No, certainly not. My own preference is to live simply, getting and spending little and putting my energy into creative work. I find that, as little as I like excess and overconsumption, voicing that dislike gives power to people and political tendencies that I consider far more dangerous than overconsumption.
Rich people going on about the crassness of materialism, or spouting ecological pieties, often seem to me to me to be retailing a subtle form of competitive sabotage. I do not β ever β want to be one of those people. I was less reticent when I was younger, until I noticed what I sounded like. Which is a reason I tend to mute any criticisms I have of Walmart. But my esthetic and aspirational standards are those of a comparatively wealthy person even in U.
Well said. I would agree, Don, but the closest Wal-Mart to me is five miles away, and the closest Target is For this sin, Wal-Mart can never be forgiven. Nobody at Walmart is buying a corporate jet, or a tacky McMansion in the suburbs. Is it over consumption if you have a couple extra pairs of pants than you need, or you buy new sheets for your bed every year? What exactly can you buy at Walmart that would count as ostentatious?
Walmart is the antithesis of ostentatious. As to the ambiance, I am confused. On the contrary, I find them surprisingly quiet and cheery especially on holidays. My experience is that the people there are delightful for the most part. I have never, had a problem with customer service either.
The only criticism I think is fair about Walmart is that their stores are a little dirty, and I find their planogramming a bit confusing. Nonetheless, I shop there all the time. I suggest your lack of shopping experience there might have allowed you to be influenced by the snooty types to believe all the nonsense they talk. Chicago tried to stop Walmart from opening a store there for years. Eventually they relented, and Walmart had something like 20, job applicants for a couple of hundred jobs.
