Black Friday. Sales everywhere. Walmart in Valley Stream, NY is set to open it’s doors at 5:00am. An unruly crowd has gathered outside, eager to shop shop shop. They cannot wait any longer, break the doors of their hinges and rush into the store, trampling a temporary employee. It’s a full-on stampede. People keep pushing to get inside, stepping over, around, on the young man lying helpless on the floor. The mob hinders rescuers and police, continuously shoving their way into the store. Jdimytai Damour, 34, of Jamaica Queens is pronounced dead at a nearby hospital shortly thereafter. Does this feel like a scene from a bad horror movie, or what? Is this what humanity has come to, valuing cheap stuff more than human life?
Meanwhile on the west coast, in Palm Desert, California, a dispute over toys in a Toys R’ Us aisle ended in gunshots fired and two people dead. Black Friday has taken on a new meaning.
All I can hope comes from this is that we all take a step back and evaluate our stance in the world. If this bad economy makes us go crazy for sales just so that we can afford Christmas presents this year, why don’t we just skip the presents and focus on what really matters — non-material things like love, friends and family. Make your gifts this year, even if you’re not the most skilled artisan, it is the thought that counts. Or, just make it a point to tell all the people in your life how much they really mean to you. In my book, that beats any plastic toy or sale item from Walmart.
Honor the life of Mr. Damour, be good and do good this holiday.
Photo: AP Photo/Ed Betz, via The Huffington Post
