For example, Timothy Paul is a longtime Pullman resident and downtown merchant. Here's what he had to say about Wal-Mart in today's Moscow-Pullman Daily News:
People who live in Pullman need to be able to buy the things they need in Pullman. This is a huge quality of life fact. Fewer trips to Moscow for Pullman people may also mean less gas consumed and may be better for the environment.Technorati Tags: wal-mart walmart
Wal-Mart was founded in 1962. In 1980, America's share of the world's gross domestic product was 20 percent. Recently that figure was about 29 percent. According to a recent United Nations report, the American worker is the most productive worker in the world. Competition in the American economy and the way American businesses are organized were reasons given in the report for American economic competitiveness.
No other entity has shown the willingness to take the enormous risk and make the tremendous investment required to create a destination location that will keep retail customers in Pullman. Current businesses in Pullman are overwhelmingly not of a kind that will compete directly with a Wal-Mart. In addition, competition keeps business healthy, is good for consumers and is a reason why the U.S. economy is so sound. Competition will ultimately make the Pullman economy far stronger, just as it has done for America.
There is no reason why Pullman taxpayers should continue to subsidize the city of Moscow and the state of Idaho. There is no reason why current business in Pullman should be protected from competition, creating less efficient businesses and higher costs for consumers. If traffic is an issue, then the answer is to upgrade the infrastructure, not to forbid a business from operating.
Wal-Mart has not devastated business in Moscow. Wal-Mart will pay wages competitive in our area for the backgrounds and skills required to do the jobs. One can easily observe that many of those working in the Moscow Wal-Mart appear to be very young.
Timothy Paul
Pullman
3 comments:
The people of Pullman are sick to death of PARD holding Pullman hostage, for our own good. I was away last week and when I returned there was a petition on my desk from the residents of the senior apartment village, Pioneer Center, supporting BREO and Wal-Mart coming to Pullman. I am very appreciative and sad at the same time. PARD is denying Pullman citizens and businesses the chance of engaging in the free-enterprise system. PARD is the big bully on the block, and they are using every legal loophole to frustrate the system and to stroke their own ego's. It's heartbreaking, knowing how many vulnerable people in Pullman that PARD is hurting.
Your words are still ringing very true after today's announcement of PARD finding a way to push back the court date, yet again.
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