At Christmas, my liberal sister made a show of buying gifts from mom-and-pop type businesses. She paid more for those gifts than if she had gotten comparable gifts at chain stores, but then she's well-off and can afford to pay more. So there's an elitism involved in the critique of Walmart, I think; like K-Mart, it's viewed as a place for the great unwashed masses. People who can afford to shop at upscale stores like to ridicule the chain stores.
"my liberal sister made a show of buying gifts from mom-and-pop type businesses"
Some people get sad when they see a homeless man rummaging around in a garbage can; others when they see a dead dog or cat at the side of the road. I get sad when I see a small business close. These institutions represent the dreams of every day people who are willing to risk everything for the American dream. I love it when I hear they've hit it big and made millions, but my customer loyalty will always be to the little guy who's just starting and still dreaming of becoming a Sam Walton or Bill Gates. You see, they're all cut from the same cloth.