Always low standards!

So we're clear on where I stand.

You won't see any of this shit on my site. Guaranteed.

Brian Pickrell, a blogger, recently posted a note on his Web site attacking state legislation that would force Wal-Mart Stores to spend more on employee health insurance. "All across the country, newspaper editorial boards — no great friends of business — are ripping the bills," he wrote.

It was the kind of pro-Wal-Mart comment the giant retailer might write itself. And, in fact, it did.

Several sentences in Mr. Pickrell's Jan. 20 posting — and others from different days — are identical to those written by an employee at one of Wal-Mart's public relations firms and distributed by e-mail to bloggers.

Under assault as never before, Wal-Mart is increasingly looking beyond the mainstream media and working directly with bloggers, feeding them exclusive nuggets of news, suggesting topics for postings and even inviting them to visit its corporate headquarters.

The good Doctor adheres to journalistic principles and standards, so you can rely on what you see here. The news and opinions you see here are supported by facts, not what I wish were facts, and are not fed to me by some PR flack. There's no hidden agenda here. The agenda here is to exercise my First Amendment right to free speech while it still exists, to express my opinion that George Bush is the worst president in American history and my hope that he is removed from office and held accountable for his crimes. And, when the baseball season starts, to talk a lot of Red Sox.

But the strategy raises questions about what bloggers, who pride themselves on independence, should disclose to readers. Wal-Mart, the nation's largest private employer, has been forthright with bloggers about the origins of its communications, and the company and its public relations firm, Edelman, say they do not compensate the bloggers.

Wal-Mart isn't paying them? Shocking. Hey, at least they're consistent.

I guess that means that the bloggers in question really believe that Wal-Mart shouldn't be forced to pay more to provide health insurance to its workers. I, on the other hand, believe that Wal-Mart shouldn't have to be forced to pay more for employee health insurance. I would hope that basic human decency would make such a bill unnecessary. But most corporations value money more than the health of their employees. And corporations are supposed to value money above everything else. Which is why we need laws forbidding them from saving money by cutting corners in areas like worker safety and waste disposal.

And that's why it's stupid to leave it to corporations to provide health insurance to their employees. Health insurance costs money, the only thing most corporations care about. So when health insurance costs get to be too high, as they are now, you get exactly what we're getting now -- employers raising the amounts that employees pay toward their health insurance while wages stagnate , or eliminating the benefit altogether. It's a reprehensible thing to do, but it makes Wall Street cheer.

When, oh when, is the United States going to enter the 20th Century and adopt a single-payer system? When is fiscal common sense going to trump the millions paid by health insurance companies to lobbyists and campaigns? When will more than half of the members of our legislative branch start working for the people instead of the special interests? When will we be able to go to a doctor and have the first question be about our health and not about our insurance?

Hmm. This was supposed to be a rant against Wal-Mart. OK. I never shop at Wal-Mart. Ever. Doing so enables them to pay less-than-livable wages -- the average pay of an "associate" working at Wal-Mart, the largest private employer in the United States, is less than $20,000 per year -- and enables them to make part-time employees wait two years before becoming eligible for health insurance, 180 days for full-timers.

The company recently announced changes to its health insurance coverage. One reform is to reduce that two-year waiting period for part-timers. Another reform is expanded access to a plan that covers three doctor visits and three generic prescriptions per year.

Last year, Wal-Mart rolled out a Value Health Plan that costs $11 a month for workers, and $9 a month for their children, said company spokeswoman Jennifer Holder. The health plan includes three doctor's visits per insured individual, and three maintenance medications annually.

About this plan, the New York Times wrote

That plan allows for several prescriptions and doctors visits before a $1,000 deductible kicks in. But it is unlikely to cover a complicated illness or expensive hospital stay during the first year, when there is a $25,000 insurance cap. In addition, out-of-pocket payments range from $300 for prescriptions to $1,000 for hospital stays.

Gee, thanks.

Another lowlight is the re-establishment of the company town -- Wal-Mart's experiments with in-store health clinics in Arkansas, Indiana, Florida and Oklahoma. The company charges associates only $45 to $50 for access to health care, Wal-Mart style.

And you better believe that even these shitty half-measures wouldn't be happening if not for the state laws that some idiot bloggers are railing against at the behest of Wal-Mart.