activefreemedia

I must admit that I am not an expert on Wal-Mart, so I am not taking a stance on what conclusions would result.

For example, a Wal-Mart studies course on environmental issues might weigh the benefit of reducing impacts to the air and water by having all products centralized in one shopping place with competing concerns such as urban growth, the products Wal-Mart sells, and how Wal-Mart builds its stores.

Having some of the best and brightest students and teachers addressing broadly all issues relating to Wal-Mart is crucial. At a minimum, it would be prudent for universities to have a faculty member solely devoted to issues relating to Wal-Mart. This professor could teach courses such as "Wal-Mart and Society" or "The Economics of Wal-Mart." We need to understand how this store is changing our lives.

Another idea: Replace the traditional book-club with the Wal-Mart club. People could convene once a month to discuss various matters relating to Wal-Mart. The internet could be a powerful tool to post the conclusions of that club.

Final idea: It could be an interesting project to have people from varying perspectives write about Wal-Mart's effect on their lives. I would be willing to write a short narrative about how Wal-Mart has influenced my life. In the upcoming weeks, I will try to carve out some time to draft this section and post it on AFM. Perhaps, others could post about the effects of Wal-Mart as well.

I welcome some dialogue on increasing discussions about Wal-Mart.