I would venture a guess that Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT) is responsible for more confrontations in city council meetings across the country than any other company in the United States. In my neck of the woods, the company has been stymied for many years in its attempt to build a Superstore to replace its small and aging regular outlet.

Sometimes it's just an objection to the actual physical size of the proposed store. Big-box outlets such as Wal-Mart, Motley Fool Inside Value pick Home Depot (NYSE:HD), and Lowe's (NYSE:LOW) can have a tough time finding attractive locations. But there's a special hatred reserved for Wal-Mart. The company, according to its critics, doesn't pay its employees enough, doesn't have good benefits, isn't unionized, sucks money out of local communities and sends it to Arkansas, uses sweatshop labor in Third World countries, breaks labor and sex discrimination laws, changes the culture of the community for the worse, and puts good old mom-and-pop stores out of business. In short, the complaints go, Wal-Mart is a poor local citizen.

Wal-Mart's recent attempt to open an industrial bank in Utah has really gotten the opposition up in arms. "Just think if Enron had opened a bank," said a banking industry group leader, in a comment typical of those coming from the opposition. All that Wal-Mart had in mind was a debit- and credit-card-processing center so that the company could save money on more than 140 million transactions carried out each month at its stores. After all, competitor Target (NYSE:TGT) has such a bank. But then again, Wal-Mart has to fight enormous battles to pursue its agenda. If I owned a bank, I sure wouldn't want Wal-Mart invading my turf -- I might have to reduce my fees for a bounced check from the current $30 or so.

Even when Wal-Mart does something that its critics would normally support, the company takes flak. In late October, Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott unveiled an agenda that included supporting an increase in the minimum wage and advocating a switch to renewable-energy sources. The company was immediately accused of using a "publicity stunt meant to repair a faltering public image." And besides, advocating an increase in the minimum wage was seemingly just an attempt to put its competitors out of business.

Usually, the most vocal opponents of Wal-Mart belong to one of two groups. The first group could be described as the competition. Owners and some employees of local businesses obviously don't want to have to compete with Wal-Mart. The second group is harder to define, but I would call them elitists. These folks think that Wal-Mart will somehow destroy the character of their town. It doesn't matter how many junkyards are visible from the highway or how many gangs currently operate in the community -- Wal-Mart will be the force that destroys our way of life.

Fortunately for Wal-Mart, there's one group that seems to like what the company is doing -- its customers. In this world of sharply increasing energy prices, there's definitely a demand for lower-priced consumer goods, and this is an area where Wal-Mart does a great job. The elitists may not shop there, but those people the elitists are protecting and, in some cases, representing continue to shop at Wal-Mart and appreciate the value they're receiving.

As an investor, I'm conflicted about my approach to Wal-Mart. On the one hand, the company has been amazingly successful and will still probably do well in spite of all the opposition. On the other hand, do I want to own a company that has to fight tooth and nail just to be treated fairly in its quest to grow its business? I think I might opt to invest in a lesser company like Dollar General (NYSE:DG) that has a similar P/E, a better five-year growth record, better margins, and better return on capital. And best of all, I don't have to defend my ownership position with all of my elitist friends.

Roll back the Wal-Mart-related Foolishness:

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Fool contributor Richard Moore has no positions in the companies mentioned in this article.