They weren't running to catch a train
They weren't running with the bulls
They weren't running out of fear
They weren't running from a terrorist's bullet
Enticed and cheapened by the marked discounts, they were running for the flat-panel television, the DVD player, the video-game system
And Jdimytai Damour suddenly became a blameless victim
When will we learn? When will we realize that stuff is just stuff, except when it makes us less human, when it makes us greedy murderers?
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The little guy is being overrun by consumer avarice, trounced, flattened. Mom and Pops stores being reduced to rubble, because of the need for bargains. Thriftiness is climbing the charts in regards to positive character attributes in our society. we may not be rich, or pretty, but we sure as hell can buy on the cheap.
It started with music sharing online, and has spread like a cancer to all walks of business. Buying at cost, or below. Thats why people are losing their jobs. No one wants to allow anyone to make a profit. Add to that all American jobs have been shipped overseas, its a wonder there were any consumers to form that stampede.
Bring American jobs back, Mr. Obama. And for chrissakes, you penny pinching misers who can afford it, go out and support local business.
1. The global economy can no longer be dependent or sustained on American gluttony! We need to return to slow, smart growth focused on sustainability, not speculation. No more get-rich quick schemes.
2. We must return to a pre Wal-Mart society where quality, not quantity matters. More is NOT better, as we see in expanding waistlines and credit card debt. You say ‘no way’, I say ‘there is no other way’.
3. We need to cure America's post-election withdrawal. We don’t need to go shopping! We need to replace our hedonistic society with a more altruistic one. We need to feed our vacant souls and “GET A PASSION!”
Election 2008 taught us that we need passion and meaning in our lives. When we serve a cause higher than ourselves, serving others, not just our own interests, we are inspired, fired up, willing to take action. Isn’t this why the election meant so much to so many? Common ground towards a common good engaged the nation, much like 9/11 or Hurricane Katrina. But we don’t a disaster to engage our better angels.
Each of us can seek out meaningful work, connecting to others with a good reason to get up in the morning without drugs or alcohol or shopping. A reason that feeds our deepest need to be a part of a solution bigger than ourselves, we will find meaning and passion that is more fulfilling and effective than consuming!
The behavior of surging crowds has been extensively studied all over the world, because of the many deaths and injuries which have occurred owing to them. Once the impetus from the rear of the crowd, where nobody can see what is happening ahead, becomes more than trivial, people in the front are pushed forward against their will. To survive, they have to stay upright at any cost and flow with the crowd. It is impossible for people being carried along like this to stop the crowd, regardless of what is underfoot. In this case, the glass walls and doors gave way.
However vile those who failed to stop and give aid may be, it is incumbent upon institutions who draw crowds to manage them effectively. Methods for doing this are well known. I find the Walmart statements about how safety of employees and customers is their highest priority to be far more vile than the materialist stampeders.
Walmart intended to generate those crowds. If they had dropped a dime on a crowd control consultant, they could have put together a safety plan that would have prevented this death.
The take away for individuals is not to be caught in a surging crowd, and especially not in front of one.