So this past Thanksgiving I was on a little bubbly detour and saw a couple bring a Thanksgiving meal to a homeless man. I was very moved by this as I have always wanted to serve the homeless on Thanksgiving for years but never have. I must say seeing such act of Kindness really moved me. It made the rest of Thanksgiving day a much more appreciative holiday for myself. Perhaps being in my twenties has made me more appreciative of life, I'm not sure exactly.
But whatever it is, I can honestly say that I don't think that MOST people who participate in Black Friday are ever going to be moved to such emotions that regard others well being. I say this not as a joke or to be rude , but as an honest person who is truly disgusted from all the stories I heard about the "Shopping Holiday". I had a good friend give me a sad report on her Black Friday shopping at several locations. Wal-Mart seemed to be the worst, so That's who I will give the shout out to. They had no means of crowd control, according to my friends first hand account. They simply wrapped up flats of products, that only escalated the suspense of what item would be there. She said there was shoving, hair pulling, and rushing towards the electronics.
A second story that I heard was one on the radio about a nine year old girl. She was sent to pick out a game as her mother waited in line to get --yet again-- another electronic and she came running back with a red face crying uncontrollably. The little girl reported to her mother that she was punched in the face by a "mom" who wanted her game. Even more disgusting is the mother of the beaten little girl didn't want to get out of line to do anything about it!
I guess what I'm so disgusted with is the fact that this type of behavior is happening literally mere hours after we have all had a dinner with our loved ones and give thanks for them in our lives. I know Americans in general are disturbingly materialistic, but what I am really wondering is where is the disconnect? How do we go from giving thanks and then punching innocent people or for some, children in the face for a game? How is this okay? I really believe that this has now become a sport now. All for the experience. I believe many people are now going out to act a certain ridiculous way, just to say they got into a scrimmage on Black Friday.
So I have vowed to take a journalistic stand. I am now calling Black Friday, " Savage Friday"...word choice is appropriate...and think I'm going to take a video camera out and record the "savage" acts of people across Southern California. I can't wait. Do you all think it would matter if more coverage was given to Black Friday's gone wrong?
Sad, but poignant observations. I'm afraid the commercialism and consumerism are a vicious cycle.In order to measure the present day economic situation improvements, we need the consumerism; in like fashion, for unemployment to be eradicated, we need commercialism. I'm not certain that either of the aforementioned "isms" are really the cause of bad behavior. Seemingly, as you stated, we allow bad behavior to perpetuate. Collectively, we step back, shake our heads, but then walk away from unpleasant situations without lending our opinion to the unacceptability of such grand gestures of rudeness. I would love to see a video of people engaged in bad behavior, but only if it could be broadcast on giant TV screens at the perpetrator's house of worship, place of employment, neighborhood and any other place where these ill-mannered, selfish and self-serving individuals might be recognized.
ReplyDeleteThat is awful. I have never participated in Black Friday because it seems like no one can control themselves. I think punching little girls is a sign that something need to be done, eh?
ReplyDeleteWhitney
I agree with you completely!! It's a never ending cycle unfortunately!! I, personally, would NEVER put any purchase or item before my daughter!! These "amazing" electronics will eventually get old and need to be replaced with a newer version and your family is irreplaceable!! We can go on and on about this but I can guarantee you...next year will be full of the same ignorant people!! Yuk!!!:( Loved your blog!!!;)
ReplyDeleteWell said! And worth thinking about. We live in a world with such contrasts.
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