Wal-Mart enters towns and small cities and blackmails local governments into giving them huge tax breaks, such as via Chicago’s TIF (Tax Increment Financing) program.

Now, what’s so bad about giving a potential employer like WalMart a big tax break? Well, for one thing, the jobs WalMart provides do nothing to help other businesses in the region, as the workers make little more than what is desperately needed for food, rent and utilities. So the money it generates goes mostly to landlords, banks and power companies—hardly a boon to the local economy.

Worse, since the cities and town still need the tax revenue that WalMart isn’t paying, guess who gets a huge boost to THEIR taxes to make up the shortfall? You guessed it—those same put upon small businesses, schools and home owners who have to share a zip code with America’s Funniest Parasite.

Further, local hopsital emergency rooms are finding out the hard way how WalMart reaps its profits: by forcing so many workers to do without health insurance, WalMart burdens local medical facilities where its low paid workers show up for free or low cost care. Nuthin like getting Uncle Sam to foot the bill for your workers’ accidents and illnesses—great for the stockholders!

The issue with the panties is that Wal-Mart has for so long promoted itself as family and fundie friendly. Remember the brouhaha years ago about how they wouldn’t sell CDs with the parental advisory sticker? Because bad words will morally corrupt our kids, while teaching them to barter their bodies for material wealth is just peachy.

Regarding their stores, the only way I’ve been able to put my finger on it is that Wal-Mart stores just have bad energy. Whether it’s due to being overcrammed with stuff and people or whatever, the place is where good feelings go to die.

Then there’s the virtual indentured servitude of their employees. Low wages, few benefits for some, none for many, and really gestapo tactics by management.

As to what eCHAN#35, this is one of the things so insidious about Wal-Mart – it has moved in in tandem with a gradually lowering standard of living for a significant number of people in this country. Folks that who, even if they realize the benefits to the community of supporting smaller retailers, cannot afford to do so for the basic necessities of life…which are the only things they can afford to buy. And if they find themselves from time to time with a few extra bucks…well, Wal-Mart will capture those dollars too, with a variety of cheap crap from China.

It’s a really ugly circle there.