Mr. H. Lee Scott Jr., President & CEO
Wal-Mart
702 SW 8th Street
Bentonville, AR 72716
 
Dear Mr. Scott:
 

My family and I will not purchase products made by children or in sweatshops where teenaged girls are forced to work 12-hour shifts under armed guard or by exploited workers paid just pennies an hour and whose families are forced to live in misery.  I am especially concerned by serious human and worker rights violations at a Wal-Mart contractor's factory in Bangladesh.

I urge Wal-Mart to be a true industry leader in taking a stand for human rights by releasing to the American people the names and addresses of the factories around the world that make the products sold in Wal-Mart’s stores.  This would set a clear standard of accountability, demonstrating that Wal-Mart has nothing to hide from the American people.  It would show the world that Wal-Mart does not, and will not, manufacture its goods in factories hidden behind locked metal gates, barbed wire and armed guards.

For the American people to shop with a conscience it is our right to know in which countries and factories, under what human rights conditions, and at what wages, the products you sell and we purchase are being made.

There is no reason that this could not be done immediately.  It is relatively common for Kmart, May Co., J.C. Penney and other retailers' private label goods to be made side by side in the same factories.  In fact, just a handful of the same manufacturers dominate production for all retailers.  Unless of course, Wal-Mart has exclusive contracts with specific factories…  In any case, it is common sense that we are not speaking about National Security here, but rather women's undergarments, t-shirts, stuffed animals, sneakers and jeans.  Surely Wal-Mart can trust the American people with a list of these factories.

I intend to share this information in my community with religious, labor, student and other interested organizations, including the media, local and national politicians.  I am anxious to hear from you, so that together with Wal-Mart we can begin to finally eradicate the scourge of child labor and sweatshop abuses.  Thank you.

Sincerely,

Amber Parra

10 Things U Can Do:

1.)     Change Bulbs- compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) use about 65% less energy than regular ones. They cost about 30% more but last up to 10X longer!

2.)     Drive A Fuel Efficient Car- Hybrids use less fuel & they don’t pollute the air as much, not to mention you’ll enjoy up to 65 mpg! (depending on the model)

3.)     Or Better Yet, Bike or Public Trans.- Or best of all WALK! It’s good for you & the environment.

4.)     ONE Word: Recycle!- plastic, glass, paper & cans… not only does it keep from piling up in landfills but it also saves trees & energy! You can also recycle electronic goods like phones & laptops. Always look for the triangular recycling label!

5.)     Clean Green- potentially toxic chemicals are usually found in typical household cleaning products. There are lots of eco-versions like, 7^th generation & Mrs. Meyer’s.

6.)     Eat Local or Organic- getting veggies & produce from a farmer’s market saves fuel from transportation, plus organic farming keeps chemicals out of the soil & you!

7.)     Buy Energy Savers- Look for the “energy star” on everything from computers – air-conditioners. Let’s be energy efficient!

8.)     Conserve Water- shorter showers, fixing leaks, etc… water supply is more limited around the world including the western U.S. due to increasing pollution& drought.

9.)     Adjust Your Thermostat- Even if you move it down only one degree in winter & up one degree in summer, you’ll spare the air 500 lbs of carbon dioxide, which could save you up to 15% on energy bills!

10.) SPEAK UP!- by sending an e-postcard to yr congressional rep at nrdc.org/action asking him/her to back legislation on global warming. Tell people about the tips you’ve just learned & whatever you do, don’t get paralyzed by the enormity of the problem because “it’s not about doing everything, it’s about everyone doing something.”

           Well, to be honest, I was burned out…  On all of it.  I had been a loyal subscriber to the amusement and merriment that is the Friday 5 but in the last couple of months I’d lost interest in it.  I felt it had a good run and it was time to give it a breather, as well as emailing, blogging and instant messaging in general.  I suppose you could say my computer and I were on the outs, but we’ve reunited and seeing a therapist now to work out our “issues” so I think we’re on the road to reconciliation! <evil grin>

          So this is my, er excuse me “our” concerted effort to get back into the swing of things…  Oh, and another thing…  For those of you who wanna know WHY I refuse to do the whole MySpace thing, the reason is because I have put waaaaay too much luv and laughs into my Windows Live Space to go and start all over again on friggin’ MySpace just because it is “what everyone is doing…” Don’t even get me going on that.  However, because so many of you (fam/friendz) ARE on it, I may actually go to the DarkSide and succumb to the MySpace genre, but only for commenting and keeping in-touch purposes and just link my Windows Site to it so that all you MySpace Cadets can still check out my site, because like I said I put a lot of effort into it to just dump it.  I’m still having an inner debate so I will letchya know if/when I become a MySpace Cadet…  Until then Kiddies…Peace!

~Amber

 P.S. 

I will resume my part in the Friday Five when I am good and ready so don’t hold yr breath.

However, let's not celebrate too much too quick, because as soon as I heard our verbally challenged emperor nominate Mr. Robert Gates, I got to "Ask-ing" and found:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Gates

Apparently our possible replacement had some involvement in the Iran-Contra Scandal...

At the time Independent Counsel reached this decision, the possibility remained that George could have provided information warranting reconsideration of Gates's status in the investigation. George refused to cooperate with Independent Counsel and was indicted on September 19, 1991. George subpoenaed Gates to testify as a defense witness at George's first trial in the summer of 1992, but Gates was never called.

Has ties to Bush 41 and Iran-Contra

My gut instinct says to oppose his confirmation.  But then again, was there any faith in Bush's sugguestions or ideas?  Um, NO!  The House is ours and we have effectively neutralized the Republicans in the Senate.  So the next couple of years are sure to get interesting.  

So far, I have yet to read any real debate in most of the comments.

The second debate devolves into argumentum ad hominum (argument to the person; i.e. "Only an idiot would think ..." is one such example), the debate is over.

During the course of his administration, George W. Bush has managed to alienate America from most of the civilized world. There is certainly no love lost for him north of the border, among most Western allies and certainly not in the Muslim World.

Do you know where Canadian animosity to Bush started? In November, 2001 and one when he failed to acknowledge Canada's contribution to the crisis when US airports were closed and US airspace restricted.

No one gave any thought to the planes in the air over the Pacific and the Atlantic. Canada stepped up and said, "Land them at our airports," even though there was risk of further incidents.

And there was no thank you to the thousands of Canadian individuals and families who took stranded Americans in from those planes until the flight ban was lifted days later.

What were they to do? Run out of fuel and crash into the oceans?

That's when most Canadians went sour on Bush.

Then there was the flak we took for refusing to participate in the invasion, subjugation and occupation of Iraq, a sovereign nation which had no ties to the events of 9/11. The US went to the UN and presented its case. The Security Council was unmoved. The US chose to stand alone.

That war was based on deliberately misleading intelligence obtained in the early 90s. There have been no Weapons of Mass Destruction found in Iraq -- the reason the Bush Administration ordered the war didn't exist -- as UN weapon inspectors said.

Then there was Hurricane Katrina and the devastation of New Orleans. Publicly, Bush praised Brown, then head of FEMA.

"You're doing a good job, Brownie" I believe is what he said.

Subsequent reports showed FEMA bungled the entire matter entirely and Brown resigned.

There are prisoners currently languishing at Guantanimo Bay and in other facilities none of us likely know about. They are held without trial, without benefit of habeus corpus, in contravention of rights granted to them under Magna Carta, 1215 (the precursory law) and the US Constitution.

Under Bush, there has been severe curtailing of civil liberty (read the PATRIOT ACT sometime). Americans are subjected to secret government investigation for what they check out at the library, what they communicate on the Internet and by telephone, and almost draconian searches by government employees at every airport in the country (how Gestapo-esque).

If your property is stolen by a corrupt TSA agent, you can file a complaint with them but don't ever expect to see your property again.

In fact, citizens of other countries visiting the US can be subjected to investigation and removal for simply stating any criticism of the Administration or the President (So much for free speech or to hold a different opinion other than that which the Administration should have).

Americans have had visits from the FBI when their open criticism of the Administration has been reported to authorities.

The Washington press has practically lived in terror of this Administration. Reporters have had to play along or risk their access being cut off.

This is free speech, a free press, the right to have an opinion that isn't sanctioned by the Federal Government?

All this under a man who swore on a Bible (that he professes is the Word of God) that he would uphold the Constitution.

Repeatedly, he has shown himself to be a liar. He didn't know what to do as the events of 9/11 transpired in New York. He didn't act on the briefings he received from his intelligence network (he was in power, not Clinton). He was too busy having fun at the ranch with his pals (check his record; the most vacation days of any sitting President before 9/11).

He, for all his power and the command of the largest military force on Earth, hasn't managed to bring bin Laden to account.

And when Americans make remarks like Canada is just America Junior, you don't make any friends. We're reasonably well-educated, socially progressive, with two major cultures and a respect for many more. Many people who are the bitterest of enemies elsewhere in the world live here in peace.

And many of my American friends are seriously looking to move north because of the actions of this Administration -- from the embarrassment of failure after failure to respond properly to crisis after crisis, to the erosion of civil liberty, to the defeated attempt to use the Constitution (a limit on government, not the citizens -- a fact that escapes Mr. Bush) to try to strip the rights of one class of citizens for no other reason than bigotry (religious or otherwise).

My dislike of Bush and his Administration has nothing to do with my being Republican or Democrat. I have no stake in either party.

My dislike comes from my observation that he has been the worst thing to happen to the US in 50 years. He is just one more destructive influence toward the decline of a once-great nation that is slowly sliding into ruin. It might take 50 or 150 years for it to happen -- but it is happening.

Here's my take: America -- Home of the Brave, Land of the Free with Liberty and Justice for All (White Rich Folks).

Finally, one last thing: OK. Debate aside from election stolen or rigged or what have you. Yes, he was elected for two terms.

And you got what you deserved.

-Grendel