Keith Olbermann Continues Feud Against Wal-Mart, Wal-Mart Responds

Last Wednesday, Keith Olbermann introduced the story of Debbie Shank, a 52-year old former Wal-Mart employee and mother of a soldier killed in Iraq who suffered serious brain damage after getting hit by a truck and was subsequently sued by Wal-Mart to recover $470,000 in medical expenses (Shank had won a substantial settlement from the trucking company and, after legal fees, took home $417,000). Olbermann, in the clip seen below, declared Wal-Mart his "Worst Person in the World" and has subsequently named Wal-Mart to his "Worst Persons" list every night since.

Women's Wear Daily/Memo Pad's Stephanie D. Smith reports today that Wal-Mart's corporate communications director, Daphne Moore, has responded with a statement:

"This is a very sad case and we understand that people will naturally have an emotional and sympathetic reaction. While the Shank case involves a tragic situation, the reality is that the health plan is required to protect its assets so that it can pay the future claims of other associates and their family members. These plans are funded by associate premiums and company contributions. Any money recovered is returned to the health plan, not to the business. This is done out of fairness to everyone who contributes to and benefits from the plan. The Supreme Court recently declined to hear an appeal of the case, which concludes all litigation. While Wal-Mart's benefit plan was entitled to more than the amount that remained in the Shank trust, the plan only recovered the funds remaining in that trust," which according to reports amounted to about $277,000.

Comments

[jetgirl]

Not enough. Give the woman back her money. I refuse to shop at Wal-Mart until this happens. This will be hard considering I live in a small town and it's really the one place to shop, but I will do it.

[BOfever]

Enjoy spending 30% more of your cash then :)

[WLA]

As a responsible consumer, it does not bother me in the least to pay more at my local shops. I know the families that own them and work there. I have never regretted spending money there for a moment. We also really enjoy the farmer's markets. I have never had the need or desire to enter a wal mart.

[swift goat pet for truth]

My sense of ethics and morality is worth than a few bucks to me.

But, to each his own.

[k8k9]

don't stop now, Keith! walmart could have picked up the tab and paid back the insurance company FOR Ms. Shank - if for no other reason than her son lost his life in Iraq to protect employees of walmart and the insurnace company. keep at 'em.

[alaintex]

I guess that's true, but by the same logic, Olbermann could have picked up the tab too, and didn't.

So I guess in this case:

Olbermann = WalMart

[BOfever]

Take it a step further:

Olbermann = MSNBC = GE = BILLIONS IN PROFIT = WALMART

If corporations are bad, that must mean Olbermann is bad . . . that is a given though.

[nightprowler]

she worked for wal mart- and had insurance u dumbass she didnt work for olberman.i hope u get hit by a truck and your employer sues you ,your the worst person in the world today congrats.

[mudfiles]

Can't wait to see his counter-response. If they think this is going to go away with some lame response, they're in for a big shock.

[rwe]

How about... They got 1Mil$$ , the ambulance chacer got his, the woman may have been at fault and Olbermanson is after the evil Walmart beacause Hillary was a board member.Sorry butthead progreassives this may be sad but not wrong... Oh and another progresso radio station went Gospel in Sacramento. Why did not the tort lawyer only take $150,00?

[mshawn]

So if someone got money from a settlement, they were automatically represented by an ambulance chaser? We're not talking about a 100 million dollar settlement. We're talking about money for long-term care. The woman is permanently disabled. Not all civil litigators are ambulance chasers, just as not all corporations are corrupt and immoral like Walmart.

This is typical corporate non-responsibility: Create a provision in your health insurance plan that allows for such heartless acts to occur, and then say, "We're just following the rules" when that provision screws a permanently disabled woman out of the money she needs for her long-term care.

I understand that company have to make a profit and have to answer to their shareholders. But I find it hard to believe that all shareholders are greedy and compassionless. How about a corporation like Walmart establishing an ethics committee to make such decisions? And then the ethics committee has to justify their actions to the board and the shareholders? I find it hard to believe that any of the shareholders would scream and cry because the multi-billion dollar corporation didn't sue a disabled woman for her last $277,000.

[HopeandChange]

A federal judge says House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, can collect more than $1 million in his lawsuit against Democratic Rep. Jim McDermott of Washington state.

The decision was issued in a decade-long dispute over an illegally taped telephone call. In the 1996 call, Republican leaders discussed an ethics case against then-House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga. A Florida couple recorded the cell phone call on a radio scanner and McDermott leaked the tape to two newspapers.

McDermott should resign today!

[Annette]

Why?? In my view our employees shouldn't have ethic'c secrets from us, their bosses. I believe that any emloyee of the US people shoud have their ethics problems made public. If they have ethics problems they shouldn't be allowed to hide them.

McDermott should get a medal !!

[HopeandChange]

Then let's see all the details of Obama's land dealings with Tony R. I'll bet you don't feel the same way now do you?

[Chris]

Annette it is a for of illegal wiretapping.

Based upon what you are advocatign then it woudl be ok for the feds to spy on each other becuase they all vote and therfore are all each other's boss.

[WLA]

What does this post have to do with this article? I guess I can't expect a reply because you are probably just comment-sniping this onto every thread you can.

[SZM]

Completely disgusting. I'm never going into a Walmart ever again. The Supreme Court refused to hear the appeal?? Thanks a lot for your completely retarded Supreme Court appointments Bush. Can somebody tell me what part of our government G.W. Bush hasn't completely trashed? Bet you can't.

[ObserverinVancouver]

I hope the media pursue Sen. Cllinton for her views on this story since she is a former Wal Mart director. Ask her, if Wal Mart had done this while she was a director, would she have left the board as she said she would leave a church where she disagreed with the pastor (a la Rev. Wright). She should be hounded to the gates of Hell for serving on Wal Mart's board.

[MikeDu]

Ho hum. What a yawn. You've got to go all the way to Walmart to come up with a new Clinton 'gotcha' question. If you're going to ask her anything why not ask her a SUBSTANTIAL question on the concerns of the world, not some dumb-arse 'gotcha' question.

[ginnypoo]

Keith has a 22 year old girlfriend that campaigns forObama.....and s making Keith "very happy" because he is down-right appaplectic about Clinton and Walmart....his girlfriend must be 'awesome' at what ever she does for Keith for him to trash all the credibility he built up ranting about Bush all this time....now his GF gets a hotness for Obama and Keith rants and raves everyday...calling HRC every name but a child-of-God.......it's the GF I'm most impressed wih...she has Keith trained exceptionally well. The other night, i swear she was actually under the desk "encouraging" him.

[lovethesinner]

Only fourteen days till Bill and Hillary's tax returns are released. Is there income from stocks she has in Wal-Mart? Wanna bet the labor busting she did on the board led to the plan to recover this woman's medical benefits? That's bullshit, BTW, about the company not profiting by taking the money back. That money they took back comes off the money they pay out.

[SILVANUS]

You know, you can alter the course of any asshole in the country by just not giving him or her your money. Turn off the TV while you're at it. park your Car two days a week and get everyone else to do so. You'd see change. We have more power than we think if we would just group.

[tbrnotb]

Ask the people in Wooster, Ohio how they feel about Wal Mart. Less than five years after Wooster's major employer, RubberMaid, was name one of the top companies in America, Wal Mart decided it needed more profits. They went to China with a box of RubberMaid products and had the Chinese make them at a reduced cost. They want back to RubberMaid and said, produce this stuff at the same prices or we're going with the Chinese. Since RubberMaid could no longer compete and WalMart was its biggest customer, they virtually went out of business. And the city of Wooster. Ohio? You guess what happened.

America do you really need those cheap tube sox?

[kevx]

Yep. Wal-Mart sucks.

[MikeDu]

Walmart killed off Vlassic pickles too. Same thing. Forced them to sell their product at below cost and it killed 'em.

[Enid]

America want cheap sock.
They will do all most anything to get them

They care nothing about who gets heart to get
cheap socks.

[impatient]

Ny the way, I LOVE LOVE LOVE KEith Olbermann, I don't care how many times he robs the cradle!

[impatient]

I don't think that's at all shocking. It's called rationalization. And in this case, it's not even that.

They can't get around the fact that they have stolen money they are not entitled to, have ruined what was left of this woman's life (her husband having to DIVORCE her to get her adequate medical care....

I was starting to soften my view of walmart. But I am back to hating them. THAT is what I want to write tot their CEO and say. They almost had me, and they lsot me again.

Scum, every last one of them.

[deminmo]

Having talked to ex-employees and ones looking for another
employment option, Walmart is definately a poster child for
Capitalism at it's worse. It does offer benefits, but it's difficult
to get enough hours to qualify. As far as wages go, I am sure
they would say they are competitive. Reality is, like other retail
stores, they keep wages below what it would take for most
families with one wage earner, to afford housing and expenses.
(There are people who are happy working for Walmart.)
When you read the reasons for taking money from a disabled
person, you get the answer why more people do not have healthcare.
The other reality is, in a lot of towns including mine, Walmart is one
of if not the only, big employer.

[nick1936]

WQAL-MART GOT THEIR MONEY BACK THIS WOMAN LOST HER SON AND STILL NEEDS MEDICAL TREATMENT DOES THIS MEAN WAL MART IS STILL RESPONSIBLE FOR HER BILLS

[ObamaEdwards]

The shocking part is that Daphne Moore and Wal-Mart think that their answer is an adequate one.

[justice58]

Keith is right. Wal-Mart is scum! Keep hitting them hard Keith! I love Keith Olbermann!

[WLA]

"Frontline: Is Wal Mart Good for America?" You can watch online at:

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/walmart/view/