Mitchell shares his thoughts on Wal-Mart...

Robert W. Mitchell, Jr. opines:

The argument for and against Wal-Mart has been one that has grown tired.
The case for and against is quite clear and I'm afraid my commentary
would simply be a reprinting of old arguments. Yet, perhaps to me the most
compelling case against Wal-Mart is that it represents a great
inconsistency of American values. Why good Christians, conservatives,
liberals, left-wing, and right wing want to shop with a company that has
helped prop up a Godless communist, anti-freedom, inhumane Chinese regime is beyond me. Where are those values we so embrace? Or do we lose sight
of them when we see a cheap product?

We have always known that cheap products mean cheap labor. Yet does
capitalist theory support slave labor (or child labor)? Was it still
capitalism and free-enterprise when we used African slaves to harvest our cotton and tobacco? Are the conditions in Asian sweat shops any
different? Is it a fair and legitimate argument to defend Wal-Mart
through the steady and rehearsed mantra of "free enterprise, free enterprise?"
I don't know. Granted, Wal-Mart is not the only corporate bad neighbor.
They are just the worst. And they are the standard bearers. Yet we have to
decide how far we want to take Christian ethics.

And what about figures that suggest 45% of Wal Mart workers receive some
form of public assistance. Should the taxpayers bail out Wal-Mat because
it will not pay a living wage? I don't know. I just do what I can and not shop there. I do not buy its stock and I grow suspicious of its campaigns to reinvent their image.
But when its too hard to find American products, what else can we do but "buy Asia."