It depends on who shops at each particular WalMart location. In San Diego, there were WalMarts in the National City and Chula Vista areas that I never went back to due to the vermin who shopped there; they'd let their kids run wild, block aisles with their carts for who knows how long while they loudly jabbered back and forth about whatever. They were not oblivious to their rude behavior, they just didn't give a damn.

There was a WalMart in the Murphy Canyon area that was a joy to shop at; decent, responsible, courteous people who were raised to know right from wrong. Perhaps one of the WalMart locations that you speak of is often filled with two-legged garbage, so the courteous shoppers choose to frequent the other one.

I actually walked through a Wal-Mart the other day.   Nope, still nothing there worth my soul.

.

Spam Code DZ WMD--spins you around until your mass is distracted.

I am all for 2 Super Walmarts in Bakersfield when you consider the growth of Bakersfield.

Bakersfield needs more Wal-Marts. It's a city that can actually support an influx of them. It's not like Bakersfield is losing the mom and pops or it's small town identity due to Wal-Mart.

Various reasons are cited above, and there is more than a little truth in all. I'd also submit our economy is not only so dependent upon consumerism as to need to keep these afloat, but Prop. 13 has also forced municipalities to look increasingly to sales tax revenue as the primary funding mechanism for everything. We've made our bed, folks.

To the point, though: I'd rather have a Super Target. Though if I understand correctly, that's planned to go in within a half mile of the Gosford location. I won't shop at Wal-Mart of any flavor, period, even if it will be within a relatively short walk from my house. Target, yes. Wal-Mart...nope.

Everyone who is anyone knows that Wal-Mart White Lane caters to tweekers and skuzzies, why shouldn’t they move to a more suitable area that serves all the people and move the playing field.

Oh yeah, more WalMart...the US definitely needs more places for the Chinese to sell their cheap crap. And Bakersfield absoutely is lacking rotten neighborhoods, and we need WalMart to create more areas where our gangs, drug dealers and criminals can thrive.

I would not walk into a WalMart to use the bathroom.

To all the folks who say they won't set foot in the door of a Walmart I say  THANK YOU..you make the aisles less crowded and my checkout faster.  Whooohoooo.  I wish more people hated saving money  Walmart that way.  HEH.

Signed  ....just another skuzzie tweeker. 

Being an ex WM employee (in cosmetics) I've gotta say that your kindness,polite,customer service attitude meter  runs a little lean after the umpteenth bottle of not spilled but dumped makeup, the lipsticks tried on wrists, bottles and containers knocked over by children with mothers too busy tearning into packages to watch the little darlings and demands for products not in stock as if we deliberately hid them.    What is it about sanitary napkins that makes people have to rip one open with another sitting right beside it also ripped open?  Why is it ok for children to tear open toy packages and play with the toys before throwing them on the floor?   Walmart associates are CONSTANTLY picking up, straightening, cleaning up spills and trash while shoppers are oblivious to what their children are doing.  Oh wait..that wasn't a child who dumped over a 42 oz McDonalds coke and walked off without telling anyone.  That wasn't a child who dropped a bottle of nail polish and walked away from the broken mess while other people ran their cart over it.

Try 8 hours of that sort of thing and see just how polite you are.  Try smiling until your cheeks hurt at some snotty person telling you to clean up the mess because that's what YOU get paid for.

And before people start trashing the trashy ones..take a good look around...a lot of people with money shop there too.

Oh yeah..and while you're at it..take a run down Targets aisles and compare products.  You'll find both places carry about the same items..and a huge amount of the same brands.  Department managers used to go out comp shopping to make sure like items were pennies lower than Target.  Guess what..Target did the same thing.  Cheap shoddy products?  Take a look at Vons cleaning products and paper goods.  Compare Toys R Us with WM's toys..same brands, different prices.  The clothes are chaper and some cheaply made but that's not all WM sells. 

Shop Where you like.  Spend what you like...but stop criticizing those of us who can't afford to buy a Kitchen Aid mixer at Macys but may be able to afford the same one at WM.  And there are those of us who don't see a purpose in throwing money away just to have the prestige of a Macy's name on our receipt.  If you pick your times to shop you won't even have to wait in line.  I was there yesterday at around noon and there were cashiers stading on the action alley line waiting for customers.

The anti WM mania is absolutely crazy.  And irrational.  Amazing..simply amazing.

people clamor for trendy places like PF Changs.  What was it again about local businesses being hurt by out of town chains?

Nancy being screwed with a high profile name eases the pain with most.

My wife go,s to the major stores @ least once a week and she only buys when the price drops    but     the trouble I see with her not the half off thing    but      the things she has to buy to match.      Save $ 50..00 and spend $ 100.00 to match.

Ron.

Adam..you may be able to afford to be high minded when it comes to shopping for a family..but there are millions who cannot.  As for this statement "Twenty years ago everyone had reasonable health insurance coverage in this country, and businesses had to offer benefit packages that afforded good insurance, retirement and vacation as a way to maintain a quality staff"  I'll have to disagree with you once again.  Until I went to work at WM I never had a single company offer me a paid vacation, personal leave time, or sick pay let alone put money in a 401K plan that they cashed out for me when I quit.  I never paid a dime into it.  I never had a company give me a bonus of almost 900 dollars two years running either.  Granted, a lot of those benefits have gone by the wayside as WM adopted the long standing "McDonalds" policy of hiring most people on a part time basis to avoid paying benefits.    I'm also now told that a local store has gotten rid of a lot of their long term full time workers and my guess is that the current manager is trying to increase the bottom line at the workers expense.  The previous manager always contributed to local charities and was always coming up with ways to help  the community.

Pointing out a companies good points isn't necessarily supporting or defending a company.  I've stated before that I can't speak to other stores in other areas as to WM's good or bad points, I can only share MY experience with you folks.

Outsourcing has been going on for as long as I can remember so WM hardly lead the parade in that area.  Certain car parts, tools, and clothing have always (in my memory) been made in Japan, India or China...it's nothing new..just more prevelent.

Target is cleaner?  Ever wonder why that is?  Ever push a cart through Targets aisles during Christmas?   I've been there when you could shoot a cannon down the center of the store and not hit anyone.  (slight exageration for a visual)  When you have masses of people crowding a store, and you have the gimme complex going on, you're going to have people trash the store.  If you go to Macy's or one of the more expensive stores you won't find the clutter partly because fewer people can offord to shop there.  I was in Sugardaddy's one day and there was only one other customer in the store the whole time I was there.  That must have been a rough day for the clerk.  The ONE clerk.

Another thing that drives me bonkers is people saying that small stores pay good wages with benefits.   That's not true in most cases.  Small business owners can't afford to supply people with paid vacations, paid sick leave, 401 matches, or many of the other benefits places like WM and Target can provide.

I've worked in a lot of businesses in my lifetime in a variety of types or services and I can honestly say that I never had better benefits than I had at WM.  My current job has a few bennies I didn't have at WM but the only significant one is that I make a lot more money now.  WM supported me financialy while I was able to go back to school and get into a field of my choosing.  I was never going to get rich there but I did "OK."

I'm not supporting or defending WM..just presenting facts.