Cross-posted at the Writing on the Wal.
Truth on the Market took me to this post from Hodak Value which takes what now seems to be the basic conservative/libertarian position on the Human Rights Watch Wal-Mart report:
Today is International Workers' Day throughout the socialist and communist world, including the Daily Kos, who took this opportunity to slam Wal-Mart. They noted that Wal-Mart was investigated by Human Rights Watch, noting that:
Human Rights Watch, a non-governmental group based in New York, is best known for scathing reports on political issues such as the Rwandan genocide and the Congo's use of children in its military.
The clear implication, of course, is that Wal-Mart's treatment of its workers rises to a level of concern consistent with genocide and child conscription, because it's non-union.
No, actually that's not the clear implication at all. The right to organize is a basic human right protected by the UN Declaration of Human Rights and other international law. Some violations of international law are obviously more cause for concern than others.
I'll use an analogy from Wally World itself. Steal anything less than $25 at Wal-Mart and they won't prosecute. Steal a flat screen TV and they throw the book at you. You are a thief either way, but one theft is much more cause for concern than the other.
Yet even breaking human rights that are not necessarily life-threatening is still a problem. This is from the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions:
115 trade unionists were murdered for defending workers’ rights in 2005, while more than 1,600 were subjected to violent assaults and some 9,000 arrested, according to the ICFTU’s Annual Survey of Trade Union Rights violations, published today. Nearly 10,000 workers were sacked for their trade union involvement, and almost 1,700 detained.
I can see the new Wal-Mart ads now:
Wal-Mart: Still not genocidal.
Wal-Mart: Not as bad as Castro and Stalin.
Wal-Mart: We only violate the minor basic human rights.
Add your suggestions below.
JR