Today I returned some Christmas gifts to Wal-Mart. I am hopeful that that was my last trip to Wal-Mart ever as I resolved to boycott the store in the New Year. If I am successful at surviving without Wal-Mart in 2007 I may never return to the store if I can help it.

My reasons for boycotting Wal-Mart are numerous, but the vast majority of them have been identified by bloggers and news outlets world wide already. We all know that Wal-Mart is destroying the American economy and eroding society.

1. When Wal-Mart enters a community, small businesses close because they are unable to compete with Wal-Mart’s pricing schemes even if they are providing higher quality goods that are not imported from China. Displaced employees of the businesses that close are forced to take lower paying jobs at Wal-Mart and many of them are unable to afford Wal-Mart’s benefits package even if they are offered benefits.
2. Certain Wal-Marts seem to pay male and female employees on different pay scales. There are a few current law suits going on about this matter and even though it’s still up in the air, I’ve heard it with my own ears from enough Wal-Mart employees to believe it.
3. Wal-Mart hires employees (either directly or through outside agencies) that have questionable immigration status.
4. When I enter a Wal-Mart, 90% of the time I am unable to find an associate that can assist me with my questions or who can direct me to the goods I am looking for. When I lived in Orlando, FL for almost 5 years, the Wal-Mart closest to my home employed an almost entirely spanish speaking staff. Unfortunately, less than 10% of them spoke English, therefore getting assistance was virtually impossible.
5. The goods are of inferior quality and will need replacing several times compared to similar items purchased at other stores.
6. The vast majority of the goods are imported from China.
7. The prices on the self are regularly inaccurate.
8. Wal-Mart does not check the integrity of goods that are returned before they re-shelf them for sale again.
9. Wal-Mart embraces censorship.
10. The smock and smiley face are just degrading and insulting. When is the last time you saw a Wal-Mart employee smile?

Americans used to fight for quality products. People used to read Consumer Reports before they made a purchase or they listened to product news to make informed decisions about what they were planning to buy. When I was growing up, my parents used to spend a lot of money on one or two pairs of sneakers or shoes for me to wear to school. Now mothers would rather take their kids to Wal-Mart and buy several pairs of shoes of an inferior quality (replacing the cheap ones when they wear out) than buy one pair of quality shoes with a good guarantee that could last several months to a year.

I understand that people would oppose my stance because Wal-Mart allows people who have very little money to afford to live a more comfortable life. Some of the poorest people in the poorest areas of America (dirt roads, no electricity, no sewer systems, no running water) are the people who would benefit the most from companies like Wal-Mart. Do you ever see a Wal-Mart planned in or near to these areas? No because they would not make enough money in these communities to warrant the cost of opening a facility.

I am not boycotting Wal-Mart with the intention of starting some big local movement to block Wal-Mart from the Raleigh area. I am not doing this in league with any of the big existing organizations that are taking steps to fight Wal-Mart. I am doing this on my own of my own volition. I am doing this simply because I feel that there are no positive effects of the growth of Wal-Mart. I don’t feel that the few cents that I could possibly save there makes up for having to purchase replacement items constantly and
helping to sustain the trade imbalance the U.S. has with China. I hope that other people who read my blog would be compelled to do the same.

Next year I am going to try my best to do the following:

1. Boycott Wal-Mart: I don’t think enough people are thinking about the overwhelming negative impact that Wal-Mart is having on our country’s economic structure. Furthermore Wal-Mart goes into communities, destroys small and mid-sized businesses, and forces displaced workers from failed companies to take lower paying Wal-Mart jobs with no medical insurance. Peachy!
2. Quit Drinking Soda: I will not consume soda (diet or regular) with the exceptions of Tonic Water, Club Soda, and Seltzer.

Do you have any interesting New Year’s Resolutions?