Jenny On the Spot

Black Friday. Ironic. You know, that plague back in the 14th Century? It also had the same descriptive… “black”. The Black Plague was also called the Black Death. Just something to ponder…

I decided a while ago to NOT join fellow consumers this year on saving lots of money I would not have spent otherwise. I decided to sleep instead. Also, the thought of being shoulder-to-shoulder with rabid humans kinda made my stomach turn. I’ve been out there before, and pretty much just enjoyed goofing-off with my girlfriends while stocking up on socks. BUT! I HATED the behavior and mindset of many of the people I was having to share my physical comfort zone with. 

*Disclaimer: I know many of my friends here DID partake of this shop-stravaganza, and had I decided to go, you would have been those gals I’d have been goofin’-off with… Debating whether the deal stated was really a deal, or if I should go for the stripey socks or the polka-dot ones… It is THE public that makes me crazy, not MY public :) 

I was scrolling through my Twitter updates on Black Friday evening, when I happened upon a link given by Queen of the Click… you have probably already heard about it —–> The Black Friday Walmart tragedy. These pictures capture some of the mayhem.

*Looking at the pictures remind me of the Pink Floyd concert I went to at the L.A. Coliseum back in ‘94. We got stuck in one of the massive tunnels as the concert was beginning… I remember feeling truly afraid for my life as the people in the back of the tunnel “panicked”… because they were missing the beginning. I felt pressed and helpless for several minutes. I remember thinking, “OMG, how on earth do I get out of this… Just keep calm… Are these people REALLY acting like this? I could actually die in here!” 

After reading the Walmart article… looking at the pictures, did you take a step back, scratch your head and ask, “Was this in the Mighty U.S. of A.?” I know this is not the first of this type of tragedy. Which makes this even more… tragic. I cannot stop thinking about it. I cannot stop wondering how we as a nation have come to this point. 

In the United States we do have wide gaps… the desperately poor and the disgustingly rich. We live in a country with extremes ranging from homeless children in our own God-fearing, red, white and blue neighborhoods to people boarding their pets at The Four Seasons. However, if we weigh rich and poor, country to country - we are golden here in the U.S. When it comes to our country as a whole, WE are not desperate. I feel guilty making such a sweeping generalization about my country, especially since I have room to breathe in my budget, but it really is true. We are a lucky People. We are a blessed People. We have not come to this:

Thanks to Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer for posting this video on her blog. This video is from months and months ago… but it gives a shockingly clear picture of where We, as a country, have never been. So, when I read articles about store employees being trampled to death in the United States of America by deal-hungry savages, I lose my frickin’ lunch. My heart aches - for the victim’s family, for my country. These mindless shoppers weren’t fighting for FOOD or WATER or standing against GENOCIDE… they were all going to spend more than they intended… and save a measly 20% on a game system for Junior or Missy to shove under the tree.

Shameful. Makes me sick. Absolutely.

And as I sit here typing away, in my warm-ish home, in stripey socks and cozy sweatpants, with my television on… Beyonce is dressed in sparkly gold, rolling in gold, gold and more gold, seducing me and The public to upgrade. Does that advertising really work? Really? Truly? I may need a barf-bag.

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