A CUNY (City University of New York) student recently discovered that Major retailers H & M and Wal-mart were destroying unsold clothing. Graduate student Cynthia Magnus took note of street vagrants in New York’s City’s fashion district sorting through trash bags of clothing. Upon examining one of the discarded bags she discovered unworn merchandise with store tags. The garments appeared to have been intentionally ruined. There were shirts with holes punched through them, poly fill coats with razor slashes and gloves with the fingers cut off.
Ms. Magnus attempted to contact H & M, but received no reply. When the NY Times began making inquiries they were told by H & M that this was not normal procedure and would not happen again. A Wal-Mart spokesperson indicated that the company typically donates unsold clothing to charity and would investigate to see what actually occurred at their midtown Manhattan location.
Having worked for a major retailer, I can tell you first hand, many are reluctant to release unsold merchandise into the local community. One concern is that some beneficiaries will attempt to return the merchandise to the store for a refund or store credit. Another point of contention is that each garment given away represents one less potential sale for the business. Retailers would much rather charitable organizations purchase their product, as direct sales contribute more to the bottom line than tax deductions from donations.
The laws of supply and demand function very well in our capitalist society. Over supply decreases demand. This is the same principle behind crop subsidies in the farm industry.
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~ Mahatma Ghandi
Now, in the current Depression (even though the Right Wing-controlled media insists on calling it "the Recession", one of the definitions of "Depression" is an unemployment rate of 10% which we surpassed some time ago!) we see the inevitable "consolidation of capital", one of the hallmarks of a depression. Soon, as more and more businesses go under, a few large ones will survive such as Wal-Mart and ExxonMobil and a few others. Pretty funny that one of the major criticisms of the former Soviet Union was the fact that consumers had such few choices among products and stores. Now, here in the USA, it will be only Wal-Mart, at least if things continue as they are now.
And how many Americans could even define "capitalism", the economic system they supposedly live with? How many know that capitalism includes depression, recession, unemployment, poverty, inflation, and deflation? Not many in my experience!!
And in our "great nation" the "almighty dollar" rules? Where the hell have you been?! Capitalism is a system that cares ONLY for profit, not children or the poor it creates nor any living thing, plant, animal, or human, if such can be exploited for profit!
Personally, I think brainwashed, unthinking, unquestioning Americans are going to get exactly what they deserve!! Furthermore, this nation is proving once and for all that brainwashing citizens from birth to believe they live in the "greatest nation on earth", no matter what the evidence to the contrary, and despite the fact that the wealthy and the Right Wing are deliberately reducing this nation to Third World status, most Americans will never question being reduced to poverty and permanent unemployment which means no tax revenues for education or other services, their pensions and investments now lost, their houses now worthless.
Tyranny takes many forms, but brainwashing seems to be the least messy, the easiest, the simplest, the cleanest means of controlling people. I refer readers to my earlier series of posts on Americans being the most controlled population in the world and don't even know it!!
What a country!!!
I admire your passion. Your assessment that the power brokers are not even playing by their own rules is spot on.
In the futuristic dystopia “Demolition Man” Sylvester Stallone asks if there is anything else on the menu other than Taco Bell. Sandra Bullock responds that they all that is left.
Many of our industries are now being controlled by behemoth organizations or international conglomerates that leverage their size to drive out competition and control the market. Our fate rests in their hands.
Dennis –
I did not know about milk being dumped during the great depression, but it certainly fits the pattern.
BTW, not all Americans are brain-washed. ;o)
The complacent and once comfortable middle class is now reaping the benefits of our economic system. Soon there will be few who can buy much of anything, and fewer who will be deemed worthy of existence.
We have more laws, more law enforcement agencies, more repression than we will ever admit. It is all to control us and rule us with fear. There is always the next scare to keep us distracted and uninformed.
Hopefully more stories like this will wake people up out of their pipe dream of "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. We are nothing but accomplices in the scheme of things.
Your point is well taken. Actions often speak louder than words.
Rainee –
Thanks for your input. As the polarization of wealth continues and the new world order begins to take shape, complacency is our enemy.