‘Tis the star-spangled banner! Oh long may it wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

US citizens have their Constitution, the National Anthem and, it seems, their undying belief that they are the freest people on earth. Each verse of the US National Anthem, The Star Spangled Banner, ends with “O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave”.

Really? Consider this peaceful protest by Disney employees who merely want affordable health care and to be paid a decent salary in the land of the free.

Aren’t they brave to stand up to the super-rich Disney corporation? Seems not…..

The protest was peaceful until the cops turned up. Then Tinkerbell and Peter Pan, Mickey Mouse, Snow White and Cinderella are arrested and cuffed with plastic ties. Yet again Uncle Sam reveals his true colors – freedom is only for the rich and powerful. ‘Bravery’ is a badge only the privileged can wear.

Take note my American readers. In all European Union (EU) States health care is a RIGHT for everyone. So is protest a RIGHT in Europe although I admit that sometimes Europe’s police overstep the mark as well. We have Human Rights laws and the European Court of Human Rights.

Sorry America you have a long way to go to earn the label “Land of The Free”.

Sources used in this article:

The lyrics of “The Star Spangled Banner”

The United States Constitution

“Current” - Report and comments

Mickey Mouse arrested as police clash with staff at Disneyland

Supermarkets are destroying the traditional British High Street by undercutting prices till smaller local shops go bankrupt or give up. They, the supermarkets, offer choice and prices that no small retailer can match. So ‘they’ continue to expand and the small shops disappear.

But not only are they depriving the local communities of the choice of where they can shop they are also deliberately ripping off the very people who keep them in business. It’s illegal but they don’t care!

This is how they do it. They advertise promotions at an offer price on the shelves and then charge the full price at the tills. Here’s an example of how I got ripped-off by Asda the British arm of Wallmart. I took advantage of an Asda promotion that offered three yoghurts for £2 (approx $4 US) when I got to the till they charged me the full 37p (approx 70c US) each.

When I complained I was treated with disdain by the assistant possibly because the total overcharge was ‘only’ 22p (approx 40c US). Quite a small amount but hey, try taking out 22p worth of goods without paying and see what happens! At very least you’d be branded a thief by the supermarket but more likely you would get a criminal record because the supermarket wants to make an example of you to deter other miscreants.

When I got home I found a previous till receipt and realised I had been overcharged before. I decided to run an experiment. After all I had alerted them to the error now and a responsible retailer would make sure the error was put right. Yeah, OK, right!

As well as the bad attitude of the staff member it took fifteen minutes to sort out the refund. First of all I reported it to the assistant at the checkout. He was very polite, apologised and sent me to ‘customer services’.

The woman (with the attitude) at the customer services counter looked at my receipt and went to the yoghurt shelf to check that I was telling the truth. When she got back she confirmed my honesty and expressed a reluctant apology. Then I had to endure a painfully bureaucratic process of refunding the Asda theft of 22p. I even had to sign for my money!

Now if this was genuine mistake that was immediately rectified, OK - human error and all that, but nothing was changed. I continued to buy the same yoghurts right up till the day I left the UK and I was mugged by Asda every time.

The Asda Shelf Price

Now Get Ripped-Off At The Till

Oh by the way, this case at Asda is not rare. So why aren’t Asda and other supermarket chains prosecuted by Trading Standards or the Police for this illegal activity? Here are some interesting links with further interesting evidence.

We Estimate That Tesco Steals £7.8 Million A Week From It’s Customers

UK supermarket rip-off? - ThisIsMoney.co.uk

The half-price wine ‘rip-off’- ThisIsMoney.co.uk

Supermarket rip-off culture must end - The Independent

Exposed: the tricks supermarkets use to make rip-offs look like bargains - Mail Online