I wasn’t there at the media-fest put on by Wal-Mart in Bentonville yesterday but it seemed like a swell affair, though none of the media accounts said anything about what food was served (C’mon, get to the important stuff!). I’ll leave most of my specific thoughts about the flaws in the company’s defense to tomorrow—after all, don’t want to give everything for the debate tonight here in New York.

One small thing that struck me: CEO Lee Scott claims that critics of Wal-Mart’s in New Orleans and Cincinnati are now praising the stores…which leaves me wondering why those supposed critics-turned-supporters weren’t by his side or even named? Who are these phantom coverts?

Anyway, anyone wanting to see a live webcast of the debate tonight can go to www.freespeech.org and at some later date there will be a C-SPAN taped broadcast. And for those still interested in attending, here are the details.