Lider: The Capitalist Mecca

In spite of my strong desire to sleep given that it's 2:30 in the morning, my faithfulness to my blog is undying.

As a native of Capitalistan (for those of you who aren't familiar with its second name, I'm talking about the United States), I like to think I know a thing or two about capitalism. I also like to think that all things capitalist, big and small, great and not-so-great, begin and end in the US of A. For 21 years of my life, until this very day, March 18 of 2009, I believed that Wal Mart-esque mega gigantic superstores only existed in the US. I believed with all my heart that the Arkansas City, Kansas Super Wal Mart was the apotheosis of capitalistic greatness. Only in the US could such vast expanses of concrete and metal house such a large plethora of manufactured products and processed foods. Only in the US could one buy everything one needed in the same place: school supplies, tooth paste, motor oil, DVDs, Ramen noodles, flash lights, medicines, laundry detergent.

But today my image of US capitalistic domination crumbled. Today I saw the hugest effing superstore in existence, and it was not in the US. It was in Chile.

Instead of Wal Mart, Chile is home to a similar chain called Lider (which, according to Facundo, was recently 50% bought out by Wal Mart). Now, I have seen my fair share of Liders in Santiago, and most of them are small, unremarkable vendors of food items. But today, when I was visiting the Vitacura commune where Facundo lives, I came across the mother of all Liders. This place was huge. Not Super Wal Mart huge. We're talking Super Fucking Mega Wal Mart huge. As I entered, I immediately commented to Facundo that the place was strikingly similar to Wal Mart. Then, as I explored its vast depths, I quickly realized that it was strikingly better than Wal Mart. First of all, its shoe section meant serious business. There were women's boots of all sizes, shapes, and colors lining the walls. I personally have never seen any Super Wal Mart with that kind of shoe selection. Secondly, the food section was not playing around. I saw every kind of fruit in existence, including fruits I didn't know existed. There was a liquor section the size of a liquor store.There were at least 20 smoked pork legs on display. There was an entire station dedicated to lunch meat. There was a cafe. There was a school supply section the size of a small bookstore. The list goes on. I spent about 10 minutes in complete awe. And keep in mind that a born-and-bred US capitalist is not easily awed by other countries' capitalism. Especially countries in the third world. But Chile, I bow down to your greatness. You have outdone us.

It required a serious amount of self control to walk away from Lider without spending my entire life's savings. In fact, I am proud to say I actually walked away having only spent about $US7. I will admit, though, that I went back to Lider for a second time a few hours later, just to wander its aisles and absorb its greatness. Lider is the Mecca for one-stop-shoppers, a holy land to which I hope to return again and again.