Attention Wal-Mart Shoppers!

Wal-Mart has opened its first Bejing store, apparently with less difficulty than it had in opening up shop in the People's Republic of Massachusetts and the semi-autonomous regions of New England.

Its main competitors? France's Carrefour, the US's Pricesmart, and a local knockoff called Wu Mart. Roll over, Mao, your long marches have finally ended in aisle 10. And, to mix superstore metaphors, that's a good thing.

If nothing else, this should remind us that it was more than coincidence that the brave, "unknown rebel" who famously stood up to the tanks in Tianamen Square appeared to be carrying a shopping bag when he helped create one of the most moving images of the 20th century.