An INTERESTING Wal-Mart story..

[Rosco T.]

had to go out today (this is in west Texas) to get some printable DVD-Blanks... ONLY place that carries MIJ (Made in Japan) Full Face blanks (Maxell) is Wally-World.

I had to go to three different ones to get what I needed (one OOS, one not enough, one for the rest).

In EACH ONE, in the electronic department, they had music videos playing on a monitor over the CD's (fairly loud).

What do you think they had on a loop, IN ALL THREE STORES???

The Dixie Chicks, "Not Ready to Make Nice" !!! And by 'on a loop' it was repeating about ever 10-15 minutes (it was in the play list MORE than once, I stayed at #2 and #3 to make sure... looked like the entire loop was about 40 minutes and it came up three times during that time without others repeating...)

Hmmmmmmmmm....

[TomInTib]

1. WalMart knows. Think about it..

WalMart has how many more terrabytes of consumer info than does the content of the 'net?

That is hugely (is that a word? - I have been drinking) interesting.

k&r

[Selatius]

2. Wal-Mart goes for the money; it doesn't give a damn about anything else

If cultural conservatives denounce something but that something happens to be terribly profitable, you can bet Wal-Mart is gonna try and get a slice of the profit. Traditional conservatives be damned; it's the money Wal-Mart is after. Cultural conservatives are nothing more than useful idiots to Wal-Mart's bottom line. Some of the most cutthroat Capitalists owe allegiance to no one, and any alliances made with others are made strictly to gain power. There is no loyalty here.

[kevinbgoode]

3. That's true - I remember the wingnut faux christians were raging

because WalMart was going to carry Brokeback Mountain and had announced it in its list of new releases. . .I believe the company responded that they market to everyone. The American Taliban hates that idea - what about their poor children?

[NuttyFluffers]

4. 3 different stores? isn't that a bit inconvenient? can't order by mail?

did you need it immediately? like, as in mere hours? considering how, um, not dense the city zoning is in west texas isn't that a lot of driving? are you sure you couldn't have been better served purchasing it online/by mail?

considering i calculate wear and tear in my car (even though it's over 100k by now. still repair costs must be calculated into the maintenance of car ownership) along with gas and insurance, i average out an estimate of around $.40 - $.50 per mile. the nearest Wal-Mart to me is 10 miles away, if not more. that's 20 miles roundtrip. making easy math, at best it'd be $10 just to go to 1 Wal-Mart and come back (which can usually cover 2-3 day delivery). calculating making another unnecessary trip, or two, farther away and we get into some serious money that could easily cover Next-Day shipping and more.

and just about anyone with a PO Box or address can get mailed goods. many places accept check, money order, cashier check, or credit card, so it's made pretty convenient. i know i count my pennies, and more importantly my time, and i find that these calculations help me realize what's worth traveling for. i also rarely make errand trips without stacking them to around 3+, and do a single looped circuit, so as to save on effort. just friendly advice from the frugal who likes hassle free errand running. maybe it might serve you next time!
:D

ps: the phone is your friend! i can't tell you how many times i found myself wishing i called in advance to save myself extra effort. the times that i did, scanning the stores in a good 30 mile area, i ended up saving so much time and effort. that and sanity, because i hate traffic. ;)

[Rosco T.]

5. yes, I needed them RIGHT THEN.

had to make a bunch of obscure MST3K's for people I was behind getting things to and they needed to go into the monday morning mail.

(and I already ordered 300 TY's from Rima so I don't get caught again).

and I made the great polar route to get them, 20 miles total round trip.

[high density]

6. I'm glad I'm not the only one who looks for "MIJ" DVD-R/DVD+Rs...

Lately I've been buying Taiwanese ones out of necessity (i.e. I can't find Japanese ones around here.) At least I haven't had to try any of the Indian ones yet. :scared:

[Rosco T.]

7. got to www.rima.com

Tayio Yuden. Period. Best prices around and guaranteed genuine (Rima is a direct distributor/importer)