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Title: Wal-Mart = Communist Post by: Phoenix on 2006-08-24, 18:47 http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/C/CHI...-08-24-06-55-56 (http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/C/CHINA_WAL_MART?SITE=7219&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2006-08-24-06-55-56)
For such an aggressive company in capitalist markets, I find this extremely ironic, and also extremely hypocritical, but not at all surprising. I've heard right-wing bloggers and radio talk show hosts defend Wal-Mart because "all the Lefties love to beat up on Wal-Mart." I wonder what they would say about this, since they're also very much anti-Communist? Well, I'm for calling a spade a spade, and I've said this before, so I'll say it again, and it's what the fans of capitalism always seem to forget. Businesses exist for one purpose - to make money. Caring about anything else is secondary and is tolerable to the company so long as it serves to advance the first goal. The only loyalty they have is to their own bottom line. Title: Re: Wal-Mart = Communist Post by: scalliano on 2006-08-24, 20:05 Quote "It our understanding that party members and the party have routinely organized branches in enterprises in China and we respect their right to do so," Keck said. As opposed to the right of anyone else in the known universe. "Oh, you won't get me, I'm part of the union ...!" Title: Re: Wal-Mart = Communist Post by: Phoenix on 2006-08-24, 21:46 Well I don't know how a Communist labor union works in comparison to a Capitalist one, but the odd thing is that labor unions tend to be a socialist entity by nature anyway, so it seems like it's either redundant or else it's just an arm of the government used to spy on the business and enforce state policy from within. I'm leaning on the second choice from the context of what I read in the article. After all, a Communist state would have no need of traditional unions in theory since the entire society is supposed to be based on the government protecting the workers from those evil, greedy businesses. Too bad nobody's there to protect them from the evil, greedy government...
Title: Re: Wal-Mart = Communist Post by: Lopson on 2006-08-24, 23:07 Quote from: Phoenix After all, a Communist state would have no need of traditional unions in theory since the entire society is supposed to be based on the government protecting the workers from those evil, greedy businesses. Too bad nobody's there to protect them from the evil, greedy government... Communist goverments have always had one sole purpose: Increase the gap between rich and poor. For this objective to be completed, they need to control every single business in the country, so that the rich can get more money, and the poor less money.Ah well. Title: Re: Wal-Mart = Communist Post by: scalliano on 2006-08-25, 00:55 Pho: In China's case, I would also consider option 2 as the most likely, much in the way that Google bends to the Chinese government's restrictions on searching for things they don't like. What you said in your last post about trade unions as a rule is the very reason that companies like Walmart hate them so much; they have rights. Well, in the normal run of things anyway.
Kruz: Capitalist governments' intentions are no different, though their methods may be. It's just that so-called Communism tends to be more up-front about it :P Title: Re: Wal-Mart = Communist Post by: Phoenix on 2006-08-25, 16:37 Communist governments lie through their teeth. They only thing they're up front about is that they want control over every aspect of your life. In Capitalism, governments have to try to make it sellable and rely on people's gullibility to gain control, or else be subversive about it and try to sneak it by when the people aren't looking.
Title: Re: Wal-Mart = Communist Post by: Lopson on 2006-08-25, 19:00 Quote from: scalliano Kruz: Capitalist governments' intentions are no different, though their methods may be. It's just that so-called Communism tends to be more up-front about it :P I didn't say it was any better, I was just pointing out something that is true.Quote from: Phoenix They only thing they're up front about is that they want control over every aspect of your life. So true, so true, and yet, people, like the ones in my country, continue to vote for these idiots. Title: Re: Wal-Mart = Communist Post by: scalliano on 2006-08-26, 04:03 Quote from: Phoenix Communist governments lie through their teeth. They only thing they're up front about is that they want control over every aspect of your life. In Capitalism, governments have to try to make it sellable and rely on people's gullibility to gain control, or else be subversive about it and try to sneak it by when the people aren't looking. 100%.Title: Re: Wal-Mart = Communist Post by: McDeth on 2006-08-29, 08:55 They're putting a Best Buy out there. Let's see what happens with that.
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