I'd swear it starts earlier every year.  Yesterday evening (around 6 pm), I went to return some videos to Blockbuster.  There were already 8 tents in front of Best Buy.

Then, this morning, I hear on CNN about some Wal-Mart greeter that got trampled to death by customers when the store opened.  I'm sure they'll be plenty more stories like that one when the news comes on tonight.

As is my usual custom, I will now avoid going anywhere near any high-traffic shopping areas until Feb to avoid the "cheer and goodwill" of Christmas.  And by cheer and goodwill, I mean rude, greedy people becoming nearly violent over the crap in stores and (especially) parking spaces.

The saddest part, IMO, is that the deals are never that good anyways - so it's just more of the same where people spend money they don't have on crap they don't need.  Ooh, I could save a couple hundred bucks at most?  Gee, that's worth camping out all night in the Novemeber freezing weather.  I wouldn't do that even if the line was for free 50" plasma tvs that came with a blowjob from the cute check-out girl, much less to save a lousy couple hundred bucks.

Christmas has been all about commercialism since I was born, but this Black Friday faux-holiday is starting to really kill my love of Thanksgiving, too (which, iirc, was supposed to be all-about not being greedy).  Seeing those people camped out last night depressed me a bit.

But then I got home and remembered the delicious irony that Netflix had just sent me The Magic Christian, so I watched that (again) and for the final scene just mentally replaced the image of bowler-hatted British businessmen with masses of American Christmas shoppers.

Watching no TV* and avoiding the mall (or whatever) really changes this. I have to be reminded that xmass is commercialized, because I'm totally unplugged from the retail world. I have found, though, that xmass eve, perhaps due to an eye of the storm kind of phenomenon, is a really fun time to shop. Everyone is relaxed and friendly. Lots of stuff is out of stock, so you don't have to agonize over what to buy- you just take what's left.


*I'm not a crusader, but I have to say that life without TV is really kind of nice, especially since you can eventually get nearly anything you really want to see on DVD without commercials. It's win-win. Of course I've been away from it so long now, that I might have a skewed viewpoint.

I'm with you.

Christmas and I do not get along. All that commercialized insanity really gets under my skin.

Finished up a shift providing extra security for an outlet mall Midnight Madness sale a bit ago. Working at a methadone clinic was more conducive to my sanity.

That royally pissed me off when I heard about that employee being trampled by those insane lunatics!  I went out shopping once during Black Friday, a few years ago, and it was not even worth the money I tried to save.  I was pushed and hit, and about an hour into shopping I finally became one of the thousand angry patrons.  I made a promise never to  shop on that crazy day again.

My husband and I have decided to skip giving each other a gifts this year and give to local charities.  We don't have much, because we were hit hard like many people, but what ever we can spare, it is theirs.

This approach is a hell of a lot easier then shopping with the rude, angry people.

Aos,
I agree with you on TV. I used to just watch shows occasionaly, muting the commercials when they came on, but now they have those pop up ads with sound effects.... So I just watch the commercial free channels or occasionaly catch up on a TV series with Netflix.
 
The crowds have never bothered me before. I think it's fun to go shopping with so many other people around. And standing in line, everyone always has stories about a doorbuster they got or a prize they won. Even the people in a bad mood cheer right up if you give 'em a smile and a good natured ribbing. Misery loves company after all.

This year, with a two year old daughter it's a bit wierd though because everyone is constantly pestering her about Santa. But on the upside, it helps me win the culture war for her innocent mind since Santa's army of frightening strangers are no match for baby Jesus and a stable of animals. :win:
 
But yeah those riots are disgraceful. When the PlayStation 3 came out, my brother showed me a clip on youtube of people trying to knock down a folding flat iron gate. He told me: "Our civilization is on the brink of colapse. Seriously, watch the riot again and this time, instead of them shouting "P-S-3" imagine that they're shouting "Vaccine!" or something worth killing for."
 
chilling

I've hated "secular" X-mas and all it stands for, for a very long time now. It just really highlights how much people suck and just how fake they can be.

The only thing I do these days is watch "It's a Wonderful Life." It is my only tradition...

But with a impending first grand child on the way, maybe X-mas will be OK in a couple of years. Till then, I'll keep my head down and try to stay out of all the "good-will-towards-all-men" hypocrisy that is so prevalent this time of year.

People do dumb shit. It being Christmas has little to do with it. It could have easily been tickets for some concert or a soccer game.

I believe a woman was also knocked over and suffered a miscarriage at one of these frenzies.

All day on Thanks Giving at my parents' home, my well-to-do sister-in-law kept going on and on and on about hitting the fucking "door-buster" sales at 4 AM the next morning.  She was genuinely excited at the prospect of competing to buy crap that she didn't need at prices below what she could easily afford at full price purchased at her leisure.  My wife had to keep leaving the room.

Yeah, this commercialised holiday horseshit really bothers me.

!i!

Quote from: Ian Absentia;270380All day on Thanks Giving at my parents' home, my well-to-do sister-in-law kept going on and on and on about hitting the fucking "door-buster" sales at 4 AM the next morning.  She was genuinely excited at the prospect of competing to buy crap that she didn't need at prices below what she could easily afford at full price purchased at her leisure.  My wife had to keep leaving the room.

Yeah, this commercialised holiday horseshit really bothers me.

Odd position you have, those with more money should be willing to spend more on the same shit others pay less for. Explains other aspects of your fucked-up politics.

Quote from: Ian Absentia;270380All day on Thanks Giving at my parents' home, my well-to-do sister-in-law kept going on and on and on about hitting the fucking "door-buster" sales at 4 AM the next morning.  She was genuinely excited at the prospect of competing to buy crap that she didn't need at prices below what she could easily afford at full price purchased at her leisure.  My wife had to keep leaving the room.

Yeah, this commercialised holiday horseshit really bothers me.

!i!

I hate the phrase "door-buster".  I think anyone who uses it should be slapped on general principle.


As for the rest, I'm all for people saving money, whether they have money or not.  I just think that people are way, way too focused on saving a tiny, paltry sum of money in exchange for completely abandoning things like enjoying the holidays with your family, living within your means (a good portion of holiday sales are bought on credit), or not trampling people to death to save a fucking buck (I don't care how good Wal-Mart's prices are for cheap shit from China, I'm not getting anywhere near there during the holidays without a suit of armor, a billy club, and a cow catcher on the front of my cart.    )

Quote from: jgants;270408...I'm all for people saving money, whether they have money or not.  I just think that people are way, way too focused on saving a tiny, paltry sum of money in exchange for completely abandoning things like enjoying the holidays with your family, living within your means (a good portion of holiday sales are bought on credit), or not trampling people to death to save a fucking buck...

I have no problem with anyone saving a buck, either, as long as it's something you really need or want. The part that was bugging the crap out of me was this whole notion of being part of a sale just for the sake of obtaining crap at a cut rate.  Not even stuff that she really wanted -- just getting stuff on sale.  Remember that old Monty Python skit with the two old ladies?

Lady #1: What you got there?
Lady #2: An engine block.
Lady #1: An engine block! What did you buy that for?!
Lady #2: It was on sale!

It was this whole idea of getting in there and getting a bunch of shit before everyone else got it.  Like pigs at a trough.

!i!

You meant Swine. Right, Ian ?

Regards,
David R

Quote from: David R;270432You meant Swine. Right, Ian ?

Regards,
David R

Ahem. Squine.

Bill