Supply and Demand is Racist
Post a CommentA photo first posted to the humor Web site FunnyJunk.com and later to the Latino Web site Guanabee.com shows packages of Mattel’s Ballerina Barbie and Ballerina Teresa dolls hanging side by side at an unidentified store. The Teresa dolls, which feature brown skin and dark hair, are marked as being on sale at $3.00. The Barbies to the right of the Teresa dolls, meanwhile, retain their original price of $5.93. The dolls look identical aside from their color.
Editors at Guanabee.com said the person responsible for the photo told the Web site that it was taken at a Louisiana Walmart store. The person did not return e-mails from ABCNews.com.
A Walmart spokeswoman, who could not verify the exact store shown in the photo, said that the price change on the Teresa doll was part of the chain’s efforts to clear shelf space for its new spring inventory.
There you have it folks. The free market, probably the only truly colorblind thing in the entire universe, is inherently racist. Wal-Mart shouldn’t have marked down a poorly-selling item because of the color of the doll’s skin.
“Pricing like items differently is a part of inventory management in retailing,” O’Brien said. But critics say Walmart should have been more sensitive in its pricing choice.”
More sensitive in its pricing choice? Are you kidding me? What happens when Stop-and-Shop finds itself inundated with brown eggs because nobody’s buying them…should they keep ‘em marked up because some crackpot sociologist things it’s “insensitive” to mark them down to move them off the shelves? Eggquality trumps all ladies and gentlemen. What happens if white eggs aren’t selling? Racist too?
Isn’t the effect of a markdown in price usually that that particular item sells better? So we want less Black Barbies sold in order for the sticker price to remain the same? Does that make any sense to anyone?
This is one of the stupidest gripes I’ve ever heard of; people really need to get a grip.
Russ
H/T Vinnie Boombatz
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