Introduction Jeffrey Seglin, a business ethics columnist for the New York Times, attended an event sponsored by the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics. He described two Wal-Marts, one as evil and the other as good. The evil company is very, very big and does everything it can to get bigger. They use illegal immigrants to clean floors and are accused of locking employees inside at night. They practice gender discrimination, pay low wages and harm suppliers and competition. The bad guy “is the enemy of all that is good and right in our nation” (Seglin, 2004). The good Wal-Mart Seglin describes as thrifty, industrious and offers fair deals. They serve society and, thanks to their exceptional distribution system, they pass on earnings to everyone. The company employs insightful managers who "democratize the American dream." The company boosts productivity and helps fight inflation. The good one is “America's most admired company” (Seglin, 2004). Wal-Mart is a massive global retailer that employs millions of people, serves millions of customers each year, and operates in over 13 markets (Walmart/AboutUs). Before 2008, they were consistently rated highly by their peers and appeared on Fortune Magazine's list of the 20 Most Admired Companies. The question is though: is the company ethical? This article examines various criticisms and praises in specific areas and applies normative theories in an attempt to answer this question. Employment Wal-Mart was found guilty of discrimination against women workers, minorities, demeaning workers with disabilities and inequality based on sexual orientation. Wal-Mart was found guilty of gender bias in 2004. Customers sued Wal-Mart alleging racial profiling as did a bunch of bla...... middle of paper...... Markkula Center for AppliedEthics. http://www.scu.edu/ethics/publications/ethicalperspectives/wal-mart.htmlShaw, W. H. (2008). Business Ethics (6th ed.). Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth Velasquez Manuel, Moberg, Dennis, Meyer, Michael J., Shanks, Thomas, McLean, Margaret R., DeCosse, David, Andre, Claire and Hanson Markkula, Kirk O. (1988). Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University. Problems of Ethics, V. 1, No. 2. Sobel, Russell S. &Dean, Andrea M. (2008). Did Wal-Mart bury mom and dad?: Wal-Mart's impact on self-employment and small business in the United States. Regulation magazine. http://www.be.wvu.edu/divecon/econ/sobel/WalMart/v31n1-1.pdfWal-Mart. Who we are. http://walmartstores.com/AboutUs/Wal-Mart. Information sheet. http://walmartstores.com/FactsNews/FactSheets/Wal-MartWatch. Problems. http://walmartwatch.com/issues/