Edelman and the Flogging of America by DIGITAL STREET JOURNAL is the finest analysis of the Edelman-Wal-Mart joint that resulted in the Wal-Marting Across America fiasco.

If you don’t have time to read the article, here is your take-away warning,

“This is not about public relations. This is about public affairs. There’s a difference. Public affairs is decidedly more political and comes with a different set of standards and values.”

Military-grade fisking — ruthlessly detailed point-by-point criticism that highlights errors, disputes the analysis of presented facts, or highlights other problems in a statement, article, or essay — is generally only aimed at public affair campaigns.

In the current political climate, Wal-Mart is political, which is why the Wal-Mart campaign is run out of Edelman’s Public Affairs office in DC and not in New York or Chicago.