Is Walmart against Obama?

The Straw That Broke the Camel's Back: Why Wal-Mart lost one more customer.

I have never been one of those people who is 100% against Wal-Mart. While I find myself at odds with many of their business practices, I understand that they serve a purpose. They provide service to some of the poorest individuals in our country who are not able to afford goods from more expensive retailers. And not being terribly wealthy myself, I have found myself shopping at Wal-Mart from time to time. However, this time they went too far.

This past Monday I went to Wal-Mart in order to purchase some contact lens solution and chap stick. As I walked by the medication aisle, I noticed the book and magazine stack were selling a slanderous book about Barack Obama. I looked all over the book aisle and noticed that no books promoting Obama, or books counter to the slanderous book, were being sold. Even Barack Obama's two books which are currently best sellers, were nowhere to be found.

The incident struck me as a bit unfair, considering Wal-Mart is the world's largest company, and thus has access to the world's largest customer base. So I spoke to an assistant manager who told me that individual stores have no control over what they can sell, but that I could file a complaint by calling 1-800-WALMART. I called and left a message, not thinking too much of the situation.

But then I heard a story on CNN about a secret taped recording of a meeting with Wal-Mart, which shows that many managers are being urged to tell WalMart employees to vote for John McCain. Things that make you go hmmmm... and the more I thought about, the more I began to connect the dots, and decided to post this story.

I want to make one thing clear. Wal-Mart has a right to sell whatever it wants, but this store has now become very pro-Republican and very pro-John McCain. While they have a right to do that, I also have a right to decide not to spend my money there anymore. If this business chooses to alienate one group of their customers by throwing their hat so blatantly into the political arena, then that means that I am going to use my right to take my business elsewhere – I encourage others to do the same.

Wal-Mart shouldn't alienate an entire group of people based on their political ideology. I don't care if they want to sell a slanderous book, but they should at least sell books which show both side, by doing this it gives me (the consumer) a CHOICE. And isn't that what capitalism and the free market are supposed to be about? Freedom of choice?