By Emily Smith
George School
When I woke up on Friday morning after Thanksgiving, I checked Google News. At 6:30 the morning after a national holiday, what could possibly be going on?
But then I was surprised with news of another year's Black Friday misadventures.
Some lady in a town outside of Los Angeles pepper-sprayed fellow Black Friday shoppers at a Wal-Mart shortly after 10 p.m. in the race for a cheap Xbox 360. About 20 people were injured, police were summoned, and an investigation ensued.
The pepper-wielding woman left the store before the cops arrived but turned herself in Saturday. Some witnessed reported the woman became upset at the shoving of the unruly crowd and sprayed in panic, but others claim she was trying to "get an advantage" and beat the rabble to the cheap gaming system.
Whatever her reasons, this behavior is absolutely ridiculous.
Are prices that low that you need to jeopardize others? Are you really starting a fight over Christmas presents for your kids? Presents that are supposed to express love and cheer? Endangering someone is not worth saving a few extra dollars, or even a few hundred dollars.
This is not the first incident of Black Friday violence. In fact, on the Wikipedia page for the American event, "violence" has its own section, summarizing the big incidents of past Black Fridays.
It includes the 2008 death of a Wal-Mart employee, trampled by shoppers-gone-wild who broke down the doorsas he prepared to open said doors at 5 a.m. When other employees tried to stop the frenzied people from stomping all over the man and to help him up and into safety, they were ignored and the man was killed under the feet of Christmas customers. The man was only 34 years old.
Because it obviously doesn't matter that the man's family will never see him again as long as someone gets good gifts for cheap prices. Isn't that some heart-warming holiday spirit?
Wikipedia tells of 10 outbreaks of shopping violence in the past six years, mostly at Wal-Mart. Prehaps Wal-Mart and other retailers will take the hint and start downplaying Black Friday. But probably not. Why make less money?
Perhaps American culture will begin to see that gifts and saving money aren't the important parts of the holiday season. Perhapsconsumers will realize that the gifts themselves are not what makes up Christmas. It's the effort you put in to show your loved ones that you care, that you want to make them happy; the tangible presents are nothing compared to the love and kindness they represent.
No bystander needs to get hurt for you to spread happiness and love.
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