Since becoming an adult I have noticed more and more that major national retailers can't wait to get their hands on our money.  Every year Christmas decorations go up earlier, Christmas merchandise is displayed earlier and Christmas music gets played earlier and earlier.  Now Walmart lowers the bar!  Walmart can't wait for "Black Friday" to pack their aisles with shoppers who will wait for hours in their understaffed check-out lines.  Walmart plans to turn Thanksgiving into "Black Thursday" by opening their stores for Black Friday deals at 8PM on Thanksgiving night.

Walmart's chief merchandising officer says,

Customers indicated they wanted to shop earlier and go to bed earlier, rather than get up hours before dawn to go shopping the day after Thanksgiving.

I understand the concept of giving the customer what he or she wants but what happened to actually give thanks for our blessings instead of merchandising them to death?  I think it should be against the law to even mention Christmas gifts until the day after Thanksgiving.  With earlier and earlier advertising and sales we will have Christmas year-round and some people think that's a great idea.  Keeping the meaning of Christmas alive all year is wonderful but the merchandising of the birth of our Lord has gotten out of hand.  Christ was born to die for our redemption not to provide the cheapest price on a big screen TV, home appliances, personal electronics and kids toys.

Let's give thanks for the blessings this great country enjoys everyday before we move on the excesses of gladiator shopping please.

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