Another Way: A Tribute to Jdimytai Damour, Trampled Walmart Worker

[emlev]

Several months after The Who concert stampede in Cincinnati, I was traveling outside the U.S. and had the opportunity to go to a very popular performance. A group of us wanted to go. We were told we would have to get in line many hours before the show started, and that each person could only buy two tickets. It sounded like half our group was going to have to wait in line all day long, or we'd have to take shifts or something. But a few of us decided to head down to the box office early in the day to check out the situation.

When we got there, we were surprised to see only a couple of people waiting outside the doors. We approached them to get in line. They said to us, "You're numbers 12, 13 and 14." We had no idea what they were talking about, so they explained:

They were going to leave now. We were to wait until the next people came, tell them they were "15" and so on, and then we could leave. We should return about 30 minutes before the performance, get in line by number, and then we could buy our tickets and go in.

"Come on," we said. "We may be Americans, but we're not stupid. Do you really expect us to believe that?"

They insisted that this was how it was done. They left. We waited a few minutes until others arrived. We told them their numbers. They were clearly expecting this. We left.

When we returned half an hour before the performance, hundreds of people were lined up. We walked to the head of the line, saw the people who'd told us our numbers, saw the people who had arrived after we did in the morning, and got in line between them. Because each "number" was good for two tickets, there were about 25 people ahead of us in line. The box office opened, we got our tickets, and went in.

I had had friends who'd been at The Who concert, though none of them had gotten hurt. I've remained moved by this story ever since, and this week I'm again reminded: there is another way.

What country was I traveling in, you ask?

Cuba.

(edited for better subject line)

[mediaman007]

1. "Greed is Good!" (sarcasm)

[Dangerously Amused]

2. Excellent story! Thanks for sharing it. K&R.

[Lubernaut]

3. Great story!

Thanks for sharing it.

[1776Forever]

4. This shows you there are things to learn from every culture! A more perfect union if we just listen

Thanks!:fistbump:

[sandnsea]

5. That's what those little number machines are for

I don't know why they don't have an employee stand outside and monitor number taking, and then security keep everybody in line when the store opens. It would be nice if our society was as cooperative as you describe, but our culture doesn't encourage that.

[Uben]

6. Wana hear a wonderful Walmart story?

I had to drive in (about 15 miles) to get some items for the wife this morning, around 8:30 am. When I got there, there were about twenty cars in the lot, other than the employees cars at the back of the lot. It was practically deserted! I went early to avoid a crowd, but I still expected store traffic to be heavier than usual.

It is good in respect that people aren't shopping at the right-wing republican Walmart store. Of course, I do not wish any employee to lose his/her job, but if you have to lose one, Walmart is not exactly the cream of the crop. Our Walmart has been going thru hard times lately, dadburn the luck. (he he) We had a casino built nearby that has hired every available employee in the county, and the ones adjacent as well! Since their starting wages are about $3-4/hr more than Walmart and Home depot, and their benefit package is much better, Walmart and Home Depot are having a hard time staffing their stores. Boo friggin hoo!

They have been forced to raise their starting wages to about $10 buck/hr, and I think it must be killing them to have to do it.
The casino has just completed another expansion project and is looking for another 2000 employees, which will certainly syphon off even more of the Walmart employees. I wasn't too happy about the casino being built, but I have to admit, it has been a boon to our economy. I own apartments and rental properties, and for the first time, I am experiencing 100% occupancy rates, with waiting lists!

[madmom]

9. I no longer work at Walmart but when I did, I started at over $10 an hour,.

[dixiegrrrrl]

7. Great story....thank you so much for sharing an "outsie the box" view.

:kick:

[Dis Pater]

8. I guess if we lived in a society where there was a need to find

a way to deal with daily queues and rations this would be an outcome.

Thankfully we are not there yet.

[LibDemAlways]

10. When I went to a Hillary Clinton book signing a few years ago

there was a line of about 100 or so people by the time I arrived early in the AM. Since she was going to sign books for the first 300, I knew I was in. However, within the next couple of hours, a bunch more people showed up whose places had been "saved" by many of the earlybirds and I ended up missing the cut-off. I was pissed and complained to store management that they should have had some sort of numbering system and that the blatent line cutting should not have been allowed. They told me there was nothing they could do. Total bullshit.

Hand each person a number as they arrive and when 300 numbers are gone, that's it. I fail to see what's so hard about that, but apparently something so logical and fair never crossed the minds of the morons who organized that event.

[1monster]

13. The Barnes and Noble in our town gave out numbered, color-coded tickets for

the Harry Potter book parties.

Those who preordered got one color of ticket and those were numbered by the order in which the people arrived in the store.

Those who didn't preorder got a different color ticket and were numbered by the order in which they came into the store.

Preorders went first, ticket numbers 1-25, then 26-50, etc. until all preorders ticket holders had been served.

Then, those who didn't preorder were served in the same numerical order. Everything when very smoothly with people waiting their turn.

There must have been more than 500 people in the store on the night the last book came out; sardines in a can had nothing on how packed that B&N was. But we were out of there within a half hour of midnight minutes and it looked as though everyone would be served and out of there within two to three hours.

The "Take a number and wait your turn method" works well.

[LibDemAlways]

15. Absolutely, and I don't understand why it isn't standard

procedure. First-come, first-served...take a number. If you come too late, too bad.

I'm still pissed about the Hillary signing. It was so unfair. I wrote a letter to her New York office, enclosing the book, explaining what had happened, and asking if I could get my book signed. They returned the book with a stamped signature. Not the same.

[malaise]

11. That's how civilized people behave

Here in Jamaica you'd have been crushed. Lovely story. K & R.

[emlev]

12. Thank you for your responses, all. n/t

[roody]

14. Viva Cuba!

[Canuckistanian]

16. I think "festival seating" was outlawed in Cincinnati after the Who concert

I even remember a WKRP TV show about that Who concert. It wasn't a funny episode.

I think that all governments should similarly ban "low price/low quantity" loss leader sales.

Not only is it dangerous to the public and store employees, it's dishonest and a BAD business practice.

Remember, these stores don't make money on the tiny profits margins alone. They make money off the sheer volume of the tiny profits.

Stop feeding the greed monster.