Mexico because they are better prepared for this recession.

[baja]

Remember, "they boarded in twos." You're not alone. Your spouse. Best buddy. Mentor. Ask for help. Think long-term, to after troubled waters recede. Maybe a new career, self-employed. Time to start building a big ark for your retirement.
5. Build your future on high ground
Goals, goals, goals. Research studies prove that successful folks, the millionaires, get there by setting goals. In one major university a small percentage of graduates with specific goals made more money than all the rest of their classmates 20 years later. Today's recession is a great time to rethink your goals. Just do it.
6. Don't miss the boat, the ark will keep you from sinking
Action. Now. Yes, the market's below last year's peak, even below the 2000 dot-com peak. Stocks aren't the only answer. Hard assets? Realty? Commodities? Oil? History tells us cycles happen. We've had 25 bull/bear cycles over the past century. Steady your ark. Recoveries happen too.
7. Don't forget, we're all in the same boat
America is the great land of opportunity, even in a bear-recession. You can still become a millionaire. And when you're getting yours, remember to help someone who missed the boat, throw them a lifeline.
8. Speed isn't always an advantage, turtles came on with cheetahs
Let's hear it one more time: In the race to build your financial ark, the tortoise beats the hare. Trust. You've got a lifetime. You can do it.
9. Woodpeckers inside are a larger threat than the storm outside
Attitude is the key to success, it's an inside job folks, "all in your head." Successful investing begins with that "positive mental attitude."
10. When you're stressed out, float awhile
Going over the edge? Time out. Turn within. Listen to the still small voice. Ask. And receive. Pray. Meditate. Exercise. Go for a walk. Take a break. Call an old friend, kibitz. Help someone worse off. Answers will come. This too will pass.
11. Stay fit
When you're 600 years old, "someone" might ask you to do something really big, like build a big "ark" and "save your world." And that someone will be you. Yes, a new calling. To follow your dreams. To achieve the mission you came here for.
12. Overwhelmed? Your higher power's with you, a rainbow's ahead
I'm very visual. I love symbols, icons. Reminders that a higher power's working in my life. It's so easy to forget. Everywhere in our house and outside we have them: Noahs, Santas, Buddhas, angels. Protecting us. And encouraging us to follow these "Survival Tips."
Do it, you'll weather the storm, discover a new day. Bears and recessions do pass. Bulls eventually return. And when doubts seep back, worries the big guy in the sky's abandoning you on the high seas, there's always that rainbow off the bow of Noah's Ark, dead ahead, sail into it!
Merry Christmas Chaplain Shields wherever you're serving. And thanks.
"Noah's Ark Survival Kit" is the perfect gift for investors. We're the richer for it, outside and in. And if you hit a real rough patch in the weeks and months to come, find inspiration in my book " Millionaire Meditation," you can download online for free.
Namaste. Shalom. Peace.

[Spider]

Good points enjolars. I loved how the European cities were set up for walking. New York and to and extent Boston are the only major cities here than I can think of that good walking cities.

alot of the north east cities are that way , Washington DC , Philly , Trenton New Jersey , once you get a 100 miles west and south of those places , it all becomes wide open
maybe New Orleans .......

[Spider]

Yeah yeah yeah. We should all move to Mexico because they are better prepared for this recession.

well they got better weather ;D

[baja]

alot of the north east cities are that way , Washington DC , Philly , Trenton New Jersey , once you get a 100 miles west and south of those places , it all becomes wide open
maybe New Orleans .......

Oh I forgot about NO I hear that is a great walking city but is that just the jazz district, that is one place I have never been that I would like to visit.

[baja]

Yeah yeah yeah. We should all move to Mexico because they are better prepared for this recession.

Mexico will be hard hit no doubt but the weather here is such that most people do not even heat their homes so their energy costs are almost non existent and there are a lot of small farmers here and food is grown locally in many cases. Mexico is a very poor country so the people live very simple lives. Many families live on tortillas beans and rice with meat used sparingly. Mexicans are much better equipped to handle hard times because they already have a hard life and life close to nature as it is.

I really have to laugh at you Meck with your puffed out chest bragging about everything American. America has grown into a big bloated society that is ultra energy dependent and the crash back down to earth will be huge and very painful. Americans are not going to cope with these changes very well precisely because they have been living the high life. The things you brag about the most will be the very things that cause the most grief for the average American. The Mexicans are used to living a meager life of subsistence so the adjustment will be far easer for them.

Meck your obnoxious self righteousness will come back to haunt you one day. You are like a band wagon fan for your country you can't see the cracks in your team and there are enough of you that you will not insist on changes until it is too late and you go 0 & 16. (Opps)

I wish I could wake you up but your false pride will not allow that. When you live an unsustainable life style such as America is now doing on so many levels that means that there is a day of reckoning coming and signs point to the time is very very near.

Another point Americans are well armed where guns in Mexico are rare in comparison so there will not likely be bands of marauding gangs armed to the teeth but that scenario in the US is very likely.

Meck you, like so many rich entitled kids, are quite oblivious of the real world around you. This time your money may not save you.

[DenverBrit]

Ha They're guard pigs, they're in the mote.

Instructional video. ;D

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[baja]

LOL now that's handy

[Spider]

Oh I forgot about NO I hear that is a great walking city but is that just the jazz district, that is one place I have never been that I would like to visit.

;D everything but Algiers ......