"People Who Hate Wal-Mart Hate Success"

Great rant from Greg Gutfield, and so true:

As any Manhattan masseuse will tell you, I love a happy ending. And that's exactly what I've found in this story about angry locals who tried to keep a Wal-Mart out of their town.

In this case, after years of tangling with selfish, poorly informed citizens, Wal-Mart finally took its toys and left, leaving the idiots of Plainfield Township, Pennsylvania, to fend for themselves.

Now, that's not the happy ending. This is: What took Wal-Mart's place was a metal-shredding plant. A massive, recycling noise machine, louder than a freight train and prone to accidental explosions. The citizens now have a monster in their midst -- so, make way for more petitions.

And I love every minute of it!

As you know, Wal-Mart has been an object of spite, usually from fools too cowardly to admit that their bile has less to do with the store than with their own insignificance. People who hate Wal-Mart really hate the success that's eluded them. As for the attacks on Wal-Mart from elitist media hacks — that's bigotry, for they assume you must be genetic trash to shop there.

Fact is, Wal-Mart is just a symbol of America — a successful phenomenon that brings you what you need cheaply. But to its opposition, it's the daddy that never hugged them -- poor things.

So, Plainfield got what was coming. I hope every night they go to bed hearing the mangling of metal, thinking, "If only a Wal-Mart was nearby, we could buy earplugs."

And if you disagree with me, then you sir are worse than Hitler.

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Our Local Urbanistas Versus Wal-Mart

Rabid Wal-Mart hater Tom Hansen sent select Venom 2020 subscribers a link to a website containing essays by Richard Carson, a professional urban planner in Oregon. For some reason, Carson's essay titled "The Urbanistas versus Big-Box Retail" was not on Hansen's list of favorites.

Carson totally skewers all the big-box bashers like Hansen, No Super Wal-Mart, PARD, et. al.

Some great quotes:

Unfortunately, too often people blur the line between land use issues and social issues. These days big-box is intentionally being associated with "suburban sprawl". But the illusion created by special-interest propaganda is the real issue. It is not necessarily about the economic or social reality. What we really have going on is the usual symbolism over substance tactics that are typical of many anti-growth organizations. Americans believe in a free citizenry and a free market economy. However, the Urbanistas do not believe in a free market when it comes to big box retail and they want citizens to live in their urban design fantasy land. They believe Americans need to be forced to live Potemkin villages reminiscent of the movie "The Truman Show".

In order for these social engineers to attract financial supporters and sympathetic voters, they use pejorative labels like "sprawl," "big-box" or "McMansion" and "category killers". They intentional play on the average citizen's distrust of corporate American and their tendency to say "Not in my back yard" in the face of any community change.

[snip]

In my opinion, the "Urbanistas" need to start dealing with the retail reality that Main Street America literally buys into big-box retail, and dump their negative rhetoric and their unsellable political agenda. May be they should take a tip from big-box retail and actually give American citizens something they actually care about. Like a political agenda that has an actual tangible value.

Al Norman has taken that "special-interest propaganda" nationwide and makes a nice living off of it.

Read the whole thing and learn the true agenda behind our "neighborhood activists."

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Say What?

Obviously, the fact that they've taken this long shows that they're taking the case extremely seriously and it's a lot more complicated than those who blindly support Wal-Mart would have you believe

- Chris Lupke, "Decision expected soon in Wal-Mart appeal," Moscow-Pullman Daily News, May 31, 2008

[TV] Reed agreed, adding that the group was optimistic about its chances against the "monopolizing" Wal-Mart corporation and the city's weak laws until the conservative three-judge panel was selected to hear its most recent appeal

- "PARD mulls appeal to higher court," Moscow-Pullman Daily News, June 6, 2008

Scapegoating: A powerful and destructive phenomenon wherein a person or group of people are blamed for whatever is wrong, Encyclopedia of Psychology

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"Time to put Wal-Mart debate to rest"

Nice editorial by Murf Raquet on behalf of the editorial board in today's Moscow-Pullman Daily News. Of course, PARD ignored a duplicate Daily News editorial to give up back in December 2006, so there is no reason to believe they will heed this one:

Two things became apparent Tuesday.

Hillary Clinton should concede defeat to Barack Obama, and the anti-Wal-Mart folks need to stop their attempts to halt the construction of a super center in Pullman.

For Clinton it's politics, and she'll wait for the last possible moment to make the speech no candidate wants to make.

As for Wal-Mart, it is more than apparent the giant retailer and the city of Pullman went through all the right hoops for the past several years.

The idea of a Wal-Mart Supercenter in Pullman has been the center of a vocal, and at times personal, debate since October 2004.

Wal-Mart wanted to locate one of its megastores on acreage along Bishop Boulevard and proceeded to comply with the demands of the building and environmental codes. All the steps were OK'd by officials and the courts.

The anti-Wal-Mart folks took myriad exceptions to a super center in Pullman, many based on their interpretations of the city's zoning code. Some protested Wal-Mart's business practices.

Despite all the rhetoric and appeals, Wal-Mart's right to locate in Pullman has been upheld. The latest jurisdiction to do so was the Washington Division III Court of Appeals on Tuesday.

The anti-Wal-Mart folks have more options for appeals including the state Supreme Court, but the writing is on the wall. They put up a good fight, but a reality check would be useful.

The Wal-Mart project has been a divisive issue for several years. In that time it has been discussed in meetings, coffee shops, letters to the editor and blogs.

The debate has run its course.

The city went through two election cycles with pro and con Wal-Mart candidates in the City Council races. No anti-Wal-Mart candidate won a seat. That's as telling as the court system's continual support of the retailer's right to locate in Pullman.

Fighting something others want is an American tradition, but with that tradition comes the knowledge of when to quit.

It's time.

Say What?

We felt we did win some things with the mitigations regarding traffic, but we felt they didn’t go far enough to temper the effect of a massive super center on traffic.

- Chris Lupke, "PARD to Appeal Wal-Mart Ruling," Moscow-Pullman Daily News, March 16, 2006

In fact, our challenge resulted in Wal-Mart being forced to build an additional stoplight on Bishop Blvd. at an approximate cost to them of $400,000

- Chris Lupke, comment at Dnews.com, 6/4/2008

BWHAHAHAHAHA!!! Talk about revisionist history. But as I've said before, it's too late for PARD to claim victory now.

Yep, traffic is PARD's new mantra. They are transforming before our eyes yet again (before they were fighting for the workers, the small businesses, etc.) You can see where this current tack is heading. "We won a traffic light, saved the taxpayer's money, blah, blah, blah." But did they?

As a result of the Hearing Examiner's Decision, Wal-Mart agree to an increased contribution (anywhere from 21% to 100%) for a traffic light at Grand and Fairmount that was already planned. Wal-Mart also agreed to install a traffic light at Bishop and Pro Mall Blvd. if they addded a gas station. But is Wal-Mart going to build one now at this time of historically high gas prices? No way.

$400,000, Lu Laoshi? Not quite. Yet more lies from the people who will do or say anything to stop Wal-Mart (remember the one about how city attorney Laura McAloon was on retainer?)

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"Family requests rezone in east Moscow; Thompsons were denied request in 2006; hope to have 38 acres rezoned for motor business"

Whitman County really doesn't need an economic development advocate thanks to Mark Solomon and his fellow Wal-Mart Derangement Syndrome sufferers who see the "Bentonville Bully" behind every bush. I'm sure the No Super WalMart group feels that Wal-Mart is back in play in Moscow after last November's election. They could be right....

From Tuesday's Moscow-Pullman Daily News:

The Thompson Family LP will ask the Moscow Planning and Zoning Commission on Wednesday to rezone a large chunk of its property along Mountain View Road from agriculture/forestry to motor business.

Thompson Family attorney Susan Wilson said no businesses "are knocking at the door" to locate on the 38-acre piece of land between the Troy Highway and Palouse River Drive. The family plans to continue farming the land until a suitable development opportunity comes up.

The Thompson Family attempted to have a larger parcel encompassing the land rezoned in 2006. The controversial request stemmed from Wal-Mart's plans to build a super center on the 77-acre parcel and met resistance from the Moscow No Super Wal-Mart group.

The City Council at the time decided to reject the rezone. Then-City Councilmen Bob Stout, Aaron Ament and John Dickinson said the parcel was too large.

Wilson said the smaller size of this request is in response to the council's concerns.

Councilmen John Weber and Bill Lambert, who still are on the council, voted in favor of the 2006 rezone request.

No Super Wal-Mart member Mark Solomon said community members are not pleased with the new rezone request.

"I know there are people who are as concerned now as before as to whether or not that's an appropriate site for motor business," he said.

He said any motor business development on that side of town will affect traffic flows and downtown Moscow businesses, and also could block the expansion of adjacent Alturas Research and Technology Park.

The Thompson Family wrote in its new application for rezone that the motor business designation would fit with the city's comprehensive plan. The plan designates the area for "extensive commercial" uses.

The application also states that the rezone would meet the plan's goal of economic development. Wilson said the family wants to open up a motor business area to compete with the proposed 714,000-square-foot Hawkins Companies development, just across the state line in Whitman County.

She said Moscow needs an area to attract large businesses from within and entice businesses to come to Moscow "rather than just having Hawkins take the commercial development away from the state of Idaho and Moscow."

The Thompson Family's application packet includes the minutes of a meeting with the property's neighbors. Sue and Ken Chamberlin and Karen and David Douglas were "very supportive" of the rezone, according to the minutes.

The neighbors asked whether any businesses were lined up to use the property and said they would rather see commercial development than multi-family housing. The Chamberlins and Douglases did not return calls seeking further comment.

"Hawkins planning to break ground; Company to begin work on development as soon as land dries out"

When that first shovel of dirt is turned at the Hawkins development, things will change on the Palouse forever. We will finally break the iron grip of the anti-growthniks.

Hawkins represents all that they despise: "sprawl," big boxes, chain stores, automobile-based development, crass consumerism, and most of all, capitalism and free enterprise. But the leftists in both Pullman and Moscow were infected with Wal-Mart Derangement Syndrome and Hawkins slipped in under the radar. Queen Nancy's single-handed efforts to stop Hawkins were easily undone by a single election.

Now, a shopping devleopment three times the size of a Wal-Mart Supercenter is going in and there is nothing anyone can do to stop it. What a great feeling! I only hope I can be there for the groundbreaking.

From today's Moscow-Pullman Daily News:

Hawkins Companies officials expect to begin moving dirt for its 714,000-square-foot retail development just west of the Idaho border by the start of summer.

"The target is June 1, but if the land dries out it will be before that," company spokesman Jeff DeVoe said. "We've got two years of moving dirt ahead, so we've got to get moving."

A ground-breaking ceremony will take place once construction equipment has arrived on site, but an exact date has not been set, DeVoe said.

Several national retail chains have expressed interest in locating at the shopping center, even in the face of a struggling national economy. However, only one tenant - Lowe's - has formally committed to date.

DeVoe said the company expects the Lowe's store to be open in late summer or early fall 2009.

DeVoe said Hawkins doesn't anticipate any issues arising that could derail the project, considering water has been secured and a deal has been reached with Whitman County to finance public infrastructure for the development.

"At this point I don't think so," DeVoe said. "We are sitting ready to go."

Whitman County Commissioner Michael Largent expressed appreciation for Hawkins and its commitment to locating in the county.

"I am very pleased. This is a culmination of a long process," Largent said. "The Hawkins group and Jeff DeVoe worked very hard to bring this project ahead.

"We are very happy to see the project proceeding."

The county will benefit directly from the development in the form of increased sales and property taxes, and indirectly from other developers planning to follow in Hawkins' footsteps. Largent said Moscow business owner Travis Wambeke - who plans to develop a 15-acre business park on Airport Road - indicated his decision to locate in the Moscow-Pullman corridor was influenced by Hawkins.

"I don't think Hawkins is the end of the story," Largent said. "We are excited about the economic development and other opportunities this will bring."