Mall Madness

Yes, another good holiday ruined by materialism.

 

And yet there were dozens of places where there was no madness, which received no media coverage. Blame the media for emphasizing the craziness instead of the sane.

 

Each person has a different perspective, but IMO, the stupidest person on earth is the one standing in line for hours or even days in some cases to purchase some kind of device. I cannot think of one object on this earth worth the effort. My goal in life is to stay away from places like malls and Walmart.

 

Let's go out after we spend the day celebrating our thankfulness and exhibit the exact opposite attitude

 

I'm a conservative but I would be in favor of more government regulation of the marketplace. If they were to pass a law banning most retail stores from being open on Thanksgiving Thursday, I would support it. With stores now opening on Thanksgiving evening, even Thanksgiving afternoons, it means that some people will miss Thankgiving dinner with their families to stand in line to buy something. That's so wrong.

 

Conservatives do not want to ban people from making personal choices.

 

What about these?

Abortion
Gay marriage
Prostitution
Legalization of drugs
Alcohol sales on Sundays

 

Yes that is the same thing.

 

Neither Janice nor I will be found anywhere close to the mall today.

That said, I'd like to offer a contrarian opinion to the viewing with alarm over Black Friday.

I am saddened by the behavior I'm seeing reported around the country. It seems to have coarsened over the years.

But here in Paducah, we've not heard of any of that kind of stuff. For those who waited for hours in line, this is an adventure. It's fun.

And it is capitalism at its finest. These are willing buyers and willing sellers. It is economic activity for which we should be grateful given the state of our economy over the past few years.

The willing buyers have calculated the cost in time and energy required to buy something at a much lower cost that they would have to pay tomorrow, or two days ago. The sellers have calculated what it will take to induce those buyers to pay their asking price.

Also, keep in mind, that the economic activity between now and Christmas will make or break many businesses.

It is unseemly to me to criticize businesses for doing what they think they need to do to to make a profit; and then to criticize buyers for buying. We have to keep in mind that the primary reason businesses exist is to make a profit.

And ask those who have been without jobs, but now can work through the holiday season to earn a little money which they prefer.

Haven't we been having Black Friday for years? When did it suddenly become evidence of a materialistic culture?

Stores have sales. People wait for those sales to buy stuff for less. What in the world is wrong with that?

The fact that some folks act like Cretins is a separate issue altogether.

On Thanksgiving day, more than two dozen agencies and organizations offered free Thanksgiving dinner to anybody who came. Where did that food come from? Who paid for it? Who prepared it? Who donated money and foodstuffs? the question answers itself. None of it came from people who didn't have jobs; none of it came from poor people; none of it came from businesses who are losing money.

I rest my case.

 

The LAST thing we need is gov't regulations involving Black Friday. Sheeshhh.

 

In today's paper there is a full-page ad for a supermarket we patronize. Janice will make a list of stuff we need . Or simply want, even though we don't need it.



At at the bottom of the sales receipt will be a line which says "You saved $______."

We might even have a coupon or two.

Is this materialistic?

That would seem to me to be a responsible stewardship of the money God has given us.

 

My wife and I do not go out on BF. Not because of a fear of materialism but because we do not see the value in dealing with the crowds. Add to that the fact that online shopping has black Friday deals as well.

Regardless of the reasons people do or do not go out on this day of the year what we can be sure of is when the first response to the difficulties of this day is to regulate via government force then conservatism has been thrown out the window.

 

If you read my post I'm not suggesting regulations for Black Friday. I'm suggesting regulation on business activities on Thanksgiving.

 

ok the last thing we need is gov't regulations on business activities on Thanksgiving. We do not need any more gov't regulations in any area of life. Silliness

 

First of all, we all know you will never rest your case, LOL. For me, Black Friday is not a matter of alarm, or government regulation, it is a matter of it being an obnoxious experience. I have no desire to be in the middle of a rude, demanding public.

 

I agree. As I said above, I do not want to be anywhere near today's self centered rapid public. I am ordering what I have to online and watching James Bond movies.

 

I don't know where you live but surely they have "Blue Laws" there. For example, can you buy off-sale alcohol 24/7? Here in Minnesota you can't buy off-sale alcohol on Sundays. Also you can't buy automobiles on Sunday.

Why is "the last thing we need is gov't regulations on business activities on Thanksgiving"?

It's an indirect way of fostering family values. You have people that will skip gathering with their families on Thanksgiving because they are coveting some new gadget or HDTV. "Sorry Gramma, not coming to your Thanksgiving dinner because I have to get a 40" HDTV for $299."

 

LOL. Me too! Funny.