As I was surveying the news in the wake of Katrina, a story about Wal-Mart's supposed "generosity and quick response" set off my skeptic-ometer. So in the interest of ongoing Wal-Mart reality checks, I felt I should tackle it. I found today, though, that someone had beaten me to it. Read this take by Stephen Elliott.

What it comes down to for me is that, when looked at objectively, the reposnse by Wal-Mart is precisely the minimum of what could be expected of them. With their extensive presence in the storm-impacted areas and the already-lousy state of their public image, they could really do no less than give money and supplies very quickly. Anything less would have been a PR disaster for them, and make no mistake, that is their primary concern here.

Why do I say that? Why, the common corporation-supporting partisan Republican might ask, do I have to badmouth good deeds? Because my definition of good has a higher bar than what Wal-Mart's doing. Would we give unquestioning praise to a bank robber who gave a small percentage of his take to charity? Of course not. It's really no different with Wal-Mart. They've long been active participants in perpetuating the cycle of poverty which has crippled many communities and residents of the storm-affected areas and all around the country. They've forced tax exemptions on small communities and added thousands to state-supported health care through poor wages and benefits, weakening local economies. The result is communities whose people are less able to take care of themselves and whose local governments have fewer funds available for things that would reduce the effect of natural disasters.

So I don't give Wal-Mart one iota of respect or admiration for donating less to this relief effort than what they pay their CEO. The roughly $20 million dollars that Wal-Mart has given in money and products is .008% of their sales in 2003. Hell, I'm just one average guy and I've given more than ten times that percentage of my gross income to the Humane Society and ASPCA alone.

For more information on the reality behind Wal-Mart's fraudulent PR, see these stories:

The Wal-Mart you don't know
Jim Hightower on why you should boycott Wal-Mart
Labor's analysis of Wal-Mart
Quick facts about Wal-Mart's discrimination against women