Black Friday Rant

Well, today is Thanksgiving, a wonderful day in which we give thanks to God for all that we have. Unfortunately, for many this holiday has turned into a day of preparation for the intense first day of Christmas shopping known as Black Friday. It is called Black Friday because of the huge profits many retailers make, causing them to be "in the black," as opposed to "in the red." Most stores have big discounts on items which means that scores of people line up hours in advance hoping to be one of the lucky ones to partake in these deals. I have been seeing advertisements on televsion for the big sales that many stores are having. Just yesterday I saw an add for a clothing store that will be opening at 3am!

I see two problems with all of this material madness.

First, Thanksgiving is such a wonderful holiday we have in the U.S.A. and for many it has been pushed aside to make way for their desire to save a bit of money on Christmas gifts. Rather than being focused on what we can get for cheap, we should be giving thanks for what we have.

Second, because most of these stores that have deals on items only have a limited quantity, it has lead to some serious competition. As mentioned above, people camp out all night waiting for the store to open. Then, as we hear about in the news each year, as the store doors open there are mass stampedes with people being injured and sometimes killed and, of course, there are the disputes and fights over the items. Here is an article about last year's madness in which a Wal-Mart employee was crushed and two men shot each other at a toy store.

Personally, I think it's crazy. Christmas is a celebration of the life of Christ and the life that we all have through Him. Yet we're willing to kill to buy presents to celebrate that?

Please join me in praying that people will find the true meaning of Christmas and not be so focused on getting the best stuff for the best deals that they are willing to hurt others to get it.