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Leo Goes To Wal-Mart!

By Leocthasme

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Are You Kiddin’?

Monday, October 31, 2005, Pecos, Texas

Noteworthy and newsworthy, this date and this town in West Texas.  As usual the West Texas Wind was howling, doing its best to discourage anyone from standing on a wide open spaces corner in a little town in West Texas.  But then there is always someone to defy nature.  And, the someone, or some ones were three dedicated people from the land of howling winds and blowing sands doing their thing and making their point.  And what was their point?  They were just trying to tell the folks in a little town in West Texas, that Wal-Mart just ain’t doin’ right by ‘em.

And this picture should give you an idea of West Texas.  This is on the way to Pecos, on I-20.  Just miles of miles of nothing but miles and miles.  Well yes there is scenery, do you see all that flat land full of sand and sage.

Well, so much for the 40 some odd miles to our destination.   An uneventful sojourn.  Next stop Wal-Mart.   And here it is our target; excuse me, no pun intended there.  Not the biggest Wal-Mart ever encountered, but then we are not in a big town either.  Keep an eye on the tall banner pole at the beginning of the drive way, more about that as we go along.  And, not much activity in that parking lot either for 10 o-clock on a Monday morning.  We hope things pick up for our ‘Candy Sale’.  We may rethink that a bit, but we do need some traffic.

 

 

 

And that is me on the right, which should be obvious, only Leo C. would go to Wal-Mart in his Union Attire. The shirt says SEIU the cap says Local 1. All who know me also know that I always make a statement, by mouth and by dress.

Well let’s get to work now that we are here.  We set up our work table at the end of the driveway.  And got everything ready for our solicitations.  That’s me with the flyers in hand and  a candy and collection bucket on my arm.  And I am ready go.   

 

 

 

 

 

 

BUT HOLD IT!   Our first customer is not who we expected.  I am pleading my case there.  Seems Wal-Mart got the word as soon as we arrived, and my obvious dress code wasn’t to their standards, and wanted no part of us on ‘their’ property. 

And that is where it got funny.  Do you see those pretty trees (won’t see many in West Texas) behind the police car?  And that wide sidewalk along the roadway?  Everybody knows Wal-Mart demands tax breaks, and easements, and this, and that, and of course they wanted a nice picturesque walkway in front of their store.  Well, God Bless Wal-Mart, they got everything that they wanted, the state, county, city and whatever, gave them tax breaks, easements, and by golly they built that walkway, and planted the trees, and the county or state workers water those trees so that they will grow in West Texas sand in front of Wal-Mart’s lot, and dressed up the front of Wal-Mart's lot, just so they would be happy campers.  But, the front of Wal-Mart’s lot ends at about the  beginning of all those pretty trees and walkway and if you look at our set up we made sure we were on that pretty, state, county, and municipal property, and surely not on Wal-Mart’s.  Well, the County Mounties decided we weren’t on Wal-Mart property either.  Of course, I did not offer them any candy, thus avoiding the possibility of bribing an officer of the law, however I  did give them each a flyer and suggested they send mom and the kids by for some goodies.

 

 

 

 

Well, we finally got to work and here are some snaps of me catching the Wal-Mart shoppers coming and going.

 

 

 

 

                                                                             

And speaking of flyers,  Mary and Bob looked over the parking lot before we left to see that there was no litter.  And by golly there wasn’t.  Not one scrap of evidence that we were there.  I suppose everybody hung on to their flyers just to check out my gift of gab..  But, do you remember me saying something about those light and banner poles at the front of the driveway?  Well look back at that first picture of the parking lot and observe that pole.  Nothing in front of it, right?

         

Now look here. Do you see those trash cans on each side of the drive next to those poles?  Wasn’t long after we started passing out those flyers that one of the employees placed those trash cans at the end of their drive so that all those flyers could be deposited in Wal-Mart’s ‘proper place’ for publicity not particularly pleasing. 

Anyway, when we left, as I said we looked over the lot, no mess,  and in the cans, not one deposit.  Our flyers went home with the candy. 

And did you notice, not many more cars in that lot in the afternoon as when we came in the morning.  Are we doing some good here?  Let’s hope.                           


For additional info on the candy "sales" to raise money to help Wal-Mart employees be able to get reasonable health care, check out the following link: Wakeup WalMart.com


 

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Reader Comments

Name: Yopo Email: Unlisted
Comment: Bravo, Leo! I saw on the news yesterday (Nov. 1) that Wal-Mart is taking a new approach to cutting employee health-care costs: A leaked 27-page corporate memo outlines a plan to weed out current older workers, as well as younger workers with health issues. New hiring practices will exclude older people who don't have outside health coverage and younger people having hypertension, diabetes, obesity, etc from consideration. On top of that, the Department of Labor recently made a formal promise to Wal-Mart to give them a 15-day advance notice before inspecting any of their stores to determine if they are in violation of child labor laws. This agreement came after the DOL found 85 violations of child labor practices, in which Wal-Mart workers under age 18 were being required to operate dangerous machinery including cardboard bailing machines and chain saws. Presumably with a 15 day advance notice they will have time to hide the kids and any severed body parts. It should be noted that providing advance notice of surprise inspections is not just contrary to common sense, but also to the DOL's own procedural handbook.

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