I'm sure none of this is true. I know because I've read so not only at DU, but here at FR many have told me so too.
Walmart beneficial?? Come on, all those customers can't be right!!!!!
I think he hits on a good point, that Big Box stores invite specialization and tend to spruce up areas where they are located. In Quincy, MA a Home Depot opened about 10 years ago on a former steel/scrap metal yard in an area which was blighted. Today that same area is vibrant with many new businesses.
It's difficult to comprehend sometimes what the modern Walmart is. I think of it as an aircraft hangar filled with merchandise at sometimes absurd prices. It's like that Brit says in the column: one is tempted to presume in looking at the prices that the staff can't do their sums.