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-- So, the American consumer is not dead - but a Walmart worker is
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So, the American consumer is not dead - but a Walmart worker is
Disgusting.
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NEW YORK � A Wal-Mart worker died after being trampled by a throng of unruly shoppers as consumers, who had snapped their wallets shut since September, flocked to stores before dawn Friday to grab deals on everything from TVs to toys for the traditional start of the holiday shopping season, feared to be the weakest in decades. Retailers extended their hours � some opening at midnight � and offered deals that promised to be more impressive than even the deep discounts that shoppers found throughout November. The 34-year-old Wal-Mart worker was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead at about 6 a.m., an hour after the store opened, when a throng of shoppers �physically broke down the doors, knocking him to the ground,� a police statement said. Wal-Mart Stores Inc., in Bentonville, Ark., would not confirm the reports of a stampede during the day-after-Thanksgiving bargain hunting, but said a �medical emergency� caused them to close the store. A 28-year-old pregnant woman and three other shoppers suffered minor injuries and also were taken to hospitals for observation, a police spokesman said. By 3:43 a.m., about 50 people had lined up in preparation for the 5 a.m. opening at a Wal-Mart store in Cary, N.C. Shannon Keane, 38, of Cary, who arrived with her son, Miles, 13, at midnight, said she was buying only one item today: an iPod for her son. �He really wanted this one thing,� Ms. Keane said. �So we're here for this one thing.� Ms. Keane, who was recently laid off from her job at an insurance company, said she was on a budget this year because her unemployment checks were also helping support family in Colorado. �I really can't focus on gifts,� she said. �I have to focus more on helping them pay their bills. It's hard,� she said of being a single mom on a small income. �I've always filled the tree. But you have to be honest. This year, I'll do the best I can.� Best Buy, which threw its doors open at 5 a.m. offered such early morning specials as a 49-inch Panasonic plasma HDTV for $899.99 (U.S.) and a $189.99 GPS device by Garmin. Toys �R� Us, was offering up to 60 per cent discounts from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. But it was clear that despite the crowds that showed up for the early morning deals, shoppers' worries about the economy � massive layoffs, tightening credit and dwindling retirement accounts � tempered buying. Many consumers, clutching the store circulars, were focused on a few items Friday and said they were slashing their overall holiday budgets from a year ago as they juggle paying their rent and other bills while putting food on the table. �I have never slept here before to save a few bucks, but with the economy so bad I thought that even a few dollars helps. Saving a few bucks here and there helps,� said Analita Garcia of Falls Church, Va., who arrived at a local Best Buy store at 7 a.m. Thursday with 10 other family members. She bought a Dynax LCD 32-inch TV for $400, slashed from $500, along with an iPod and several DVDs. �This year a lot of people I know won't be getting Christmas presents. I have to pay the rent and bills, and I have two little ones at home to think of,� Ms. Garcia added. At the Best Buy store in Syracuse, N.Y., a line snaked past stores and around walkways on the second floor of Carousel Center a few moments before the store's 5 a.m. opening � about eight hours after some people near the front of the line had arrived. Rob Schoeneck, the mall's manager, estimated about 1,000 people were waiting for the electronics store to open and said the crowd was about the same size as a year ago. Inside, Kira Carinci, 33, a teacher from Cicero, N.Y., searched for the $80 �Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock� video game and guitar controller bundle for her son but said she is more concerned about money than she was last holiday season. She said she had set aside a certain amount for Christmas spending. �I don't usually save, so this year is a little different,� she said. Black Friday � which falls on the day after Thanksgiving and officially starts the holiday shopping period � received its name because it historically was the day when a surge of shoppers helped stores break into profitability for the full year. But this year, with rampant promotions of up to 70 per cent throughout the month amid a deteriorating economy, the power of this landmark day for the retail industry could be fading. Still, while it isn't a predictor of holiday season sales, the day after Thanksgiving is an important barometer of people's willingness to spend for the rest of the season. And particularly this year, analysts will dissect how the economy is shaping shoppers' buying habits, including whether they will spring for big-ticket items or focus on small purchases like gloves and hats. Another issue that Wall Street analysts are watching is how shoppers will pay for the gifts. Shoppers, who may be maxed out on their credit cards or trying to manage to their money better, have been increasingly using cash or debit cards instead of credit cards to pay for purchases in recent months. �No credit cards this year,� said Linda Patton of Louisburg, N.C. who was shopping at a local Wal-Mart on Friday. �We're trying not to carry over any bills.� Last year, the Thanksgiving shopping weekend of Friday through Sunday accounted for about 10 per cent of overall holiday sales, according to ShopperTrak RCT Corp. The group hasn't released estimates for Black Friday sales this year, but experts believe it will remain one of the season's biggest selling days, even as shoppers remain deliberate in their spending. Britt Beemer, chairman of America's Research Group, expects to see the surge of shoppers dramatically taper off throughout the day and into the weekend. �I think we are going to see the busiest Black Friday ever, but will it carry over past 10 a.m.?� he said. �The bottom line is a great Black Friday does not make a season.� |
I hope the $100 you saved on that fancy TV is worth the life of the man you killed.
Disgusting.
F*ckers.
gross
Now I hate Wal-Mart even more.
...savages.
and that 28-y.o. pregnant chick is a total dumbass 
I don't believe what I just read.... 
our society is crazy with the need to mass consume....it's disgusting..watching people on boxing day is the worst...
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| Originally posted by Aleksandra Now I hate Wal-Mart even more. ...savages. |
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| Originally posted by Aleksandra Now I hate Wal-Mart even more. ...savages. |
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| Originally posted by FunkyCrew and that 28-y.o. pregnant chick is a total dumbass |
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| Originally posted by rabbitjoker The customers are savages, not the store workers. |
OK, Black Friday has officially gotten out of hand. A 34-year-old WalMart employee was trying to hold back the crowds at a Long Island store this morning at 5am, when they took the doors off their hinges and stormed the store. The man fell down and was trampled by over 200 people as he gasped for air. It's sad and despicable, and it's equally the fault of the dehumanized shoppers and the WalMart store it happened at.
Why was there no line set up? Why didn't they let in a reasonable amount of people at a time? What kind of method is it to just allow hundreds of people to cram up against the doors, waiting for them to open? They may have wanted some photo op of people surging through the doors, but they willfully created a very dangerous situation.
Can you imagine if, say, the Apple store did this when the iPhone was launched? Or when the Wii was launched? When a large amount of people are expected for a retail event, organization is needed, otherwise it creates a dangerous situation. This man's death is on WalMart's hands.
As for the people who did the trampling, well, I hope their cheap crap was worth it. They'll have to live with the human costs of their deals for the rest of their lives.
Gizmodo.com
.
The fact that an unemployed woman is there buying an ipod with her unemployment cheque is proof of just how skewed american behavior is with respect to personal finances...what happened to buying your kid a basketball?
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| Originally posted by Skipper The fact that an unemployed woman is there buying an ipod with her unemployment cheque is proof of just how skewed american behavior is with respect to personal finances...what happened to buying your kid a basketball? |
| quote: |
| Originally posted by Skipper The fact that an unemployed woman is there buying an ipod with her unemployment cheque is proof of just how skewed american behavior is with respect to personal finances...what happened to buying your kid a basketball? |
It's got to be pretty clear when you lose your job that things need to change.
Agressive and careless shoppers are to blame.
pictures
http://www.nydailynews.com/money/ga...n_pictures.html
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| Originally posted by rabbitjoker Agressive and careless shoppers are to blame. |
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| Originally posted by TO guy Substantial blame must also be placed on Wal*Mart management. |
The funny thing is, I bet the people involved in this are probably thinking "OMG that's so sad, I can't believe that happened" And then turn around and watch their big screen TV and be just as aggressive next Black Friday.
That woman being her kid an iPod too? What an idiot. Being unemployed and on welfare would be a perfect time to teach your children how to spend wisely and only by the necessities in life when you don't have the income to splurge.
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| Originally posted by Skipper I dunno, there were thousands of people. They took the doors off the hinges. I don't think a stampede like this was to be expected any more than it might have been in previous years (when one did not occur). |
well management is responsible for organizing the lineup properly and getting at least some security to have the line in order imo
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| Originally posted by geroin well management is responsible for not organizing the lineup properly and getting at least some security to have the line in order imo |
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| Originally posted by geroin well management is responsible for organizing the lineup properly and getting at least some security to have the line in order imo |
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