Sam's Choice

[vovat]

Last night, I was listening to NPR, and there was some guy on there talking about consumer culture, or something like that. I didn't hear the whole show, but apparently he was discussing discount stores. One caller asked him how he could say Target and Kmart were basically the same, when Kmarts were all dirty and disorganized. The expert guy then said he hadn't compared Target to Kmart, but to Wal-Mart. While Target probably is the most upscale of the three, I like Kmart a LOT better than Wal-Mart. It's probably partially loyalty on my part, since I've been shopping at Kmart since I was really young (before there WERE any Wal-Marts in my area), and I worked there for a short while back in 2002. I'd say Kmarts vary in quality, and some really ARE dirty, while others are nicer. I don't think I've ever been into a nice-looking Wal-Mart, though. I guess the one in my area is okay, since it's pretty new and all. Overall, though, I find Wal-Mart to be a drearier store than Kmart. It's also typically much more crowded, which is good for the company's bottom line, but doesn't make for a very pleasant shopping experience. That's not to mention that I'm not at all fond of Wal-Mart's "let's bankrupt everybody else" approach. Back in the day, Kmart co-existed with several other discount stores. I'm not sure whether Wal-Mart is more evil than other discount store chains or just luckier, but their rise coincided with a lot of other stores, both discount and otherwise, going out of business. I'd say Wal-Mart is, in and of itself, a good argument against unchecked capitalism. I buy things at Wal-Mart occasionally, and I don't think I'd mind them as much if they'd play fair.

Target really strikes me as being in a different league from Wal-Mart and Kmart. You can buy a lot of the same stuff there, and it's still a discount store, but they seem to be making an effort to make it more upscale than the other two. Notice how Target commercials are full of bright colors and new wave music, while Wal-Mart commercials are more along the lines of "I buy stuff for my eighteen kids at Wal-Mart!" (Well, that, and the ones with that stupid smiley face "rolling back" all the prices by, like, twenty cents.) I'm not sure it necessarily always works out this way, but the image is of Target as the young, hip store, while Wal-Mart is the store of conservative Middle America. I don't think Kmart really has much of an image at all.

Another caller on that NPR show annoyed me by saying something about how September 11th changed the consumer culture. Americans used to try to make themselves happy by buying a bunch of stuff, and it didn't work. Target is a good store because they sold an experience (whatever the hell THAT means). First of all, did September 11th really affect the consumer culture at all? In the immediate aftermath, sure. But I doubt it did anything to make Americans less materialistic overall. The whole "Stuff doesn't make you happy!" argument also bugs me. I mean, it might not raise your overall quality of life, but I'd be lying if I said that getting a new CD or video game has never made me happy. That said, I'm not totally down with the "Go out and buy all the new stuff on the market, even if you don't really want it!" mentality. I just don't think buying stuff is bad in and of itself. So, yeah, that caller bugged me, even if I did agree with her point that Target was usually a more enjoyable shopping experience than other comparable stores.

Speaking of buying stuff at discount stores, Target had Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles on sale, so I bought it. I still need to get a memory card to play it, though. It's a game you can play with more than one player, but I don't know anyone else who'd want to play it with me. Oh, well.


In other news, I got this from jazzsammich and jenhime:

You scored as alternative. You're partially respected for being an individual in a conformist world yet others take you as a radical. You have no place in society because you choose not to belong there - you're the luckiest of them all, even if your parents are completely ashamed of you. Just don't take drugs ok? </td> alternative 79% Middle Class 58% Upper middle Class 58% Lower Class 46% Luxurious Upper Class 38% What Social Status are you? created with QuizFarm.com

There's also this:


The Scottish selkie was a being who appeared to be
a seal, but had the ability to shed their skin
and roam the land in human form. If a human
were to happen upon the discarded seal skin, he
or she could hide it and force the selkie to
marry him or her. However, if the selkie were
to ever find the skin, he or she would
immediately reassume seal form and return to
the sea from whence they came, leaving their
spouse and offspring on land to forever mourn
their loss.

As a selkie, you are a very withdrawn, secretive
and somewhat sad person, and those around you
find you alluring and mystifying. People who
come into your life find it difficult to find
the inner you. You are also curious, but you
enjoy the comforts of home most of all.


Who is your inner Shapeshifter?
brought to you by Quizilla

Comments

[colleenanne.livejournal.com]

I know both you and Beth will disagree with me on this, but I vastly prefer Wal-Mart to Kmart. Kmart does really seem to be dirtier and less well put-together in this area (as it does in WV.) Wal-Mart's stock is shelved better, and everything seems newer and more up-to-date. I really like Target, too, but I go there for things I want to be more stylish, not things like Windex or toilet paper. I think there's only one Kmart left in Lexington, anyhow, while there are three Wal-Marts and two Targets.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

Well, both definitely vary in quality from one location to another. I've been into some pretty nice and pretty lousy Kmarts and Wal-Marts. Actually, if I recall correctly, the first Target I was ever in (which was in Albuquerque) wasn't very nice, but all the other Targets I've been to were. To be fair, the cleanliness of a store usually doesn't depend on the parent company so much as the quality of the custodial staff and how messy the customers are.

[bethje.livejournal.com]

My cousin's friend used to work at the Wal-Mart in Hammonton, and he had to chase vagrants out of the electronics section. They'd try to sleep on the floor there.

VAGRANTS ARE WORSE THAN DUSTY SHAMPOO BOTTLES!!!!!!!!!1111