Excellent points all
cybrvanr--I just read your piece and am in 100% agreement.
You can't 100% blame just Wal-Mart, you have to blame us, the consumer.
I got into a pretty ratty argument on a conservative website with a gal who was so pro-WalMart you'd think she was on their payroll. She practically gushed like WalMart was a boyfriend. When I explained to her points similar to yours, she basically called me a left wing, union loving liberal. Interesting, as I am a middle of the road conservative. She called me an idiot for shopping at Nordstrom. (Love their fitted shirts, so shoot me). I think I pushed her to madness when I suggested that perhaps she was just jealous of people who have enough funds to shop at Nordstroms whenever they please, and who have enough going on in their lives that going to WalMart is not the week's big event. She practically wigged out.
What I find truly amazing is that people frequent these stores, and then they are irritated that there are not 5 people on every aisle just waiting to help them with their lousy $10 purchase.
My best friend's stepdad has this mentality. He could not believe my garage full of Craftsman tools. He scoffed and would tell me he would buy a whole set of tools for what I would pay for my ratchet set. His stepson (who did not like his stepdad)and I would be working on my car next door while he worked on his, and almost every time he was out there he would be cursing when one of his screwdrivers broke or his socket would break. I have had my base tool set for 25 years now and have broke only one socket, which I used as an impact socket and it was not designed for that. They last and last and are guaranteed forever. He just keeps buying more, wrecking his work, smashing his knuckles, and wasting money. Yet I am foolish for buying premium tools (and there are even better tools out there than mine, but that is another issue).
Unfortunately, his mind set has spread. It IS a McMansion mindset...that is, the PERCEPTION of value vs. value. A million dollar house with not even a space for a swingset for your kids is no value in my book. Filling it up with garbage does not say "you've arrived", it says you're an idiot. Sorry, I don't buy a house with a Spanish Tile roof when you can see that they don't even use plywood between the tiles and the roof frame. Yeah, that's quality.
The interesting thing about this site, is that there are people here of every type, profession, interest, orientation, etc. But we all have some great things in common, we appreciate great design, functionality, quality, and dare I sound juvenile, "neat stuff".
It is an interesting commentary that I can visit store after store and find nothing that is inspiring or fun, and then I can look on this site at someone's beat up old washer project and see what they see...something special and cool that will shortly be again delivering quality and value, and look amazing doing it.