On Thanksgiving, we should be busy spending time with our family, eating good food, and being grateful. Time away from school with family is always a nice change of scenery. However, when Thanksgiving rolls around, some people have their eyes on more than just the turkey. Many are flipping through holiday advertisement, strategizing what bargains they can get on Black Friday.
Black Friday, named for the sales the Friday after Thanksgiving that put businesses in the black, has people lining up sometimes hours before the doors open to get door buster deals. And that’s exactly what they’re doing. People are busting down doors, charging the stores, and getting way too amped up about half-priced microwaves. There have been 98 injuries and seven deaths linked to Black Friday since 2006. These tragic accidents were caused by massive crowds and the mob mentality the occasion can sometimes bring.
And people are lining up earlier than ever! Last year, some Walmart stores opened at 8 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day. This takes away from the time that employees can spend with their family, as well as shoppers who want to “get the best deals.”
Black Friday is taking away from the meaning of Thanksgiving. It’s supposed to be a day about being surrounded by those you love and being thankful for what you already have. And although Black Friday is a great day to buy gifts for loved ones, it’s infiltrating Thanksgiving Day hour by hour.
That’s why Cyber Monday is such a great thing!
On the Monday after Thanksgiving many online stores offer excellent deals on regularly priced items. Many of the deals are just as good as or even better than deals found on Black Friday. There are no lines to get into the store and no lines to checkout. And best of all, no one has ever died because of Cyber Monday. Maybe some hand cramps from excitedly scrolling down the clearance section of Forever 21, but no stampedes, no trampling, and no accidents.
Better yet, you can shop from the comfort of your own home in your sweatpants! There’s no need to deal with all the holiday traffic when you can just comfortably scroll and navigate via the Internet. Everyone knows that warm turkey and stuffing makes you want to sleep and snuggle up by the fire. Instead of waking up at the crack of dawn, you can sleep all day and still get the best deals on Cyber Monday.
And it gets even better! It doesn’t intrude on Thanksgiving dinner! Families can sit down at the dinner table, instead of in front of the mall doors. And when the dinner is all said and done, you can relax, spend an enjoyable weekend with your family, and worry about shopping on Monday!
Did I mention shipping straight to your house instead of carrying all the bags all day long?
Cyber Monday is a way more effective way for shoppers to get the deals that they are looking for. If more people shopped on Cyber Monday instead of Black Friday, people would have more time to stuff their mouths with mashed potatoes instead of stuffing their cars with toasters they definitely won’t use.