Newsletter ArchiveSUBJECT:Thanksgiving - Will Wal-Mart Rule The World? The Internet 800 Directory - http://www.inter800.com The Internet 800 Directory Newsletter This issue is for Friday, November 07, 2003 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Table of Contents 01. Thanksgiving 02. Will Wal-Mart Rule The World? 03. Tip Of The Week --------------------------------------------------------------------- *01 Thanksgiving Today it seems that everybody is afraid of what tomorrow is going to bring. It’s really no surprise; after all we are overloaded with negative news stories. Day after day we are exposed to bad news. If there is none locally, then there must be some nationally, and if that fails, the world has an excess of sorrow to share. Please don’t misunderstand me, I not saying we shouldn’t stay informed. However, to be so focused on the negative just can’t be healthy. This is why a holiday like Thanksgiving can be so important not only to us as people, but also as Americans. We need to stop and count our blessings, to review the other side of the balance sheet. We live in the richest most powerful country in the world, and that fact alone provide most of us with a very good standard of living. In April of 1789 George Washington takes the oath of office and begins his presidency. Our country was teeming with problems, we had won the war but many wondered if we could survive the peace. In November of this same year Washington sets in motion the tradition of Thanksgiving. His troubles were many, yet he understood the value of counting your blessing to gain perspective. Here is George Washington’s Thanksgiving Proclamation from 1789. ---------------------------- George Washington's 1789 Thanksgiving Proclamation Whereas it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor; and Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me to "recommend to the people of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness:" Now, therefore, I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day of November next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed; for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enable to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and, in general, for all the great and various favors which He has been pleased to confer upon us. And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions; to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a blessing to all the people by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have shown kindness to us), and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as He alone knows to be best. ---------------------------- Have a GREAT THANKSGIVING!! Chuck Arning at chuck@inter800.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- A TollFreeISP™ account gives you the freedom to get online from any of our local or toll free worldwide locations, all with just a click of the mouse. Global roaming at your finger tips. Visit TollFreeISP at http://www.tollfreeisp.net/lk.asp?sn=inet800 --------------------------------------------------------------------- *02 Will Wal-Mart Rule the World? In a fascinating article in the December 2003 issue of Fast Company magazine, it is described how by dealing with Wal-Mart, based on their demands, pricing and procedures, can literally drive a company out of business. It also details how their policies affect the economy and job force nationwide, if not worldwide. One must first understand the scope and size of Wal-Mart. It is the world's largest company. It sold $244.5 billion in goods last year, more than 4 times what the next largest retailer, Home Depot, did. Seven and one-half cents of every dollar spent in the US in any store went to the smiley face. One study said that "12% of the economy's productivity gains in the second half of the 1990s could be traced to Wal-Mart alone." So, what's the gripe? First, because of Wal-Mart's premise to bring the lowest possible prices to its customers, the suppliers must cut their prices and, therefore their margins. It suddenly becomes a case of how the egg lady could by them for $.60 per dozen and sell them for $.50 - volume! The classic Vlasic pickle story in the article illustrates that he phenomenal success of selling millions of gallons of pickles at under $3.00 cut Vlasic's profits by millions. Another critical factor is that the same store whose slogan was "Buy America" is forcing its suppliers to suddenly have to turn overseas, especially China, because the price points that were being demanded would not allow the wages necessary to produce the goods in the US. Equally disturbing is that Wal-Mart has the power to either make a company comply, or essentially they will be out of business if they lose the contracts. In fact, in a related article in Information Week, Nov. 10, 2003 issue, they reported that the retailer met with its top 125 suppliers "on its radio-frequency identification mandate, which calls for its top suppliers to use RFID tags on pallets and cases by January 2005." Not only is this costing the companies millions of dollars in implementation, it appears that if one does not do it, he's out. However, as the Fast Company article points out, the companies who successfully do business with Wal-Mart have had to become more efficient and focused, which is a good thing. It has also decidedly benefited the average consumer, but has it undermined other retail communities and basic business itself. In fact, it is sort of lack a form of capitalistically-applied socialism. I would not be surprised to see some adverse reaction as Wal-Mart continues to apply pressure, then the government will probably, perhaps inevitably, get involved. You can read the full articles at: http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/77/walmart.html and http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=1600067 7 Steven Jackson - sjackson@inter800.com Once every second someone searches the Internet 800 Directory looking for someone to supply them with goods or services. Will they find you or your competition? Call 800-299-1879! --------------------------------------------------------------------- Tip of the Week Keyboard Shortcuts for Windows Ctrl-Esc: Display the Start Menu. Ctrl-A: Select all. Alt-Tab: Holding down the Alt key, hit the tab key to cycle through all open programs. Icons are displayed for each open program. When you release both keys, you will activate the currently selected program. Alt-Esc and Alt-Shift-Esc: Shifts forward and backward through all open programs. Ctrl-F6 and Ctrl-Shift-F6: Shifts forward and backward through all the open windows in the currently active program. Shift-Del - Bypasses the Recycle Bin to permanently deletes files. Alt-F4: Terminates the currently active program. Ctrl-F4: Closes the active window in the currently active program. Keyboard Shortcuts for Internet Explorer Alt-D: Activate the Address bar Alt- Banners? Pay-per-click? Why not target your market with links or information placed in relevant content? The Internet 800 Directory Newsletter offers direct access to business people who are interested buyers. Advertising: Information on how to sponsor this publication: Call 800-299-1879 Thanks for taking the time to review our newsletter for this week. If you know of anyone that might benefit from receiving this newsletter, send them to (http://www.inter800.com/news800/ ) where they can subscribe. 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