Wal-Mart, are "we are shopping ourselves out of jobs?"

I've been using this space mostly for a place for my photography, but I read this article in Fact Company and I thought that it should be passed on. It's an interesting overview of the business practices at Wal-Mart. A little dry in parts (hey, it's a business magazine) but is well worth the read. It's got some (potentially) surprising facts and quotes, such as:

Wal-Mart is "the world's largest company--bigger than ExxonMobil, General Motors, and General Electric. The scale can be hard to absorb. Wal-Mart sold $244.5 billion worth of goods last year. It sells in three months what number-two retailer Home Depot sells in a year. And in its own category of general merchandise and groceries, Wal-Mart no longer has any real rivals. It does more business than Target, Sears, Kmart, J.C. Penney, Safeway, and Kroger combined."

"Last year, 7.5 cents of every dollar spent in any store in the United States (other than auto-parts stores) went to the retailer."

"Wal-Mart has also lulled shoppers into ignoring the difference between the price of something and the cost. Its unending focus on price underscores something that Americans are only starting to realize about globalization: Ever-cheaper prices have consequences. Says Steve Dobbins, president of thread maker Carolina Mills: "We want clean air, clear water, good living conditions, the best health care in the world--yet we aren't willing to pay for anything manufactured under those restrictions."