Do you shop for the lowest prices on the items you buy? What do your shopping habits have to do with the statue of a former first lady in a New York City park? This May 2011 article from the blog Manhattan User’s Guide (MUG) focuses on a monument to Eleanor Roosevelt in Manhattan and projects the voice of Mrs. Roosevelt into a current local debate—whether Walmart should open stores in New York City.
Read it here: MUG “On pins and needles” 5.17.2011
- In our current economic climate, the price of goods and services is not just the most important consideration—it’s the only consideration. What evidence does MUG employ to support the argument that “we must sometimes vote our principles over our pocketbook”?
- This piece, like all of the content of MUG, presumes some familiarity with the issues and events that affect daily life in Manhattan and the rest of New York City. If you are not a New Yorker (or even if you are), what information did you have to infer in order to understand this piece? How relevant do you think the article is for non-New Yorkers? Why?
- MUG uses hyper-links to provide more information about each of the charges made against Wal-Mart (gender discrimination, child labor suits, etc.). Follow each of the links and evaluate the given sources of information. Do you consider the sources reliable? Why or why not? Do you think the sources, taken together, provide breadth and diversity in their points of view? Why or why not?
- The unnamed author of this piece invokes the voice of Eleanor Roosevelt as its “I say.” Based on the information about Mrs. Roosevelt that the article provides, do you think she would have said what is ascribed to her? Why or why not?
- As first lady for many years, Eleanor Roosevelt was an influential figure in the entire nation and beyond, but she was particularly respected and admired in her hometown of New York City. Who are the local heroes in your community? Find a statue or portrait of a historical figure in the places you frequent, and think about what that person might say about an issue of current interest. Write a short essay in which you invoke his or her voice on a contemporary issue.
They Say I Blog 
WalMart, honestly, to me is a life saver. I can go on a huge shopping trip and save so much money than if i shopped at Rite-Aid or CVS. I think it is a go to store, a super saver. I do not see why New York City could not have a WalMart either in the city or around it. A store like that does not make it any less high end than if a stop and shop were present. It shows that the city is being lived in and catered all its inhabitants.
WalMart is a huge chain store and it may have some suits against it. Can you name a store that does not have a person or group saying or taking negative actions against it? I am sure it is quite hard. It is also amazing that Eleanor Roosevelt would go into this store. It shows that WalMart is simply a store that offers quite a bargain and she, like any other person, likes that.
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I personally dont see what the big deal is about Walmart, they’re just like any other large corporation store. The only thing they do differently is buy in bulk which saves them money and when they save, we save. Its a smart buisness plan, especially in a recession, if the Targets and Shopkos of the world bought in bulk just like walmart they’d see a rise in customers and buisness too. Walmart can afford to be a superstore selling things from food to paint to camping gear only because they started with a smart plan and it worked just like they had imagined it.
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In my opinion you are not right. Let’s discuss.
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I consider, that you commit an error. I can defend the position. Write to me in PM, we will discuss.
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Certainly, voting our principles over our pocketbook does sound ideal, but definitely not realistic in this economy. Indeed, Wal-Mart appears to be mistreating their employees; however, I do not believe this is enough to stop the production of a Wal-Mart in New York City. I disagree that the human cost outweighs the benefit people get from Wal-Mart’s low prices. Despite the discrimination, and poor working conditions, Wal-Mart is standing strong. This provides me with two conclusions. One being that Wal-Mart’s “poor” working conditions is not stopping the average person from shopping there. Second, is that although Wal-Mart is criticized for discrimination and unfair wages, they are always full staffed, and have many applications on standby of people who desire to work for them. Ultimately, it is the individuals’ choice where they work, and if Wal-Mart is supplying them with a paycheck in this unfortunate economy, it is, in fact, better than no paycheck at all. It is undeniable the low prices that Wal-Mart offers, so I can easily say that the people of New York City would truly benefit. Of course, it is upsetting to hear how Wal-Mart treats their employees, but nevertheless, they are helping millions of people’s pockets. I suppose the Wal-Mart Corporation is genius in that it has so many critics, yet has even more faithful shoppers. It appears that Wal-Mart is just living the American Dream. In other words, how can I be a true American and oppose capitalism? I simply cannot, so I have no choice but to support them. In addition, I am one of the many college students struggling to make ends meet; I thank Wal-Mart for helping me with their low prices. Therefore, I believe that Wal-Mart will prevail once more, and remain, the Super Wal-Mart.
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