Do Black Friday Shoppers Deserve the Bad Rap?

Though I thought I might be inclined to be upset about the notion of people at retail stores waiting for bargains on Black Friday, I am not. It has occurred to me that the many news articles that have covered the unfortunate events on that day are no where near a reflection of the behavior of 10's of millions of American shoppers who go out to stores on the Friday after Thanksgiving and during their long holiday weekend. They are unfortunate stories of the exception. 

These stories sell newspapers, and keep eyes captive on TV and computer screens as people take the tales in with fascination, and a small sense of exceptionalism in that they were not a part of a 12:00 am stampede, and the perceived broad trend of greed and violence in our culture. These stories sell advertising, and have the nasty side effect of constructing an image of our fellows that they do not deserve. I refuse to believe that the day and those who participate in it are an indicator of any broad cultural defect.
 
Rising wealth inequality, a growing gap between the minimum wage and a living wage, supplementing the basic needs of workers for corporations who pay substandard wages with our welfare programs, and the broader moral question of wage equality in a global economy will not be solved by allowing ourselves to be lured into the false notion that the masses are not deserving of dignity, because of a few stories of poor behavior.  I find the negative focus on Black Friday shoppers to be frivolous journalism, divisive, and a distraction from the policy challenges that we face which are the true cause of suffering in this country and this world.

My family seems to have a tradition of not going out, not for moral reasons, but simply to avoid the unpleasant experience of a large and somewhat disorganized crowd... The same reason that Julie (my wife) and I go grocery shopping mostly on weeknights. Opening on Thanksgiving? If your operation is non-essential, give me a break, and give your workers one too.  However, as far as Black Friday goes, I have no qualms. It's just not my cup of tea.