Not In MY Walmart

While people are suffering unimaginably in Japan and in war zones all over the world, I feel it is important to bring to light a MAJOR PROBLEM that is affecting many Saskatoon citizens.

I am absolutely DISGUSTED by this story, which has been getting a lot of media coverage in Saskatoon lately. (More coverage, more coverage)

If you don't want to click the links (although if you feel like banging your head against a wall, it will for sure make you do that), in a nutshell: a Value Village store has been approved for Saskatoon's Stonegate shopping complex next to the Stonebridge neighbourhood. Problem: many residents of Stonebridge, which is one of the "nicest" new areas in the city, believe that a Value Village store would attract "the wrong type of clientele" to their elite neighbourhood. (Or that it would cause traffic problems in the parking lot - yeah, good cover for being an elitist snob - NOT.)

OMG EWWWW WHAT IF A POOR PERSON COMES TO VALUE VILLAGE AND THEN SHOPS IN OUR FANCY ELITIST FANCY FANCY WALMART SUPERCENTRE AND GETS THE MCDONALDS ALL GREASY!!!! Guys, you are being so ridiculous. It's not like Stonegate is full of Gucci and Prada stores (those are expensive stores, right?). It has a Walmart and a Brick and a HomeSense and a freaking DOLLARAMA. The fanciest clothing store is a REITMANS. An effing Reitmans. To put that into perspective, the Humboldt Mall has 4 stores and one of them is a Reitmans.

I have to share one of the funniest comments from one of the linked articles that proves I am not making my sarcastic sentiments up:

hippiegirl

4:32 PM on March 8, 2011

I live in Stonebridge and love it. I built and designed my own home, so I would hardly call it 'characterless'. I hate the idea of a Value Village, but then again, I despise Walmart, Ikea and most other big box store. I can guarantee that I will pass through the Value Village doors just as often as I pass through the doors of Walmart: never. Value Village is a crappy idea for a store in our area.

I was really hoping for a second Costco somewhere in the southern end of the city....even if it ended up in Willowgrove. The one in the north end is so picked over and such a hassle. Plus, I'd love to have one of their gas bars down in this end of the city...

I'm like sooooo fashionable because I HATE big box stores, they are like SOOOOO gross, but OMG I totes HATE driving all the way to Costco to buy cheap gas and buy stuff that OTHER PEOPLE TOUCHED, like why can't they build a Costco by my house, because I hate all the big box stores by my house that carry IDENTICAL AND CHEAPER products. Also EVERYONE who lives in Stonebridge agrees with me because we are all WAY TOO GOOD for big box stores and never shop at them. Except Costco, because you have to buy a membership to shop there so it's basically a country club for super rich people, like ME.


hippiegirl. You are an actual idiot. Congrats on being really stupid.

As some commenters in the links I posted mentioned, the shopping complex just happens to be adjacent to the neighbourhood. It is NOT for the sole use of Stonebridge residents. Also, what a great way to make your neighbourhood look like a completely snobby place to live. Way to make everyone in the neighbourhood look like a total jerk, when it's likely that most Stonebridge residents AREN'T total jerks and don't share the same opinion as their community association president and understand that shopping centres are open to the public, no matter where in the world you live.

Yeah, there are probably snobs in my neighbourhood too. There are probably snobs in every neighbourhood. But there are DFFINITELY snobs in Stonebridge, and they have loudly and proudly made that crystal clear.