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Comrade Wal-Mart associate!

Gary Sattler — Wed, 20 Dec 2006 10:31:00 EST

Filed under: Good news, Management, Wal-Mart (WMT), Employees

I've noticed that there hasn't been a whole lot of ballyhoo about the communist party setting up its tent in the Chinese branch of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT). I'm thinking that possibly most of you are seeing this turn of events in the same way that I am. Personally I think this is more of a dilution of the classic "red" communism than the rise of collectivism into an American corporation. Even the communist party dialog in this scenario gives hints that capitalism is once again prevailing. Did you doubt that it would?

Jonathan Dong, a Wal-Mart China spokesperson is quoted as saying, "Quite a few of our associates (employees) are party members already, so they have a right to establish branch organizations."

Did you catch that? Here it is in American line item style: "associates ... have a right." Since when did a communist have a right to anything in their party line thinking? Communists have privileges and responsibilities to serve the party's declared objectives. Historically they have no rights... at least not until Wal-Mart and Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) got there.

My apologies to the socialists out there but I'm declaring this one a victory for our side. China is in the hands of supply side, trickle down economics now. The government is instructing the workers to be good, work hard and build their companies. Hmmm, that sounds kind of American to me. Can the time be far off when the Chinese government realizes that they can create greater wealth and power by opening their business structure to increased investment by their public? Does the Chinese government realize that they have finally and completely opened their doors to free enterprise?

This is a situation that we're going to be watching very closely. It was capitalism that finally crushed the USSR and freed the Soviet population. It was capitalism that brought down the Berlin Wall and reunited Germany. It is capitalism that has kept Cuba and the Korean communists at bay. It is capitalism that has kept the Chinese fed.

Let's face it folks, socialist collectivism is gasping for its last breath ... and it's about time.

Comrade Wal-Mart associate! originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 20 Dec 2006 10:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Will nurse-in protests hurt Delta's stock? (And, should I go?)

Sarah Gilbert — Mon, 20 Nov 2006 21:03:00 EST

Filed under: Major Movement, Bad News, Consumer Experience, Scandals, US Airways Group (LCC), Delta Air Lines (DAL)

I'm a breastfeeding mama, my little guy is almost 19 months old and not showing any signs of wanting to wean. I nurse him in public whenever it's required (i.e.: whenever he's tired or fussy and a little warm milk will keep the volume down for a bit). Along with lots of other modern moms, I was pretty peeved when I heard the story of Emily Gillette, escorted off a Freedom Airlines flight because she wouldn't put a blanket over her breastfeeding daughter's head. (After a three-hour delay. At 10 p.m. In the window seat. In the second-to-last row. !!)

Freedom Airlines, which operates a Delta Connection line, is now saying they offered to reboard Emily and family after having a ticket agent come to usher them off the plane -- in an email to me, she disputes that claim, and is even more angry that the airline is calling her a liar (she had already claimed that the airline wouldn't let her fly until the next day).

Tomorrow morning at 10 a.m. local time, nurse-ins are planned at Delta ticket counters in many cities. Although the stock has fallen from the high just-post the US Airways bid, it was up 14 cents, or 11%, to $1.40 today. Will these nurse-ins have much effect on a stock already pummeled with the effects of the company's ongoing bankruptcy? I love that public breastfeeding is becoming a headline-y cause. But do protests like nurse-ins effect the companies against which they are targeted?

Even more importantly, should I go to my local nurse-in at the Portland International Airport? Do protests do anything for the world other than employ photographers and the writers of sensational evening news leadins? Are protests a valuable way to express your power over the economy, or just screaming (angrily, and with really cute babies) into the wind?

Will nurse-in protests hurt Delta's stock? (And, should I go?) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 20 Nov 2006 21:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mamas boycotting Delta over breastfeeding brouhaha

Sarah Gilbert — Wed, 15 Nov 2006 11:37:00 EST

Filed under: Bad News, Consumer Experience, Scandals, US Airways Group (LCC), Delta Air Lines (DAL)

My breastfeeding email lists are buzzing this morning with news of a sweet-looking New Mexico mother, Emily Gillette. She was flying on Freedom Airlines, a Delta Connection provider, and she was breastfeeding her 22-month-old daughter. Do you know about breastfeeding on airplanes? Many mamas like me swear by it; the sucking action keeps babies' ears from popping and there's nothing better to keep a fussy child from crying.

But the flight attendant on Emily's airplane wasn't so pleased, and asked the mom to cover up, notwithstanding the Public Accommodations Act which protects public breastfeeding in Vermont, where the airplane was parked (most U.S. states have similar statutes). When she wouldn't cover the baby's head with a blanket, as the flight attendant insisted, Emily and her husband and daughter were escorted off the airplane by a Delta ticket agent. While Delta did find an alternate flight for the Gillettes and paid for their hotel that night, it's worth noting that the flight from Burlington to New York had already been delayed three hours -- so in one small act, a family was transformed from slightly frustrated customers to the lead on tomorrow's Good Morning America.

Mamas everywhere are incensed. "I wrote a letter to Delta and canceled my flight!" said one working mom. Another said she was "so mad." The buzz at Blogging Baby is intense with many commenters indicating that they're avoiding Delta or airplanes altogether.

You can argue extended breastfeeding all you like but the ramifications for Delta Air Lines, Inc. (OTC:DALRQ) could be interesting, especially given the unsolicited bid by US Airways Group, Inc. (NYSE:LCC). Could the breastfeeding brouhaha put Delta over the edge?

Mamas boycotting Delta over breastfeeding brouhaha originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 15 Nov 2006 11:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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