Latest Liberal Crusade - Why Wal-Mart Should Pay More

RealClearPolitics ^ | May 10, 2005 | Thomas Sowell

[The Great Yazoo]

It would be devastating to the egos of the intelligentsia to realize, much less admit, that businesses have done more to reduce poverty than all the intellectuals put together. Ultimately it is only wealth that can reduce poverty and most of the intelligentsia have no interest whatever in finding out what actions and policies increase the national wealth.

Every penny of wages paid by Wal-Mart comes from the prices paid by Wal-Mart shoppers. So, forcing Wal-Mart to pay more for labor benefits Wal-Mart employees on the backs of Wal-Mart's customers. This, the intelligensia can stomach, because the intelligensia is over-represented in the ten percent of Americans who did not shop at Wal-Mart last year.

[lepton]

everything that anyone does in the U.S. can be done cheaper elsewhere (manufacturing, information technology, services industries, etc.).

That is not true by any means. In the overwhelming number of situations, American workers produce far more in value than they cost, and further, they produce multiple times as much in a convenient manner as do these "low cost" places - thus the unit cost is lower.

[lepton]

but since y2k i would venture to guess you'd be surprised at the number of projects that have been lost to $5-10/hr india developers. back in 2001 everyone thought it would be unmanagable fad but the fad isn't over yet.

It has certainly become a stable pool - one which is becoming more proficient. The thing is, that the pool has mostly been hired now and is experiencing wage pressure as businesses are beginning to have to actually compete for their services.

[VRWCmember]

They certainly don't feel any "obligation" to learn economics, out of a sense of "social responsibility," much less because of any "social contract" requiring them to know what they are talking about before spouting off with self-righteous rhetoric.

Whoa! If these "scholars" can actually read and comprehend this, that would really sting. Better put some ice on that.