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Money talks

What does Wal-Mart do when a community tells them they are not welcome? Well according to The Miami Herald, they hire an ad firm (coincidentally one of President Bush's ad firms) and blitz the community with campaign literature until they get their way:

Wal-Mart is using glossy color brochures in an effort to persuade hostile neighbors that they really do want to live next to a new Supercenter at the corner of Miramar Parkway and Flamingo Road.

The brochures were custom-made for Miramar by a Texas firm that has also worked on ad campaigns for President Bush.

So far in Miramar, hundreds of residents have turned out at city meetings to protest the proposed store, saying it would bring more traffic, and even attract crime and hurt property values. Homeowners have started an anti-Wal-Mart website and held a protest at the proposed site.

But the company's mailers tell a different story, promising a stronger tax-base, good jobs with benefits, and one-stop shopping for everything from groceries to garden supplies.

The glossy fliers show a smiling mother and daughter hugging, as the child's ponytail swings in the sunshine. An African-American father and son fishing. A senior couple embracing as the wife holds a flowerpot.

Wal-Mart will stop at nothing to continue their expansion. It was witnessed in Flagstaff, AZ, where Wal-Mart dumped hundreds of thousands of dollars into a campaign, which included using Nazi imagery to denigrate their opponents. And now it is seen in Florida. Arm yourselves with the facts, your community could be next.

Posted by Brendan - July 8, 2005 09:30 AM - In Your Community