Once again as the year comes to a close and the holiday season fast approaches.  We as consumers are searching for the best deals and with those bargains comes’ the shopping frenzy.  But is it really worth the hassle of battling the massive crowds and the rude people that come along with this so-called day called Black Friday?  Are the deals worth getting hurt or even arrested just for a bargained item that everyone seems to want?  Black Friday has started to become like a cult, like when Apple gets ready to launch a new product.  You see people camping out for days just to be the first to get this item.

What happened to holiday seasons where everyone gets together and spends the time with each other? The times of visiting and having dinner with family you hardly see during the year because they live across the country are gone.  The whole meaning of the holidays is gone now because we the people have bought into Corporate America’s bullshit to consume consume and consume – spend more money.  I remember when I was growing up there was never any talk about leaving at 2pm to get to a Target store for the Thanksgiving special they are having at 5pm.  Thanksgiving is meant to spend time with family and friends, not to go out and shop later in the day.  Corporate America has robbed us of that tradition, and at the same time we allow them to do so.

The U.S. economy is still trying to recover and create jobs and yet Corporate America finds a way for people to go out and spend money.  What’s worse is that the average American people don’t have money to spend, but they spend it and sink deeper in debt.  When I was growing up my father used to tell me don’t charge it if you don’t have the money to pay it off.  According to debt.org the total U.S. consumer debt is at $11.4 trillion. Based on an analysis of Federal Reserve statistics and other government data, the average household owes $7,281 on their cards and average retail credit account is in the high 20% APR. Whether or not consumer debt is a good thing is another discussion.

Corporate America’s sole purpose is to make money and that’s plain and simple.  They don’t care how you get the money to spend as long as you spend it.  They have no regard for the average person trying to make it in today’s economy.  Retail stores seem to open earlier and earlier every year just to get a leg up on their competition.  You notice ads coming out early with the best deals on flat screen TV’s and electronic devices.  Then after the Black Friday rush is over, you see on the news how crazy people are fighting over a flat screen TV at a Wal-Mart.  It was so bad that the police were called to try to calm the angry crowd, so bad the police had to use force to get the crowd to break apart.  Is this what we have become as a society on the holiday season? To make matters worse is that the major retail stores open early and force people who work for them to work on Thanksgiving.  They have no regard for people on spending time with their families.  They would rather make that buck to boost their final 4^th quarter earnings for the year.

Now I know that the major retailers and as well as any company that are public must make sure their earnings for the year are rock solid.  They have to show their stockholders that the numbers they projected were met and that the company is making money as they predicted.  They show how they are saving money as they outsource jobs overseas with cheap labor all the while no jobs here for the American people.  So as the big companies project their earnings, the CEO’s of the major companies get a big bonus.  We are talking millions of dollars in their pockets and nothing for the workers who make the company money.  CEO’s of today’s economy have no respect or compassion for their workers and they can’t even give them a little something to thank them for the hard work.  This is why the majority of the people don’t like big companies or loyal to their company when it comes to going the extra mile for them.  What Congress needs to do is stop giving tax credits for jobs being sent overseas and start bringing jobs back.

The final analysis is simply this…we the people need to stop giving into Corporate America’s greed on money matters.  We need to stop leaving our family and friends during Thanksgiving just to get special deals.  If it doesn’t stop, before you know it, they will be open on Thanksgiving.  Every year they open an hour early to get shoppers out there to their stores.  We need to boycott their crap and stay home and cherish the good times with family.  Its supposed to be a time to get together with loved ones during the year that at times because of work or whatever that holds you from seeing each other.  It’s a special day of the year to catch up.  This is how I remember Thanksgiving when I was growing up. -Jibus