Sugar and Spice Socks

As there is some evidence that WalMart intentionally engineers mob-like hysteria on Black Friday for the profits they will rake in, without taking precautionary crown-control measures, they perhaps have earned some hatin'

For some details/research:
http://nielsenhayden.com/makinglight/archives/011912.html#011912

By all means, hate on Walmart all you like. Their deplorable business policies and treatment of their work staff make them a worthy target.

Just like rats in a grainery.

Although it is very easy to hate on Wal-Mart. you can't place the blame entirely on them. They get the publicity becuase they are the largest retailer in the world. The black Friday incidents are not limited to Wal-Mart, every large retailer uses the same practices (to some extent) for their Black Friday sales.

The blame should sit evenly on the consumers as well as the retailers.

Crowd control is a critical factor on days like this, and these corporations don't want to lay out additional expenses for security, thereby cutting into the profits.

They should hire extra personal, just for that one day, and arm them with tasers, pepper spray or something similar (I'd go to work for Wal-mart then,and turn them loose.

but the thing most people miss is the lack of personable accountability is is frightening. Not just on this day, but throughout the year. Not to mention pure common sense...if there is 1000 people crowding into a store for the same LIMITED QUANTITY ITEM, you need to stop think, is it worth risking injury/death to save $50.00 on that Wii/X-Box/Playstation/(insert current hot toy here)? Is it really worth injuring/ killing someone else so junior can have that 1 toy he really wants?

It's truly sickening watching the news and seeing reports of this kind of crap every year.

I personally stay home on Black Fridays and miss the deals. The one time I did venture into a Wal-Mart on that day, I almost got into a fight over a bag of cat food! What the hell?

I think the Black Friday sales should be discontinued all together. There has to be simpler,safer way to maintain profits and continue to offer the best holiday deals.

I'm with Chuck.. well except I am not down with tasers. But other than that, the onus is on both parties. The retailers KNOW that these things could happen, and so should have the proper measures in place to deal with it. If you're intentionally drawing a crowd, you HAVE to have crowd control.

On the other hand, people should not be pushing, shoving, stampeding. But again, if people were made to stand in an orderly line, then there would be less of an opportunity for a huge mob at the doors.

So, it is on everyone, but the retailers are the ones who should be in the position to control the shoppers so that they don't behave like a mob.

And I also agree that Black Friday should be discontinued - I don't really see it being worth people getting killed or permanently disabled over. We don't have it here in Canada and we don't seem any worse off for it (although we do have our Boxing Day sales, but I don't think people typically suffer any lasting injuries from them).

I was actually kidding about the tasers...

Haha good. Our local police just tasered a deer of all things.. it's a hot topic up here!

I work retail. Went through a Walmart black friday about ten years ago, and last year and this I'm at Toys R Us. Those of us over on the registers laugh and cringe as everyone rushes in. At least my store has been pretty good about crowd control and forcing people into one line (makes checkout faster if they form one line until they get to register, then are pointed at the one with the shortest line)

Other then being called some nasty words for forcing people back into line I haven't had any problems.

It's very simple, boycott stores the day after Thanksgiving. Stay at home and enjoy your family and your loved ones.

Ditto Mr Bigglesworth. I worked retail one holiday season- it was truly interesting. But I'm all for adults acting like adults and being responsible for their own actions.

GET YER BULLET PROOF VESTS & STOCK UP ON WINCHESTER SILVER TIPS

and the one's that will survive will be the one's smart enough to stay the hairy heck home

and NO I won't appologize

I am back to working in retail, but I'm out of the mainstream, so I'm not worried....we will NOT have that kind of crowd. But I think the blame game should go both ways...
1) The stores are MUCH to blame for egging the shoppers on with the deals and then NOT being prepared for the crowd with extra precautions and security measures. I doubt the managers even know what to do!
2) But shoppers do need to think about it....Come on, it's just not worth those extra few bucks to risk someones' life or have a lifelong disability....And it CAN HAPPEN TO YOU. My husband and I avoid all the major stores, malls and shopping centers on Black Friday on principle.

Oh God, heaven forbid people today will accept responsibility for their own actions

Black Friday has definitely gotten out of hand. Some stores opening a 3am. :p

Why don't people stay home and survive from crazy Black Friday Crowd? I'd rather sleep late tomorrow and
go to retailmenot or http://www.followsales.com find the best online deals. JUST leave away from the major retailers if you cherich your life!

Personally, as a fashion lover myself, I love to shop, but I also like to make sure that I am getting the best deal. Fashion is not always cheap and the more I save, the more I can buy, right? And who doesn’t love a good sale? When I first heard about http://www.followsales.com, I was really impressed by how they really incorporate a lot of good features that really makes me excited. It really a great website!

Bah; Christmas is a humbug. Let the herd stampede.

And why shouldn't "shoppers" be responsible for behaving like frenzied animals for the sake of material goodies that are LUXURIES to most of the world?

Greed is NOT an acceptable excuse for mobbing, trampling other human beings, etc.

They have ammo buy one box, get one half-off at Sportsmans Warehouse. That stuff never goes on sale. I'm totally there in the morning.

Seanette- Well said.

My brother and I went out to Best Buy one year. Got there at I think 4 or 5am and the line was already wrapped around the parking lot to the street. No stampeding, everyone waited their turn to get in. People were giving my brother and I hard glares when we snagged the last monitor that was on sale, but other than that, everything was crowded but civil.

Never doing it again though... Black Friday just is not worth it. Even though I stay up late, I still enjoy my sleep in a nice comfy bed. Not camping out in front of a store to save a few bucks.

@LisaL, I agree that it's just not worth it. I'm not a morning person either and don't care for crowds, even when they're relatively sane (the twice I've tackled Black Friday, sanity is not a noticeable characteristic of shoppers that day). I made sure on Wednesday I had the supplies on hand I needed to make it to Monday so I can avoid stores this weekend.

Is it just me or wouldn't it be a great idea if we combined Black Friday with Mardi Gras, where women flash their breasts for great deals? We could call it "Value Wednesday".

The whole Wal-Mart scene is deplorable. I've been in a Wal-Mart only twice in my life, and couldn't help but notice that a.) items were not organized in a way that made it possible to find anything on purpose, and b.) the items one could find were of average to poor quality, and were not anything that could not be found elsewhere for less, and with greater ease. Being on a limited budget, my purchases are restricted, and I would not waste my time or money shopping at Wal-Mart. And I hate to generalize, but the clientele there was buying up shopping-carts-ful of junk food and the like, with kids running out-of-control, lots of shouting across the store and profanity. I'm sorry, but I find that all very unpleasant. Also, I teach, and I've noticed a direct correlation between people who think Wal-Mart is cool and people who wind up in detention or getting suspended for severe behavioral problems. I was not at all surprised to read of the greeter who was trampled.

Wow, Nicholas, that smugly elitist attitude toward people who don't feel the need to pay twice as much for the exact same item (or cannot afford to) or find that WalMart is about all that's open at times that fit their WORK schedules must get you SO much "romance".

@Seanette

The amount of people that go to Wal-Mart for the sake of convenience is very small compared to the bulk of people that go there. Convenience is the only reason that I would go there, like late at night when I wanted to buy a USB recharger for my Nintendo DS, or another night when I needed to pick up some AAA batteries. As for cost of merchandise, these people aren’t really saving on the crap they are buying, it's just they have bought into the belief that they are. They are paying cheap shopping mall prices for overpriced dollar store items. Most people don’t want to look for deals; they just want to be told where they can get them no matter what budget they are on.

lol, America.

spent about 4 hours at the wal-mart in douglasville georgia in order to purchase a rockband for $50 for my son for christmas this year. long story short, the "new and safer" way that wal-mart set things up this year caused a huge explosion as the shoppers launched themselves onto the sale items ten minutes before the sale was to start at 5 a.m. i was slammed into the freezer section, my sister ended up with two broken fingers and my boyfriend has bruises and scratches all up and down his sides from the man who physically attacked him to take the rockband from his hands. i just don't get it. it's christmas, for God's sake. it's for the children. where has the decency of humanity gone?