Re: INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT report the True Cost of Gas
The old Standard Oil did stuff like that. They made the railroads pay kickbacks to get their business. John D recognized that if you dominated any one part of the supply chain, you could call the tune for the rest. If you are the predominant customer, anyone who makes a widget has to sell a significant part of their inventory to you. IMHO, that's the real club Wal Mart has. Even the Chinese have to worry about meeting their demands for costs. Over the long haul, Wal Mart will probably have to get reined in, for the same reasons that Standard Oil did.