Live data from Hacker News

Trader Joe's Shrugged

vvdailypress.com

1–10 of 74 posts

Re: Trader Joe's Shrugged

#2
Visit the Tenderloin in SF.

Twitter came in to the community brought lots of jobs. Did that make the neighborhood better? No. What happened was that the price of housing went up for a group of people who could already not afford it. Basically the "area" was developed but not the "community".

Like an invasive species. There is nothing wrong with rabbits in general. I like them. But in Australia they are destroying the native species.

As humans we have more ability to pick up an move, but we tend to not want to do so. Most of the people in the low end of the economic spectrum rent, so it is not like the increase in property values is making them rich off of their homes, instead they see rent increases.

Trader Joes in the "wrong" neighborhood does the same thing. Many communities "need" a walmart because it will serve their need for cheap food and clothing, and won't raise the property values. It is easy to hate Walmart and other big box stores, but in truth, often a community needs "cheap" more than they need "good".

Edit: Produce is one of the things that are hard to get in a "food desert" Trader Joe's is notorious for having expensive produce with a short life span. http://www.cbsnews.com/news/4-things-not-to-buy-at-trader-jo...

Re: Trader Joe's Shrugged

#3
PAALF knows damn well economic opportunity would improve the lives of those in the affected area, what they also know is that is not improve PAALF's opportunity or that of its leaderships or those it pays fealty too.

Now its quite possible TJ didn't pay the entrance fee, those monies paid out to concerned groups who can change the outlook of any new business.

Racism and exploitation of the poor are big business, Animal Farm would be a good start to understand the situation

Re: Trader Joe's Shrugged

#4
post #2

Visit the Tenderloin in SF. Twitter came in to the community brought lots of jobs. Did that make the neighborhood better? No. What happened was that the price of housing went up for a group of people who could already not afford it. Basically the "area" was developed but not the "community". Like an invasive species. There is nothing wrong with rabbits in general. I like them. But in Australia they are destroying the…

Perhaps you're not familiar with Trader Joe's --- they are known for good food at low prices. And it's hard to see any parallel between a grocery store (open to local residents) and Twitter HQ (where most workers never interact with local residents at all).

Re: Trader Joe's Shrugged

#5
post #2

Visit the Tenderloin in SF. Twitter came in to the community brought lots of jobs. Did that make the neighborhood better? No. What happened was that the price of housing went up for a group of people who could already not afford it. Basically the "area" was developed but not the "community". Like an invasive species. There is nothing wrong with rabbits in general. I like them. But in Australia they are destroying the…

As someone who lived very close to a Walmart-centered ecosystem for several years, including working there, I'll also add that while it isn't Gucci, there's nothing really wrong with the stuff Walmart sells, from a poor person's practical point of view. It's just regular, everyday useful stuff.

Re: Trader Joe's Shrugged

#6
I understand that discussing racism is a social minefield but, as a liberal and global citizen, stories like this disturb me. Couple this event with Spike Lee's blatantly racist and poorly worded rant against gentrification, and I question how much progress we have really made in this country. Also, the term 'non-oppressed population' makes me want to vomit.

Jake Dobkin's piece on gentrification is a great read for anyone interested: http://gothamist.com/2013/09/23/ask_a_native_new_yorker_how_...

Re: Trader Joe's Shrugged

#7
post #4
post #2

Visit the Tenderloin in SF. Twitter came in to the community brought lots of jobs. Did that make the neighborhood better? No. What happened was that the price of housing went up for a group of people who could already not afford it. Basically the "area" was developed but not the "community". Like an invasive species. There is nothing wrong with rabbits in general. I like them. But in Australia they are destroying the…

Perhaps you're not familiar with Trader Joe's --- they are known for good food at low prices. And it's hard to see any parallel between a grocery store (open to local residents) and Twitter HQ (where most workers never interact with local residents at all).

That someone can innocently and unironically describe Trader Joe's as being "known for low prices" is really the crux of the problem here.

Perhaps you're not familiar with minimum wage?

Re: Trader Joe's Shrugged

#8
post #5
post #2

Visit the Tenderloin in SF. Twitter came in to the community brought lots of jobs. Did that make the neighborhood better? No. What happened was that the price of housing went up for a group of people who could already not afford it. Basically the "area" was developed but not the "community". Like an invasive species. There is nothing wrong with rabbits in general. I like them. But in Australia they are destroying the…

As someone who lived very close to a Walmart-centered ecosystem for several years, including working there, I'll also add that while it isn't Gucci, there's nothing really wrong with the stuff Walmart sells, from a poor person's practical point of view. It's just regular, everyday useful stuff.

Except the food which, on the whole, just isn't healthy.

Re: Trader Joe's Shrugged

#9
post #5
post #2

Visit the Tenderloin in SF. Twitter came in to the community brought lots of jobs. Did that make the neighborhood better? No. What happened was that the price of housing went up for a group of people who could already not afford it. Basically the "area" was developed but not the "community". Like an invasive species. There is nothing wrong with rabbits in general. I like them. But in Australia they are destroying the…

As someone who lived very close to a Walmart-centered ecosystem for several years, including working there, I'll also add that while it isn't Gucci, there's nothing really wrong with the stuff Walmart sells, from a poor person's practical point of view. It's just regular, everyday useful stuff.

I didn't mean to imply that it was bad. There is a lot of fights around organics, and made in the US, and such. Walmart tends to optimize for price rather than low environmental impact, or made in the US. Trader Joes tends to optimize differently.

Re: Trader Joe's Shrugged

#10
post #2

Visit the Tenderloin in SF. Twitter came in to the community brought lots of jobs. Did that make the neighborhood better? No. What happened was that the price of housing went up for a group of people who could already not afford it. Basically the "area" was developed but not the "community". Like an invasive species. There is nothing wrong with rabbits in general. I like them. But in Australia they are destroying the…

Could we find some nuance between "poor people are going to be wiped out by invasive rich/middle class people," and "there are no losers to gentrification, ever"?

It seems clear that when a neighborhood gentrifies, some of incumbent residents will find their lives improved (perhaps because: a job is created that they get, they own property which is now more valuable, the neighborhood is safer, schools are better), while others will find their lives worsened (because they are renters who can no longer afford their home or neighborhood).

Whenever we have these kinds of discussions, I want to know what the alternatives are. Granted that gentrification is a mixed bag, is there a plausible alternative which helps anyone in these neighborhoods?

Post reply on HN