The Case Against Wal-Mart

This book is an excellent analysis of just how powerful Wal-Mart is in our economy. It's power makes it a political entity to reckon with also. This book is easy to read and well-documented. The cases cited give an insight as to how too much power can corrupt and make you oblivious to the plight of the consumer.

Reviewed by Michael G. Matejka Is Wal-Mart the happy yellow smiley face, or a lurking monster destroying American jobs and communities? The world's largest retailer, currently expanding into the Chinese market, has quite a rap sheet against For a quick compendium of that way-too-long list of outrages, there's no better source than Al Norman's latest book, The Case Against Wal-Mart. Norman got into his first Wal-Mart fight in 1993 and has been dogging the giant ever since. The book's chapter headings tell exactly the wide allegations against the big blue box: "Abuse of Power, Destroying the Value of Labor, Exploiting Your Suppliers, Degrading the Environment, Unfair Competition, Questionable Banking Practices, Exploiting Global Trade, Corporate Welfare Abuse," and that's just a few of them. Norman's book details many of Wal-Mart's abusive practices, but in a succinct and approachable manner. The book is only 153 pages long, so this is a quick and ready summary. Whether the question is Wal-Mart workers who work overtime but get paid straight time, Wal-Mart items made with child labor, Wal-Mart cashing in on public subsidies or Wal-Mart's cultivated public image, all the facts and details are here in a straightforward manner. Although Norman is no fan of the Walton Family empire, he does not just beat a dead horse. Instead, he offers brief summaries of court cases, individual confrontations with the corporate giant, and Wal-Mart's feeding at the public trough. The facts are there, detailed, but not lost in minute details. His final plea and injunction is not to the big company, but to American consumers. How and where people decide to spend their hard-earned dollars makes all the difference. If consumers stop and say that will only shop stores that don't use sweatshop-made goods, that treat their workers decently and that allow unions a fair chance to organize, then Wal-Mart will have to respond. But as long as shopper convenience and a mythology of bargain prices leads the family car to that big concrete block building at the edge of town, Wal-Mart will thrive. Consumer education is the key and Norman's book is a strong wake-up call.

Every Wal-Mart shopper should read this book before their next trip to the superstore. It gives incredible insight to the corporate day to day practices that put Wal-Mart at the top of the Fortune 500 list...AND at the bottom of welcome list for many towns across America.Corporate welfare abuse, how Wal-Mart takes taxpayer subsidies to build stores/distribution centers, is just one of several practices this company uses to get richer and richer. The most disturbing "enrichment" practice by Wal-Mart was its company owned life insurance policies. The company, not next of kin, is named as beneficiary! The world's richest company should NOT be benefiting from the death of its workers. Wal-Mart also to this day help keeps sweatshop labor alive and well in third world countries. Abandonment of stores for larger ones becomes a town eyesore and America is suffering from over 300 abandoned Wal-Marts! Time and time again economic impact studies show that most Wal-Marts cost a city/town more in services than it can pay in taxes-thus there is no plus to having a Wal-Mart in many towns. Just Say "NO" to Wal-Mart and stay out of the aisles....! Small town quality of life is worth more than a cheap pair of underwear!

In The Case Against Wal-mart, Al Norman delivers a blistering indictment of Wal-mart's meteoric growth and practices. Even if you think you've heard all the dirt on Wal-mart, you will be shocked by the voluminous detail Al Norman provides on the inside workings of the company and the closed-door maneuvering of corrupt City Council officials that welcome them in with streets paved with Cash.He provides direct numeric information about how Wal-mart forced large American Manufacturers to the brink of bankruptcy and then to move 10's of thousands of jobs overseas to supply them with their "always lower prices."Just when you think that Wal-mart has hit a new low, turn the page and Al Norman will shock and amaze you again!This is "the book" Wal-mart doesn't want you to read. Every major publisher refused to publish the book because they sell too many books to Wal-mart and were afraid of retaliation. Make them regret it!The book is a must read for activists, labor union members, or any average citizen who is sickened by the tactics of America's biggest Employer and Retailer and wants to do something about it!