[ExI] walmart again: was RE: Capitalism is like a poker game

[Dan]

No, I think you're missing the point about a corporation using government to maintain or better its position by making it harder on its competitors. Yes, some competitors won't be harmed by some of these regulations, including, as you point out, boutique shops. However, I was thinking more of non-boutique shops that do pay minimum wage now. A raise in that raises their costs. Typically, their wiggle room in inceasing prices -- to nullifying the cost increase -- is limited. In these cases, too, the politically powerful or connected or just plain established firm can absorb the costs -- i.e., it hurts itself, but it hurts its competitors more.

By using Walmart, too, I wasn't homing in on it. I have nothing against it personally, but only wanted to point out why it's likely to support a minimum wage increase. (In fact, it did support and even lobbied for the recent increase -- and few seemed cynical about this. Whereas, had Walmart lobbied against it and offered similar reasoning -- that this would actually help people out (which it would: minimum wages only help some workers at the expense of other workers and everyone else) -- most people would've been skeptical.)

I was actually, too, going to pull out "The Separation of Commercial and Investment Banking: The Morgans vs. The Rockefellers" by Alexander Tabarrok -- which was first published in _Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics_ 1 (1) and is now online at:

http://mises.org/journals/qjae/pdf/qjae1_1_1.pdf

Tabarrok contention is that the motivation behind Glass-Stegall Act was not to help out the nation by regulating these banks, but to help one group of bankers at the expense of other bankers and everyone else.

Regards,

Dan


----- Original Message ----
From: spike <spike66 at att.net>
To: ExI chat list <extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org>
Sent: Tue, April 13, 2010 4:33:42 PM
Subject: [ExI] walmart again: was RE: Capitalism is like a poker game



> -----Original Message-----
> From: extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org 
> [mailto:extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org] On Behalf Of Dan
> Subject: Re: [ExI] Capitalism is like a poker game
> 
> The problem is often enough big corporations are usally well 
> connected politically, so they get the government to regulate 
> or prohibit their competition. This can often take subtle 
> forms, such as Walmart's support of raising the legal minimum 
> wage -- which makes it much harder on Walmart's smaller competitors.
> 
> Regards,
> 
> Dan

Sure Dan, but you personally have the option of not shopping at Walmart, and
instead patronizing the many boutique shops that are so common these days.
I recognize that the whole question is filled with maddening paradox.  For
instance, those who do not like Walmart often like the notion of raising
minimum wage.  Furthermore, it isn't clear it makes it harder on the
competitors, for there is still a few merchants who pay their workers more
than minimum anyway in exchange for their actually having to know something
about the products on their shelves.  By raising minimum wage, the prices at
Walmart would need to be raised proportionally to cover the additional cost,
and so would approach the prices at the boutique stores, giving the
advantage to the latter.  

I am a silent witness to a wild local battle, specifically about Walmart.
The local Wallyworld proposes expanding dramatically, carry groceries and so
forth.  I see both good and bad in this, and yes I do shop at WalMart
personally, completely without shame or ethical reservations.  I recognize
that local merchants will be hurt by it's imposing presence.

Among it's many virtues, if you dress weird enough when shopping there, you
may get the opportunity of being ridiculed by people all over the planet:

http://www.peopleofwalmart.com/

Even if one does not make the website, just seeing how the other proles
dress there causes a geek to feel downright Hollywood in comparison.  It is
like when you go to the retirement home and see all the crippled old people
there, and it casues you feel like some sort of superhuman athlete, only it
is the fashion-related counterpart to that feeling.  

I am hoping that the establishment of a "Super Walmart" will result in
super-weird clothing being donned by the super-proles who trade there.  I
figure derisive laughter is the sincerest form of flattery.  Even if it is
actually negative flattery, it is still sincere.

Regarding my first contention, I do encourage all of you to exercise the
option to not shop at WalMart at every opportunity, for this allows me to
waste less time getting through the checkout line.  Or if you do shop there,
I do urge you to dress like the red underwear lady in the link above.  I
took one look at her and forgot what it was I came there to purchase.

spike






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