Letter to the Editor

Alissa Griffith's column about how Wal-Mart is the answer for broke college students ignores the larger cost of a company like Wal-Mart to society. On the wondrous trip to $2 flip flop land, Alissa only briefly mentions this company's "egregious scandals" and "shameful practices."

While being opposed to shopping at Wal-Mart myself, I of course understand why those $2 flip flops or a cheap iPod sound appealing to college students; I've often had to scrape together a few ones and fives on a Friday night to be able to go out with friends. However, I think some of the reasons people avoid shopping at Wal-Mart deserve mention - it's not just because they enjoy spending more money.

In June of 2004, Wal-Mart was found by a federal court to have discriminated against 1.6 million former female employees by paying them less and intentionally offering them fewer opportunities for promotion. The discrimination against women doesn't stop there; Wal-Mart has received numerous fines for violating the Family and Medical Leave Act, including refusing to reinstate women after they completed maternity leave.

In 2000, Wal-Mart paid $50 million to settle a lawsuit brought by 69,000 of its workers for forcing them to work off the clock. There might be a reason that the cashier may be short with you at your local Wal-Mart: She or he might not be getting paid.

Wal-Mart costs everyone money, even if you don't shop there. By not offering adequate healthcare to its employees, one study by an economist at the Air Force Institute of Technology shows that from 1978 to 2003, Wal-Mart has increased Medicaid spending by as much an $898 per person.

These are not only societal costs, such as allowing rampant discrimination, but also economic ones as Wal-Mart increases the burden on tax payers by skirting their responsibilities to their employees. If you shop there it's important to know more about the company than simply the fact that flip flops are $2. I recommend you check out http://wwww.walmartwatch.com/.

Rob Dorans is a senior political science major.