Compare and contrast: WalMart vs. Federal Government

[natedogg]

Evil Wal-Mart strikes again:

From
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...090501598.html
[ QUOTE ]
During a tearful interview on "Meet the Press" on Sunday, Aaron F. Broussard, president of Jefferson Parish in the New Orleans suburbs, told host Tim Russert that if "the American government would have responded like Wal-Mart has responded, we wouldn't be in this crisis."

"They were ready before FEMA was," he said.

[/ QUOTE ]

and
[ QUOTE ]

In Brookhaven, Miss. ... the company had 45 trucks full of goods loaded and ready for delivery before Katrina made landfall.


[/ QUOTE ]

and from
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...0300253_2.html

[ QUOTE ]
Wal-Mart said it would establish mini-Wal-Mart stores in the ravaged region to give out clothing, diapers, baby wipes, food, baby formula, toothbrushes, bedding and water to people in need. The company also said it would provide food, clothing, shelter and money to employees who have been dislocated by the storm.

[/ QUOTE ]

Emphasis on "give" was mine.

From http://www.walmartfacts.com/communit...e.aspx?id=1331

# Cash donated directly by Wal-Mart: $17 million
# Merchandise donated by Wal-Mart: $3 million shelters and command centers.
# Financial aid given from Wal-Mart to associates: $3.6 million in cash and growing.
# Walton Family Foundation giving: $15 million in additional assistance
#Emergency Prescriptions Filled Free for Evacuees With No Money

This is just one company, and many others are giving even more. This doesn't even count the private donations of individuals to Red Cross etc. which keep growing.

I'm almost to the point where I think we don't need any government action at all for disaster mitigation and certainly not for relief.

Forty five trucks loaded and ready BEFORE the hurricane even hit.

What exactly do we need FEMA for? It's not just that our government charged us a fortune and failed to deliver this one time. This happened yet again. Time and time again our bloated incompetent government has failed us. It's not enough to idealize the perfect centrally-managed government program and hope that smart, competent selfless people will man it. That will never happen.

The only alternative, which is the one we are now stuck with, is to place our lives and fortunes in the hands of venal stupid careerists who are at best uninterested in our well being and often they are flat-out actively trying to kill us if you ask me.

And those fools who want to blame small government influence for the latest catastrophe are living in bizarro world. Our government is bigger and spends more and does more than ever before.

natedogg

[FishHooks]

Go Wal-Mart!!! Kudos to them on this effort and being a great capitalistic company.

[scalf]

[img]/images/graemlins/blush.gif[/img] rob walton; who also is a proud fighting scot; has always been very generous; wal mart routinely stocks it's store by predictions: i.e. heavy rain; you'll see extra supplies of galoshes and raincoats at the wal mart afflicted area...

cold temps: you'll see extra sweaters and coats for sale at the apprpriate store; yet people discriminate against this fine company;

amazing

escape from freedom

big brother will save me; regardless of time-after-time the facts show big brother keeps appropriate help from getting to the correct spot..

jmho

gl

[img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]

[mackthefork]

This just reminded me, a few weeks back I saw the Wall Mart episode of South Park again, it's just too funny, anyone who hasn't seen this is missing some funny [censored].

Mack

[Meech]

Almost like direct-assistance from the Chinese. :P

[ptmusic]

[ QUOTE ]
This just reminded me, a few weeks back I saw the Wall Mart episode of South Park again, it's just too funny, anyone who hasn't seen this is missing some funny [censored].

Mack

[/ QUOTE ]

"Perhaps you speak too much sir...."

-ptmusic

[sirio11]

I understand your point Nate, talking about the response to the disaster, but what about how to prevent it. Could Wal-Mart or any other private company for that matter have done something to prevent the disaster?

[ QUOTE ]
Go Wal-Mart!!! Kudos to them on this effort and being a great capitalistic company.

[/ QUOTE ]

First time I've ever agreed with a FishHooks post.

[lehighguy]

If a private company was given a contract to service the levies and the taxes were drawn from a seperate pool then general revenues. Then that company could be held liable for damages, and as a result would have made sure they wouldn't break. Since the government can't be held liable no one really cared and they rolled the dice. It's clear that money in the army corps of engineers budget got misallocated, in no small part due to efforts by the senator from lousiana.

[elwoodblues]

Companies, like what the government, would have conducted a cost-benefit analysis. If the cost of securing the levies to withstand a category 4+ were too great, they wouldn't have done it either - bankruptcy notwithstanding.