http://www.sgvtribune.com/news/ci_4322758

This story appeared in the September 12, 2006 San Gabriel Valley Tribune.  The story begins:

"Wal-Mart has poured a record $200,000 into the campaign effort to keep two City Council members from being ousted in a recall election next week, campaign finance records show."

I was cruising the Internet and came across this post:

http://www.snagmagazine.com/index.php?s=23&a=56

It's mostly about our Moms vs. Wal-Mart protest, but it's written much more colorfully than the posts on our own site.  Just more evidence that we're a real grassroots organization.  Mike Lewis would never be able to get someone like this to write for him!

One of the sock puppet groups sent out an hysterical letter recently.  It had me ROFLMAO:

"The recall supporters are planning to spend tens of thousands of dollars to defeat Jay and Gary!  We need your support.  WE CANNOT ALLOW THE SPECIAL INTERESTS TO HIJACK OUR CITY. . . ."

Of course, the *real* outsiders in this race have already spent HUNDREDS of thousands of dollars trying to keep them in office.  So who is *really* trying to hijack our city?

The ground campaign continues.  We are fielding what I think are pretty good numbers of walkers (won't say exactly how many walkers--no sense giving Wal-Mart and their sock puppets anything more than I need to).  In fact, I would be willing to bet real money that it's been at least thirty years since Jay and Gary had as many people walking for them as we have walking for us.

The difference is that we're going up against the world's largest retailer.  That's what has so many of us worried.  If it were just us going up against Jay and Gary, this would be a slam dunk.  But they've sold their souls to Wal-Mart.  And, much as I might despise Wal-Mart, it's true that they'll take care of the ones they own.

http://www.sgvtribune.com/news/ci_4259116

Headline:  "Wal-Mart to open in 'early fall'"

Sub-headline:  "Recall efforts may not stop Supercenter"

Of course, personally, I'd be thrilled if we could keep the Supercenter from opening.  Wal-Mart has been absolutely flaunting the mitigation measures and conditions of approval that they agreed to when the city council majority gave them permission to build.  They have shown themselves to be a bad neighbor, and a neighbor who can not be trusted to keep their word.  In violating the conditions of approval, the new city council would be fully within its rights to yank the approval.  Or they could choose another way to hold Wal-Mart accountable for their actions.

The Change Wal-Mart/Change America bus tour pulls into Rosemead on Sunday, August 27, at 7pm.  The event is at Eldridge Rice Elementary School, on Rush St, between San Gabriel and Walnut Grove Avenues.

Join us for an evening of solidarity building and spirit-raising fun.  For more info, visit

http://wakeupwalmart.com/ucp/express/?eventkey=3d9c9c70e1a69cd46652bbc7f0bfa5db

Folks, we've recently become aware that one of the Wal-Mart front groups in Rosemead is offering jobs paying as much as $14/hour to walk precincts for them in Rosemead.  Of course, they're already paying people to make those fake "survey" phone calls to Rosemead voters.  And when they start making explicitly political phone calls in a few weeks, it will again be paid employees interrupting everyone's dinner.  Guess this really puts the lie to their claim that there's some great groundswell of support for their Supercenter in Rosemead:  They need to pay people to do what we're willing to do for free.

Remember during those hearings back in fall, 2004, when Wal-Mart and Wal-Mart's sock puppets in the audience all stood up and told us how neighboring residents didn't need to worry about the effects of a 24-hour Wal-Mart supercenter, because there'd be a beautiful, decorative wall, covered with climbing vines, that would separate the residential area from the supercenter?  They lied.

I suppose I should no longer be surprised when Wal-Mart and their sock puppets pull this crap on us.  But their hypocrisy, their double-talk, and the true depths of their dishonesty continue to amaze me.