1 00:00:00,640 --> 00:00:03,080 Speaker 1: Hey, everyone, it's been quite a few years since we 2 00:00:03,240 --> 00:00:06,640 Speaker 1: dusted off our classic episode on the insanity that is 3 00:00:06,720 --> 00:00:09,239 Speaker 1: Black Friday, so we thought we put it out there 4 00:00:09,240 --> 00:00:12,360 Speaker 1: for you again. I'm glad we made this episode when 5 00:00:12,360 --> 00:00:15,319 Speaker 1: we did, because Black Friday's nearly gone away since then, 6 00:00:15,880 --> 00:00:18,480 Speaker 1: so we kind of inadvertently came up with a document 7 00:00:18,640 --> 00:00:23,000 Speaker 1: on a fading cultural phenomenon, and I assume historians of 8 00:00:23,040 --> 00:00:26,520 Speaker 1: the future will rely heavily on this. In the meantime, 9 00:00:26,720 --> 00:00:28,280 Speaker 1: I hope you enjoy this episode. 10 00:00:31,640 --> 00:00:41,280 Speaker 2: Welcome to Stuff you Should Know Fromhoustuffworks dot com. 11 00:00:41,479 --> 00:00:43,960 Speaker 1: Hey, and welcome to the podcast. I'm Josh Clark and 12 00:00:44,040 --> 00:00:46,879 Speaker 1: with me as always as Charles W. Chuck Bryant. Jerry's 13 00:00:46,880 --> 00:00:50,120 Speaker 1: over there, and that makes this stuff you should have. 14 00:00:50,280 --> 00:00:52,600 Speaker 2: That's you just checked to make sure Jerry was there. 15 00:00:52,760 --> 00:00:53,560 Speaker 1: She's very quiet. 16 00:00:53,600 --> 00:00:56,639 Speaker 2: You literally turned her head and body right, Yep, she's there. 17 00:00:57,120 --> 00:00:59,600 Speaker 1: I did the bigfoot thing like I had to turn 18 00:00:59,640 --> 00:01:02,480 Speaker 1: my whole the whole side of my body. Yeah, to 19 00:01:02,520 --> 00:01:04,640 Speaker 1: look over my shoulder. That's how you know that was 20 00:01:04,720 --> 00:01:05,479 Speaker 1: real footage. 21 00:01:05,520 --> 00:01:07,759 Speaker 2: Well, typically when you know Jerry's here, because you can 22 00:01:07,800 --> 00:01:11,600 Speaker 2: just smell like miso soup or something emanating from our 23 00:01:11,680 --> 00:01:13,399 Speaker 2: right side, yeah, or my right. 24 00:01:13,280 --> 00:01:16,039 Speaker 1: Side, your right side, but it's not emanating from you, 25 00:01:16,080 --> 00:01:21,080 Speaker 1: it's coming from Jerry. Yeah. She stinks like miso, which 26 00:01:21,120 --> 00:01:24,240 Speaker 1: is actually a very pleasant smell, salty and new mommy. 27 00:01:24,760 --> 00:01:29,240 Speaker 1: That's right, So Chuck, Yes, have you ever been to 28 00:01:29,480 --> 00:01:31,600 Speaker 1: a Black Friday sale? 29 00:01:31,880 --> 00:01:35,039 Speaker 2: No? No, And I want to say, h no. 30 00:01:35,760 --> 00:01:38,360 Speaker 1: Oh yeah, Well, I mean that's not for me. That's 31 00:01:38,360 --> 00:01:41,679 Speaker 1: a decent qualifier though, because it's not like an average sale, 32 00:01:42,160 --> 00:01:45,320 Speaker 1: and like, if you don't go to a Black Friday sale, 33 00:01:46,280 --> 00:01:49,840 Speaker 1: it's a pretty good reason. Why is because you're scared. 34 00:01:50,280 --> 00:01:52,360 Speaker 2: Well yeah, and I think this is one of those 35 00:01:52,440 --> 00:01:55,279 Speaker 2: a very divisive topic. You're probably either really into going 36 00:01:55,920 --> 00:01:58,240 Speaker 2: or it's the last thing on earth you would rather do. 37 00:01:58,280 --> 00:02:00,320 Speaker 2: I don't know a lot of people are like, maybe 38 00:02:00,320 --> 00:02:02,640 Speaker 2: I'll go check out a Doorbuster at three am. 39 00:02:02,720 --> 00:02:05,840 Speaker 1: I think there are people who do have that kind 40 00:02:05,920 --> 00:02:09,240 Speaker 1: of that idea, but maybe not at three am. Sure, 41 00:02:09,520 --> 00:02:14,160 Speaker 1: there's it's almost like a multifaceted creature like it is 42 00:02:14,200 --> 00:02:17,080 Speaker 1: for some people, like just in the middle of a 43 00:02:17,120 --> 00:02:20,280 Speaker 1: normal shopping day on the Friday after Thanksgiving, they'll go 44 00:02:20,360 --> 00:02:22,160 Speaker 1: to a store and it's fine, and there's some sales 45 00:02:22,240 --> 00:02:25,560 Speaker 1: or whatever. But then you know hours earlier, these hardcore 46 00:02:25,639 --> 00:02:28,079 Speaker 1: people you know who had bathed in the blood or 47 00:02:28,080 --> 00:02:32,480 Speaker 1: their fellow shoppers well sadly, yeah, yeah, we'll see had 48 00:02:32,560 --> 00:02:34,840 Speaker 1: already come through and gotten all the best deals. 49 00:02:35,120 --> 00:02:35,680 Speaker 2: Yeah. 50 00:02:35,720 --> 00:02:37,520 Speaker 1: But and then there's those of us like us who 51 00:02:37,560 --> 00:02:39,200 Speaker 1: are just like going out. 52 00:02:39,320 --> 00:02:41,680 Speaker 2: It is literally, and I'm not overstating this because people 53 00:02:41,720 --> 00:02:44,160 Speaker 2: always say literally when they mean figured it figuratively. But 54 00:02:44,200 --> 00:02:46,320 Speaker 2: it is literally one of the last things I would 55 00:02:46,320 --> 00:02:48,560 Speaker 2: ever ever do in my life. Yeah. I can't think 56 00:02:48,560 --> 00:02:51,080 Speaker 2: of many. I'd rather go to the DMV than go 57 00:02:51,120 --> 00:02:51,880 Speaker 2: to a doorbuster. 58 00:02:52,280 --> 00:02:56,720 Speaker 1: The DMV, yeah, in between North Korea and South Korea. 59 00:02:57,040 --> 00:02:59,160 Speaker 2: No, no, no, no, that's the DMZ. 60 00:02:59,520 --> 00:03:02,079 Speaker 1: Right. I always get this too confused. 61 00:03:02,080 --> 00:03:05,360 Speaker 2: Now, I'd rather go take the last ticket from at 62 00:03:05,440 --> 00:03:07,520 Speaker 2: the DMV and have to wait all day than go 63 00:03:07,560 --> 00:03:08,560 Speaker 2: to a doorbuster sale. 64 00:03:08,639 --> 00:03:10,600 Speaker 1: Yeah no, I don't blame you, all right. 65 00:03:10,440 --> 00:03:13,920 Speaker 2: So that's what we'll get to more hate spewing about 66 00:03:13,919 --> 00:03:14,560 Speaker 2: this layer but. 67 00:03:14,720 --> 00:03:17,160 Speaker 1: Right, and I should state my opinion. I feel like, 68 00:03:17,200 --> 00:03:18,600 Speaker 1: if this is your thing, that's awesome. 69 00:03:18,720 --> 00:03:22,160 Speaker 2: Well true, true, I'm not like cast dispergence on people 70 00:03:22,160 --> 00:03:24,919 Speaker 2: who disparaging remarks is dispurgence a word. 71 00:03:25,040 --> 00:03:27,600 Speaker 1: Nope, it is no though you're like your own like 72 00:03:27,960 --> 00:03:30,560 Speaker 1: an American dictionary, the New Chuck Dictionary. 73 00:03:30,720 --> 00:03:31,760 Speaker 2: We should make that up. 74 00:03:32,320 --> 00:03:34,239 Speaker 1: I like it. Yeah, you get had like five or 75 00:03:34,280 --> 00:03:35,920 Speaker 1: six words already chuckisms. 76 00:03:37,160 --> 00:03:39,840 Speaker 2: Yeah, agreed. I'm not saying like poopooing people who do it. 77 00:03:40,040 --> 00:03:41,920 Speaker 2: If you're into it, great, as long as you conduct 78 00:03:41,920 --> 00:03:44,360 Speaker 2: yourself in a reasonable manner and you don't turn into 79 00:03:44,360 --> 00:03:45,680 Speaker 2: a monster like others do. 80 00:03:45,880 --> 00:03:49,080 Speaker 1: Right, But there is like there are obvious criticisms of 81 00:03:49,080 --> 00:03:51,920 Speaker 1: the day too, which we'll get into. But I think first, Chuck, 82 00:03:52,360 --> 00:03:55,800 Speaker 1: we should explain what the as you would say, h 83 00:03:55,880 --> 00:03:58,360 Speaker 1: we're talking about to the people who listen to this 84 00:03:58,400 --> 00:04:00,680 Speaker 1: podcasts and don't live in the United States, because Black 85 00:04:00,680 --> 00:04:03,800 Speaker 1: Friday is pretty much a uniquely American experience. 86 00:04:04,280 --> 00:04:06,440 Speaker 2: It is I think most people probably know, but just 87 00:04:07,280 --> 00:04:10,240 Speaker 2: very quickly. It is the day after Thanksgiving now in 88 00:04:10,240 --> 00:04:13,040 Speaker 2: the United States is known as Black Friday, and we'll 89 00:04:13,040 --> 00:04:16,120 Speaker 2: get into the pretty interesting history of it. But it's 90 00:04:16,160 --> 00:04:18,360 Speaker 2: the biggest shopping day of the year, and there are 91 00:04:18,360 --> 00:04:20,800 Speaker 2: all these crazy specials that they run, and we'll get 92 00:04:20,839 --> 00:04:23,120 Speaker 2: into that as well, but quite simply, it is the 93 00:04:23,120 --> 00:04:26,160 Speaker 2: busiest shopping day of the year, day after Thanksgiving. 94 00:04:25,680 --> 00:04:29,120 Speaker 1: Right, and it's origin, well, the origin of the term 95 00:04:29,160 --> 00:04:32,960 Speaker 1: black Friday goes back kind of a waste apparently, to 96 00:04:33,040 --> 00:04:38,480 Speaker 1: the mid twentieth century, but the idea of going shopping, 97 00:04:38,600 --> 00:04:42,279 Speaker 1: starting your Christmas shopping on the day after Thanksgiving actually 98 00:04:42,279 --> 00:04:45,719 Speaker 1: goes back to the late nineteenth century early twentieth century, 99 00:04:46,440 --> 00:04:50,960 Speaker 1: thanks to department stores like the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Yeah, 100 00:04:51,320 --> 00:04:53,240 Speaker 1: and as a part of those parades. 101 00:04:53,160 --> 00:04:55,719 Speaker 2: No accident, it's a Macy's parade. 102 00:04:55,400 --> 00:04:57,839 Speaker 1: Right exactly, you know. Yeah, it's still a good parade. 103 00:04:57,839 --> 00:04:59,680 Speaker 2: Though. Have you ever been. 104 00:05:00,000 --> 00:05:00,640 Speaker 1: I haven't. 105 00:05:00,920 --> 00:05:02,760 Speaker 2: Yeah, I've never been to the parade, but a couple 106 00:05:02,800 --> 00:05:04,520 Speaker 2: of times, Emily, and I've gone to the day before 107 00:05:04,560 --> 00:05:05,440 Speaker 2: when they blow up the. 108 00:05:05,800 --> 00:05:07,600 Speaker 1: Oh yeah, which is really neat, very cool. You mean, 109 00:05:07,680 --> 00:05:09,520 Speaker 1: I have a friend who's actually holding one of the 110 00:05:10,200 --> 00:05:11,680 Speaker 1: floats the balloons. 111 00:05:11,800 --> 00:05:12,200 Speaker 2: Oh cool. 112 00:05:12,360 --> 00:05:12,520 Speaker 1: Here. 113 00:05:12,600 --> 00:05:15,160 Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, it's it's fun to do. Although we did 114 00:05:15,160 --> 00:05:18,040 Speaker 2: it like eight or nine years ago and it was 115 00:05:18,200 --> 00:05:20,680 Speaker 2: it was really neat and sort of crowded, and then 116 00:05:20,720 --> 00:05:22,200 Speaker 2: we did it a couple of years ago and it 117 00:05:22,240 --> 00:05:24,680 Speaker 2: is nuts now, is it. It's yeah, it's kind of 118 00:05:24,680 --> 00:05:25,360 Speaker 2: gone overboard. 119 00:05:25,480 --> 00:05:25,840 Speaker 1: Gotcha. 120 00:05:25,920 --> 00:05:26,640 Speaker 2: The word got out. 121 00:05:26,920 --> 00:05:29,680 Speaker 1: I think I saw yeah, I saw something last year 122 00:05:29,680 --> 00:05:30,240 Speaker 1: in the news. 123 00:05:30,680 --> 00:05:32,640 Speaker 2: Yeah. Yeah, it's not a place to go if you 124 00:05:32,680 --> 00:05:34,480 Speaker 2: don't like strollers. Let's just say that. 125 00:05:34,600 --> 00:05:38,920 Speaker 1: Oh yeah, oh yeah, strollers with alternating tires. Yeah. So, 126 00:05:39,400 --> 00:05:42,360 Speaker 1: but the idea of going starting your Christmas shopping the 127 00:05:42,440 --> 00:05:46,480 Speaker 1: day after Thanksgiving came from those parades, and they came 128 00:05:46,520 --> 00:05:48,960 Speaker 1: from those parades because all of those parades, pretty much 129 00:05:49,120 --> 00:05:51,800 Speaker 1: to a parade featured Santa Claus. 130 00:05:52,200 --> 00:05:54,479 Speaker 2: Yeah, and usually at the end kind of like bringing 131 00:05:54,560 --> 00:05:57,560 Speaker 2: up the rear, and that means we're kicking it off. 132 00:05:57,640 --> 00:06:01,440 Speaker 1: That's the official start of the holiday season. Santa Claus 133 00:06:01,480 --> 00:06:04,919 Speaker 1: has made his first public appearance. So from the association 134 00:06:05,000 --> 00:06:08,920 Speaker 1: of those two came going holiday shopping the day after Thanksgiving. 135 00:06:09,760 --> 00:06:13,000 Speaker 1: That was in the late nineteenth century, in the fifties 136 00:06:13,040 --> 00:06:17,640 Speaker 1: they think, or early sixties, well the fifties, calling the 137 00:06:17,680 --> 00:06:20,679 Speaker 1: day after Thanksgiving Black Friday came about, but it didn't 138 00:06:20,680 --> 00:06:23,240 Speaker 1: necessarily have anything to do with shopping by then. It 139 00:06:23,320 --> 00:06:26,120 Speaker 1: was from factory owners who apparently coined the term. 140 00:06:26,560 --> 00:06:29,960 Speaker 2: Yeah, and there's also the other competing theory that it 141 00:06:30,040 --> 00:06:33,480 Speaker 2: was the day that stores would go into the black 142 00:06:33,760 --> 00:06:37,480 Speaker 2: meaning start to show profit. But that's not quite right 143 00:06:37,520 --> 00:06:39,440 Speaker 2: as it No, so that's fallacy. 144 00:06:39,560 --> 00:06:42,520 Speaker 1: That's actually a well, it's a made up fallacy to 145 00:06:42,600 --> 00:06:46,760 Speaker 1: gloss over the original meaning of black Friday. And it 146 00:06:46,800 --> 00:06:49,360 Speaker 1: came out of Philadelphia in the sixties and the cops 147 00:06:49,400 --> 00:06:52,960 Speaker 1: and the bus drivers and the city workers who worked 148 00:06:52,960 --> 00:06:57,640 Speaker 1: downtown came up with calling that day black Friday because 149 00:06:57,640 --> 00:07:00,880 Speaker 1: apparently tons of out of towners would leave their homes 150 00:07:00,880 --> 00:07:04,360 Speaker 1: on Thanksgiving, Yeah, converge on Philadelphia to watch the Army 151 00:07:04,440 --> 00:07:07,240 Speaker 1: Navy game. Sure, on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, but they 152 00:07:07,279 --> 00:07:09,160 Speaker 1: had a day to kill, so they all started doing 153 00:07:09,160 --> 00:07:11,720 Speaker 1: their Christmas shopping because there was sales in downtown Philly 154 00:07:11,760 --> 00:07:16,120 Speaker 1: every year, and the place would be nuts. And this 155 00:07:16,360 --> 00:07:19,600 Speaker 1: was where black Friday came from. Apparently the police department 156 00:07:20,080 --> 00:07:23,000 Speaker 1: wanted to basically keep people away, so they'd be like, well, 157 00:07:23,000 --> 00:07:25,400 Speaker 1: you don't want to go to downtown Philly, it's black Friday. 158 00:07:26,120 --> 00:07:31,000 Speaker 1: And that was the original reason or origin of the term. 159 00:07:31,080 --> 00:07:33,240 Speaker 2: Yeah, I see you saw in here. An article from 160 00:07:33,240 --> 00:07:35,680 Speaker 2: the AP in nineteen seventy five, a sales manager at 161 00:07:35,680 --> 00:07:40,160 Speaker 2: Gimbals was quoted of saying, that's why bus drivers and 162 00:07:40,240 --> 00:07:43,400 Speaker 2: cab drivers call today black Friday. Yeah, they think in 163 00:07:43,480 --> 00:07:47,200 Speaker 2: terms of the headaches that it gives them. So I 164 00:07:47,280 --> 00:07:49,320 Speaker 2: learned something new when I read this. Yeah, and then 165 00:07:49,400 --> 00:07:50,280 Speaker 2: had no idea. 166 00:07:50,200 --> 00:07:53,560 Speaker 1: It spread out of Philly, And then years later the 167 00:07:53,600 --> 00:07:56,440 Speaker 1: retail lobbies and retailers themselves said, we got to come 168 00:07:56,520 --> 00:08:01,160 Speaker 1: up with a better origin story this because we want 169 00:08:01,240 --> 00:08:02,720 Speaker 1: this to be a day that people want to get 170 00:08:02,720 --> 00:08:04,240 Speaker 1: out of their house and go shopping. You know. 171 00:08:04,480 --> 00:08:06,280 Speaker 2: But we should point out even though it is not 172 00:08:06,600 --> 00:08:09,320 Speaker 2: the day that companies go into the black as it were, 173 00:08:09,680 --> 00:08:12,160 Speaker 2: which by the way, comes from when they did accounting 174 00:08:12,160 --> 00:08:14,160 Speaker 2: by hand. You'd write in red ink or black ink, 175 00:08:14,200 --> 00:08:16,720 Speaker 2: depending up that you were ahead with money or behind. 176 00:08:16,880 --> 00:08:19,320 Speaker 1: Red ink meant you were in the hole. Yeah, black 177 00:08:19,480 --> 00:08:20,840 Speaker 1: meant everything's. 178 00:08:20,360 --> 00:08:23,840 Speaker 2: Good, exactly, even though it does not mean that. The 179 00:08:23,880 --> 00:08:27,360 Speaker 2: holiday shopping season is when stores make up between twenty 180 00:08:27,440 --> 00:08:31,160 Speaker 2: and forty percent of their retail profits. So it's a lot. Yeah, 181 00:08:31,240 --> 00:08:35,559 Speaker 2: I mean, even Emily's small business, like the I don't 182 00:08:35,600 --> 00:08:38,000 Speaker 2: know about majority, but a large percentage of her yearly 183 00:08:38,040 --> 00:08:40,520 Speaker 2: sales or you know, a couple of months, yeah, you know. 184 00:08:40,880 --> 00:08:45,160 Speaker 1: And it's not just her. Apparently. In twenty thirteen, the 185 00:08:45,240 --> 00:08:51,439 Speaker 1: National Retail Federation is predicting that Americans just in November 186 00:08:51,480 --> 00:08:54,000 Speaker 1: and December. Chuck, are you ready for this? Yeah, Americans 187 00:08:54,000 --> 00:08:58,280 Speaker 1: are going to spend six hundred and two billion dollars 188 00:08:58,520 --> 00:09:03,360 Speaker 1: in November and December. That'skray, that's a lot of cash. Yeah, 189 00:09:03,400 --> 00:09:04,400 Speaker 1: in two months. 190 00:09:04,880 --> 00:09:07,680 Speaker 2: Yeah. I don't spend like I used to on Christmas. 191 00:09:09,640 --> 00:09:13,240 Speaker 2: Emily and I sometimes will spend on gifts on each 192 00:09:13,240 --> 00:09:16,480 Speaker 2: other or do that like a couple things where you like, 193 00:09:16,559 --> 00:09:18,439 Speaker 2: go in and just do something nice for your house. 194 00:09:19,679 --> 00:09:21,520 Speaker 2: And then like the adults on my side of the family, 195 00:09:21,520 --> 00:09:23,280 Speaker 2: we don't exchange gifts anymore. 196 00:09:24,320 --> 00:09:25,160 Speaker 1: Just dirty looks. 197 00:09:25,400 --> 00:09:27,960 Speaker 2: Yeah, you exchanged dirty looks now, Like my brother my 198 00:09:28,000 --> 00:09:30,160 Speaker 2: sister will chip in usually and get my mom something 199 00:09:30,200 --> 00:09:34,840 Speaker 2: kind of nice or give her offer her a service, 200 00:09:34,920 --> 00:09:38,560 Speaker 2: like last year we replaced her fireplace with like a 201 00:09:38,600 --> 00:09:41,920 Speaker 2: gas fireplace nice or build her a garden fence or 202 00:09:42,000 --> 00:09:43,600 Speaker 2: tile her kitchen like something like that. 203 00:09:43,640 --> 00:09:46,199 Speaker 1: Wow, your mom's got it. Yeah, she's an easy street 204 00:09:46,280 --> 00:09:47,040 Speaker 1: is what you call that. 205 00:09:47,120 --> 00:09:49,760 Speaker 2: Yeah, but Emily's family they all still exchange gifts, So 206 00:09:49,760 --> 00:09:53,760 Speaker 2: I still have my Christmas gift swapping. Joan satisfied. 207 00:09:54,679 --> 00:10:00,760 Speaker 1: You know, yes, you get your Christmas present on Yeah, okay, Chuck. 208 00:10:00,840 --> 00:10:07,880 Speaker 1: So the idea of shopping after Thanksgiving and then Black Friday, 209 00:10:08,000 --> 00:10:09,719 Speaker 1: that day being called Black Friday, it's been around for 210 00:10:09,720 --> 00:10:13,800 Speaker 1: a while and it's a really valuable day. Yeah, you know, 211 00:10:14,160 --> 00:10:17,000 Speaker 1: it kicks off that two month period where six hundred 212 00:10:17,000 --> 00:10:19,360 Speaker 1: and two billion dollars is going to be spent on stuff. 213 00:10:19,520 --> 00:10:24,439 Speaker 2: But it was created like Valentine's Day, it was literally created, 214 00:10:24,480 --> 00:10:27,200 Speaker 2: and then the myth kind of became reality. Yeah, just 215 00:10:27,240 --> 00:10:29,800 Speaker 2: because they said everyone's going to shop the day, it's 216 00:10:29,800 --> 00:10:31,080 Speaker 2: the busiest day, and it became that. 217 00:10:31,320 --> 00:10:35,199 Speaker 1: Yeah, it wasn't until two thousand and four. Yeah, usually 218 00:10:35,360 --> 00:10:39,120 Speaker 1: the Saturday before Christmas was actually the busiest shopping day 219 00:10:39,160 --> 00:10:41,760 Speaker 1: of the year thanks to me. But the Retail Federation 220 00:10:41,920 --> 00:10:44,880 Speaker 1: and all the retailers were like, well, we can't just 221 00:10:44,960 --> 00:10:48,199 Speaker 1: we can't tout that is the busiest shopping day of 222 00:10:48,200 --> 00:10:50,640 Speaker 1: the year. We want to like get people spending over 223 00:10:50,640 --> 00:10:52,679 Speaker 1: the course of a couple of months, not the Saturday 224 00:10:52,720 --> 00:10:57,880 Speaker 1: before Christmas. So they basically said Black Friday's the day. Yeah, 225 00:10:57,920 --> 00:10:59,839 Speaker 1: and it, like you said, it just kind of be 226 00:11:00,080 --> 00:11:02,360 Speaker 1: came true just from people saying it over time. 227 00:11:02,520 --> 00:11:06,480 Speaker 2: I'm surprised that they haven't come up with a catchy 228 00:11:06,640 --> 00:11:11,080 Speaker 2: name for like Procrastinator's Day or something to like pump 229 00:11:11,160 --> 00:11:13,040 Speaker 2: up that last Saturday again or something. 230 00:11:13,080 --> 00:11:14,679 Speaker 1: Or to keep you from it. So they call it 231 00:11:14,720 --> 00:11:18,320 Speaker 1: like Shame of the Nation Day something like that, to 232 00:11:18,400 --> 00:11:23,640 Speaker 1: make you like go go do Black Friday Friday Saturday. Yeah. So, 233 00:11:24,200 --> 00:11:28,800 Speaker 1: and there's this website called Black Friday Archive dot com. 234 00:11:29,240 --> 00:11:31,840 Speaker 1: It's actually like kind of cool if you like nostalgic 235 00:11:31,880 --> 00:11:34,560 Speaker 1: ads or whatever, nostalgia going back to two thousand and seven, 236 00:11:34,600 --> 00:11:37,440 Speaker 1: I should say, but it's just like scans of Black 237 00:11:37,480 --> 00:11:40,200 Speaker 1: Friday print ads from those years, which are kind of neat. 238 00:11:40,840 --> 00:11:43,200 Speaker 1: If you're totally bored out of your mind, go check 239 00:11:43,200 --> 00:12:05,520 Speaker 1: out Black Friday Archive dot com. So Black Friday became 240 00:12:05,520 --> 00:12:08,120 Speaker 1: a smashing success, like two thousand and four, two thousand 241 00:12:08,120 --> 00:12:11,000 Speaker 1: and five. It's a relatively recent thing that it became 242 00:12:11,559 --> 00:12:13,880 Speaker 1: what it is today here in the States, which is 243 00:12:13,920 --> 00:12:18,840 Speaker 1: an out of controlled juggernaut shopping and consumeristic frenzy. Right. 244 00:12:20,280 --> 00:12:26,959 Speaker 1: But so it was so successful overnight that the retailer said, well, 245 00:12:27,040 --> 00:12:29,600 Speaker 1: let's figure out ways to extend this whole week. Yeah, 246 00:12:29,840 --> 00:12:31,760 Speaker 1: so they came up a cyber Monday in two thousand 247 00:12:31,760 --> 00:12:32,120 Speaker 1: and five. 248 00:12:32,360 --> 00:12:36,480 Speaker 2: Yep, that's pretty recent and it is the online shopping 249 00:12:36,600 --> 00:12:40,599 Speaker 2: version of Black Friday, the Monday after Thanksgiving. 250 00:12:40,960 --> 00:12:43,520 Speaker 1: And that was another thing they just made up, another 251 00:12:43,600 --> 00:12:47,920 Speaker 1: self fulfilling myth that they said, that's the the workers 252 00:12:48,000 --> 00:12:50,840 Speaker 1: go back to their computer after Thanksgiving on Monday and 253 00:12:50,920 --> 00:12:54,319 Speaker 1: they do all their online shopping. Well that wasn't really true, 254 00:12:54,320 --> 00:12:56,720 Speaker 1: but now it is because the retailer said it was 255 00:12:56,760 --> 00:12:58,000 Speaker 1: and the media reported it. 256 00:12:58,440 --> 00:13:02,920 Speaker 2: And not to be outdone in American Express invented Small 257 00:13:02,960 --> 00:13:05,920 Speaker 2: Business Saturday, which is when you go out and support 258 00:13:06,000 --> 00:13:07,640 Speaker 2: small businesses with your money. 259 00:13:07,440 --> 00:13:10,120 Speaker 1: Especially ones that take American Express exactly. 260 00:13:11,480 --> 00:13:16,800 Speaker 2: So there's it's interesting literally creating days to tell people basically, 261 00:13:16,840 --> 00:13:19,360 Speaker 2: if you're not shopping to day, you're missing out on 262 00:13:20,000 --> 00:13:21,240 Speaker 2: really good deals. 263 00:13:21,000 --> 00:13:25,320 Speaker 1: Right exactly. And the more days the better as far 264 00:13:25,400 --> 00:13:29,760 Speaker 1: as retailers are concerned. But there's only so many days 265 00:13:29,920 --> 00:13:34,600 Speaker 1: after Thanksgiving. So they started to think recently, like, well, 266 00:13:34,640 --> 00:13:36,559 Speaker 1: what if we pushed in the other direction rather from 267 00:13:36,559 --> 00:13:40,319 Speaker 1: Friday on what's behind Friday? Oh yeah, Thanksgiving? We can't 268 00:13:40,320 --> 00:13:44,680 Speaker 1: touch that for shame. Well, starting in twenty twelve, they 269 00:13:44,800 --> 00:13:49,320 Speaker 1: started touching it. Walmart actually opened at eight pm on 270 00:13:49,480 --> 00:13:53,960 Speaker 1: Thanksgiving in twenty twelve, and there was there was a 271 00:13:54,040 --> 00:13:57,320 Speaker 1: general strike called that we'll talk about later. Yeah, because 272 00:13:57,320 --> 00:14:00,600 Speaker 1: of that, because these stores are not supposed to be 273 00:14:00,600 --> 00:14:03,280 Speaker 1: open on Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is its own day. It's a 274 00:14:03,360 --> 00:14:06,760 Speaker 1: day of being with family and celebrating and giving thanks 275 00:14:07,000 --> 00:14:09,640 Speaker 1: Up until twenty twelve, it was sacrisanct. 276 00:14:09,840 --> 00:14:12,240 Speaker 2: Yeah. This year, Macy's and J. C. Penny for the 277 00:14:12,240 --> 00:14:15,600 Speaker 2: first time are opening on Thanksgiving, and Sears and Toys 278 00:14:15,679 --> 00:14:20,000 Speaker 2: r Us as well on Thanksgiving evening, and Kmart is 279 00:14:20,040 --> 00:14:26,200 Speaker 2: opening at six am on Thanksgiving, basically extending Black Friday 280 00:14:26,680 --> 00:14:27,960 Speaker 2: through the weekend. 281 00:14:27,800 --> 00:14:29,239 Speaker 1: Forty one hours. 282 00:14:29,480 --> 00:14:30,200 Speaker 2: That's not a day. 283 00:14:30,320 --> 00:14:32,600 Speaker 1: That's how long Kmart's going to be open. Black Friday 284 00:14:32,600 --> 00:14:36,520 Speaker 1: at Camart lasts forty one hours. Yeah, that's pretty crazy. 285 00:14:37,040 --> 00:14:39,760 Speaker 2: And at shopping malls you're going to have some smaller 286 00:14:39,800 --> 00:14:43,480 Speaker 2: stores doing the same thing. And estimated twenty to twenty 287 00:14:43,480 --> 00:14:46,040 Speaker 2: five percent will be open at eight pm on Thanksgiving 288 00:14:46,120 --> 00:14:49,880 Speaker 2: Day and two thirds will open at midnight. So essentially 289 00:14:49,960 --> 00:14:57,480 Speaker 2: what's happening is Thanksgiving Evening is being ruined by retail. 290 00:14:58,040 --> 00:15:01,080 Speaker 1: Yeah, you know, yeah, I think the retail would say, well, 291 00:15:01,200 --> 00:15:04,360 Speaker 1: you know, we've seen that people, right, We've seen that 292 00:15:04,400 --> 00:15:09,000 Speaker 1: people start lining up Thanksgiving afternoon Thanksgiving evening to wait 293 00:15:09,080 --> 00:15:11,680 Speaker 1: for us to open like that, you know, the next morning, 294 00:15:12,080 --> 00:15:14,840 Speaker 1: So why don't we just open? So, I mean, I 295 00:15:14,840 --> 00:15:17,320 Speaker 1: think it's kind of it goes both ways, but I 296 00:15:17,440 --> 00:15:19,360 Speaker 1: pretty much see where you're coming from. 297 00:15:19,640 --> 00:15:21,840 Speaker 2: Yeah, Well, this year it's a little trickier too, because 298 00:15:21,880 --> 00:15:26,040 Speaker 2: Thanksgiving comes on November twenty eighth, which is the latest 299 00:15:26,040 --> 00:15:28,440 Speaker 2: suspend in eleven years. 300 00:15:29,120 --> 00:15:32,480 Speaker 1: Yeah, is that right? Yeah, two thousand and two. Yep. 301 00:15:32,760 --> 00:15:37,120 Speaker 2: So weirdly, because they still sort of have to enforce 302 00:15:37,160 --> 00:15:40,760 Speaker 2: Black Friday, they're actually shortening their own shopping season a 303 00:15:40,760 --> 00:15:42,600 Speaker 2: little bit this year, right, which is probably why some 304 00:15:42,720 --> 00:15:43,880 Speaker 2: I am are opening on Thanksgiving. 305 00:15:44,040 --> 00:15:47,760 Speaker 1: That's exactly why it's six days shorter than usual this year. 306 00:15:48,760 --> 00:15:53,480 Speaker 1: So just by the very existence by making up Black Friday. 307 00:15:53,200 --> 00:15:54,880 Speaker 2: They've screwed themselves this year a little bit. 308 00:15:54,920 --> 00:15:58,040 Speaker 1: They have by a week, yeah, because there's in other 309 00:15:58,080 --> 00:16:03,440 Speaker 1: countries like Canada, the UK, the Netherlands, countries that observe 310 00:16:03,640 --> 00:16:07,640 Speaker 1: the Christmas holidays like we do in America, meaning everybody 311 00:16:07,640 --> 00:16:09,920 Speaker 1: gives everybody else presents and things like that, and they 312 00:16:10,000 --> 00:16:14,680 Speaker 1: spend money. But those countries don't have a Black Friday, 313 00:16:14,720 --> 00:16:17,880 Speaker 1: a day that officially kicks off the holiday shopping season. 314 00:16:19,000 --> 00:16:22,600 Speaker 1: Those countries spend more over the course of the holiday 315 00:16:22,640 --> 00:16:25,800 Speaker 1: season because they have a longer period of time to shop. 316 00:16:26,880 --> 00:16:31,560 Speaker 1: So without Black Friday in America, the retailers would possibly 317 00:16:31,600 --> 00:16:34,080 Speaker 1: make more money. So they've definitely painted themselves into a 318 00:16:34,120 --> 00:16:36,840 Speaker 1: corner by making Black Friday such a thing. And this 319 00:16:36,960 --> 00:16:39,600 Speaker 1: year it's really kind of pointing out, like, we may 320 00:16:39,600 --> 00:16:41,720 Speaker 1: be shooting ourselves in the foot here, so what can 321 00:16:41,760 --> 00:16:44,360 Speaker 1: we do well. Their solution has been, well, we'll just 322 00:16:44,360 --> 00:16:47,520 Speaker 1: take over Thanksgiving too, but that's not necessarily sustainable, and 323 00:16:47,520 --> 00:16:49,440 Speaker 1: there's a lot of people who are saying Black Friday 324 00:16:49,520 --> 00:16:50,880 Speaker 1: is going to go the way of the dinosaur. 325 00:16:51,120 --> 00:16:53,320 Speaker 2: Yeah. I read an interesting article in the New Yorker 326 00:16:53,800 --> 00:16:56,560 Speaker 2: this morning, finance article. I think it was New Yorker, 327 00:16:56,880 --> 00:16:59,680 Speaker 2: it might have been New York Times, but this financial 328 00:16:59,680 --> 00:17:04,400 Speaker 2: analy was basically analyzing how the sales go and sort 329 00:17:04,440 --> 00:17:08,840 Speaker 2: of saying that it's really not financially the smartest approach 330 00:17:08,920 --> 00:17:11,800 Speaker 2: to take for the over shoppers or the retail for 331 00:17:11,840 --> 00:17:15,160 Speaker 2: the retailers to offer these huge, deep discounts and sort 332 00:17:15,160 --> 00:17:18,359 Speaker 2: of blow it out in one day. A better, smarter 333 00:17:18,440 --> 00:17:22,080 Speaker 2: financial approach would be to elongate the Sea's shopping season 334 00:17:22,440 --> 00:17:25,640 Speaker 2: at a and not even discount things, maybe even raise prices. 335 00:17:26,400 --> 00:17:29,800 Speaker 2: And his contention is that they're shooting themselves in the. 336 00:17:29,720 --> 00:17:32,360 Speaker 1: Foot, right, But I think he's right. 337 00:17:32,640 --> 00:17:33,280 Speaker 2: He probably is. 338 00:17:33,440 --> 00:17:34,960 Speaker 1: But at the same time, if you were one of 339 00:17:34,960 --> 00:17:40,360 Speaker 1: those people like me Frankly who went to the mall 340 00:17:40,440 --> 00:17:44,520 Speaker 1: the day after Halloween, yeah, and saw that the lights 341 00:17:44,520 --> 00:17:47,040 Speaker 1: were up, the garland was out, Santa's workshop was ready 342 00:17:47,080 --> 00:17:50,959 Speaker 1: to go, like Halloween November one, Wow, the place was 343 00:17:51,160 --> 00:17:54,480 Speaker 1: totally decked out for Christmas with Christmas carols piping through. 344 00:17:54,640 --> 00:17:56,600 Speaker 2: Yeah. See that's that's ridiculous. 345 00:17:56,640 --> 00:17:58,680 Speaker 1: But see without but that was the great thing about 346 00:17:58,680 --> 00:18:01,000 Speaker 1: Black Friday. It's like, you, you know, you had a month 347 00:18:01,000 --> 00:18:03,640 Speaker 1: of just kind of chilling out everything getting ready between 348 00:18:04,119 --> 00:18:07,600 Speaker 1: between Halloween and Thanksgiving. Then you had Thanksgiving, and then 349 00:18:07,600 --> 00:18:10,840 Speaker 1: the holiday season started. Without Black Friday, It's kind of 350 00:18:10,880 --> 00:18:15,959 Speaker 1: like this this dam that's holding back the holiday season 351 00:18:16,480 --> 00:18:21,160 Speaker 1: from spilling into basically October. But with retailers figuring out 352 00:18:21,200 --> 00:18:25,320 Speaker 1: that it's an impedance to them making money, it probably 353 00:18:25,400 --> 00:18:28,159 Speaker 1: won't start the official season any longer. It'll probably be 354 00:18:28,240 --> 00:18:29,439 Speaker 1: further back from now on. 355 00:18:29,680 --> 00:18:32,400 Speaker 2: Yeah, well, I think we're in I don't know about well, 356 00:18:32,440 --> 00:18:36,960 Speaker 2: technically slightly in the minority. In twenty thirteen, fifty three 357 00:18:37,040 --> 00:18:40,400 Speaker 2: percent of the population of American adults said they will 358 00:18:40,400 --> 00:18:41,640 Speaker 2: shop on Black Friday. 359 00:18:41,760 --> 00:18:43,560 Speaker 1: So fifty three percent. 360 00:18:43,640 --> 00:18:45,520 Speaker 2: Yeah, that puts us in the minority by a bit. 361 00:18:45,720 --> 00:18:46,000 Speaker 1: Yeah. 362 00:18:46,040 --> 00:18:49,879 Speaker 2: And in twenty eleven, one hundred and fifty two Americans. 363 00:18:49,720 --> 00:18:53,280 Speaker 1: Fifty two million. Oh yeah, just one hundred, but they 364 00:18:53,320 --> 00:18:54,840 Speaker 1: spent five hundred billion dollars. 365 00:18:54,960 --> 00:18:58,240 Speaker 2: Yeah, one hundred and fifty two. Really rich Americans. One 366 00:18:58,320 --> 00:19:00,879 Speaker 2: hundred and fifty two million shopped on that day for 367 00:19:00,960 --> 00:19:04,320 Speaker 2: an average of three hours at a time, which is 368 00:19:06,560 --> 00:19:09,040 Speaker 2: not too long, but that's I mean, three hours is 369 00:19:09,280 --> 00:19:11,119 Speaker 2: like it's longer weever. 370 00:19:11,240 --> 00:19:14,399 Speaker 1: But I saw a woman who did sixteen though, like 371 00:19:14,600 --> 00:19:16,720 Speaker 1: a sixteen hour stretch of shopping. 372 00:19:16,920 --> 00:19:20,120 Speaker 2: She better have gotten it all done at least, I hope, 373 00:19:20,160 --> 00:19:22,879 Speaker 2: so you know, yeah, like if she shopped for sixteen 374 00:19:22,920 --> 00:19:25,199 Speaker 2: hours and only got like three gifts, yeah, it's not 375 00:19:25,240 --> 00:19:25,959 Speaker 2: time we'll spend. 376 00:19:26,440 --> 00:19:30,720 Speaker 1: There's also evidence that the Internet is basically knocking on 377 00:19:30,800 --> 00:19:35,120 Speaker 1: Black Friday's door. Thanksgiving Day is the fastest growing online 378 00:19:35,119 --> 00:19:38,520 Speaker 1: shopping day. Yeah, and I think like seventy percent of 379 00:19:38,520 --> 00:19:40,080 Speaker 1: the people who said that they're going to shop on 380 00:19:40,080 --> 00:19:42,879 Speaker 1: Black Friday, said they'll do some or most of it online. 381 00:19:44,200 --> 00:19:47,600 Speaker 1: So the Internet's still there for retailers to make money. 382 00:19:47,800 --> 00:19:52,159 Speaker 1: But the idea of Black Friday in store sales going 383 00:19:52,680 --> 00:19:57,080 Speaker 1: extinct is probably not going to happen because it's its 384 00:19:57,119 --> 00:20:01,560 Speaker 1: own thing. Like there's this one consumer psychologists or consumer 385 00:20:01,680 --> 00:20:05,359 Speaker 1: analysts i think pointed out that it's a tradition number 386 00:20:05,400 --> 00:20:09,080 Speaker 1: one nowadays and number two, there's a certain element of 387 00:20:09,119 --> 00:20:13,320 Speaker 1: like sport to it. It's more than just getting a 388 00:20:13,320 --> 00:20:17,120 Speaker 1: good deal. It's like, you know, throwing a fist at 389 00:20:17,200 --> 00:20:19,560 Speaker 1: somebody while you're getting a good Dealer's something to it 390 00:20:19,600 --> 00:20:21,200 Speaker 1: that transcends the whole thing. 391 00:20:21,800 --> 00:20:25,359 Speaker 2: So we mentioned Doorbusters. It's a central part of the 392 00:20:25,480 --> 00:20:29,520 Speaker 2: cog that is Black Friday, and it goes back in print, 393 00:20:29,560 --> 00:20:33,119 Speaker 2: believe it or not, to the You're nineteen seventeen and 394 00:20:33,200 --> 00:20:37,120 Speaker 2: anecdotally to eighteen ninety five, where in a retailer will 395 00:20:37,119 --> 00:20:40,600 Speaker 2: basically say, you know what, we have one item or 396 00:20:40,680 --> 00:20:43,600 Speaker 2: usually it's a few now, but some really deep, deep 397 00:20:43,640 --> 00:20:47,240 Speaker 2: and really super great deals on just a few select items. 398 00:20:47,280 --> 00:20:50,240 Speaker 1: So like, for example, a good laptop for one hundred 399 00:20:50,240 --> 00:20:54,760 Speaker 1: and eighty dollars. Yes, then like deals like that iPods 400 00:20:54,800 --> 00:20:57,639 Speaker 1: for half off or a TV for yeah, like two hundred, 401 00:20:57,720 --> 00:20:59,919 Speaker 1: like really really, like you said, very good discounts. 402 00:21:00,200 --> 00:21:04,240 Speaker 2: But here's the deal. It's a scam people, it's a 403 00:21:04,240 --> 00:21:07,320 Speaker 2: bait and switch. It's a bait and switch. They've only 404 00:21:07,359 --> 00:21:10,720 Speaker 2: got a very limited amount of these select items, which 405 00:21:10,760 --> 00:21:13,359 Speaker 2: is why the violence happens, which we'll get to in 406 00:21:13,400 --> 00:21:15,840 Speaker 2: a minute. And then after that they're hoping you get 407 00:21:15,840 --> 00:21:18,240 Speaker 2: in there. You don't get that laptop, but you're like, 408 00:21:18,400 --> 00:21:22,040 Speaker 2: screw it. I'm at Walmart at five am. I might 409 00:21:22,040 --> 00:21:28,080 Speaker 2: as well buy some stuff regular priced or slightly discounted items. 410 00:21:28,119 --> 00:21:30,320 Speaker 2: And you know, that's how they get you in the store. 411 00:21:30,440 --> 00:21:31,159 Speaker 2: That's how they get you. 412 00:21:31,320 --> 00:21:35,160 Speaker 1: It is, and it is. It's true that these items 413 00:21:35,200 --> 00:21:38,960 Speaker 1: do exist, and they are for that deal. They're there 414 00:21:39,119 --> 00:21:42,680 Speaker 1: there for that price, I should say, but there's only 415 00:21:42,680 --> 00:21:45,400 Speaker 1: like ten and in the fine print it's like one 416 00:21:45,440 --> 00:21:49,119 Speaker 1: per person, and that deals is for in stock only, 417 00:21:49,200 --> 00:21:51,520 Speaker 1: like you can't get a rain check or anything like that. No, no, no, 418 00:21:51,560 --> 00:21:54,680 Speaker 1: But the concept that these deals do exist for those 419 00:21:54,720 --> 00:21:59,520 Speaker 1: items that are in the store, coupled with whoever physically 420 00:21:59,560 --> 00:22:04,280 Speaker 1: gets their hands on that item first gets that deal yeah, 421 00:22:04,800 --> 00:22:07,480 Speaker 1: leads to doors actually being busted. 422 00:22:07,680 --> 00:22:11,679 Speaker 2: It's called recipe for disaster. Yeah. All right, So before 423 00:22:11,720 --> 00:22:14,800 Speaker 2: we get to the dark days and the bad stuff 424 00:22:14,840 --> 00:22:17,280 Speaker 2: that can happen, truly, let's do a little message break. 425 00:22:17,320 --> 00:22:27,640 Speaker 1: Okay, fish, fish. 426 00:22:27,400 --> 00:22:29,200 Speaker 2: All right, let's go back a little bit to two 427 00:22:29,240 --> 00:22:32,439 Speaker 2: thousand and eight and probably the well, I was going 428 00:22:32,480 --> 00:22:34,600 Speaker 2: to say the darkest incident, but I think the Toys 429 00:22:34,680 --> 00:22:35,600 Speaker 2: r US may be darker. 430 00:22:35,720 --> 00:22:38,800 Speaker 1: I think this one's darker because d yeah. 431 00:22:38,640 --> 00:22:40,080 Speaker 2: Yeah, that's true, all right. Two thousand and eight and 432 00:22:40,200 --> 00:22:44,439 Speaker 2: Valley Stream, Long Island. It was at a Walmart and 433 00:22:44,560 --> 00:22:50,000 Speaker 2: it was five pm on Thanksgiving, so basically people there 434 00:22:50,200 --> 00:22:53,080 Speaker 2: the day before. It wasn't one of those days where 435 00:22:53,080 --> 00:22:55,840 Speaker 2: it was open on Thanksgiving, so they're they're to wait 436 00:22:55,920 --> 00:22:58,159 Speaker 2: till five am. So at least twelve hours ahead of time, 437 00:22:58,200 --> 00:23:02,000 Speaker 2: there were about one thousand pe already set up there. 438 00:23:02,040 --> 00:23:04,640 Speaker 2: Some people are camping out in tents, they're waiting, they 439 00:23:04,640 --> 00:23:08,439 Speaker 2: got their coffee, they're probably slugging some jim Beam to 440 00:23:08,520 --> 00:23:11,720 Speaker 2: warm the belly. And so the police came out and said, 441 00:23:11,760 --> 00:23:14,880 Speaker 2: you know what, let's set up a buffer zone a barricade, 442 00:23:15,240 --> 00:23:18,040 Speaker 2: which worked till about two am. When that was breached 443 00:23:18,520 --> 00:23:20,679 Speaker 2: and the cops basically said, we're out of here. This 444 00:23:20,760 --> 00:23:21,640 Speaker 2: isn't part of our job. 445 00:23:21,800 --> 00:23:25,639 Speaker 1: Yeah, the crowd had turned angry a little bit after that, 446 00:23:27,400 --> 00:23:30,000 Speaker 1: so one of the store employees had some family members 447 00:23:30,040 --> 00:23:32,679 Speaker 1: come and like they took them out of the line 448 00:23:32,720 --> 00:23:35,280 Speaker 1: and took them in the store. Not a good idea, Yeah, 449 00:23:35,280 --> 00:23:38,400 Speaker 1: But even if even if everyone in the crowd would 450 00:23:38,400 --> 00:23:40,119 Speaker 1: have been cool with it, I don't think everybody in 451 00:23:40,160 --> 00:23:43,000 Speaker 1: the crowd realized that they were family members of an employee. Sure, 452 00:23:43,040 --> 00:23:46,000 Speaker 1: so the crowd actually turned like ugly. 453 00:23:46,280 --> 00:23:50,639 Speaker 2: Yeah, they broke through the barricade and were squeezed against 454 00:23:50,680 --> 00:23:53,280 Speaker 2: You know how the stores have the entrance and then 455 00:23:53,320 --> 00:23:56,800 Speaker 2: that little glassed and vestibule area before, and then usually 456 00:23:56,840 --> 00:23:59,280 Speaker 2: a second entrance right to get into the store itself. 457 00:23:59,320 --> 00:24:01,600 Speaker 1: So there was about by this time, there was about 458 00:24:01,600 --> 00:24:04,000 Speaker 1: two thousand people waiting for the store to open. It 459 00:24:04,040 --> 00:24:05,800 Speaker 1: was four am, the store's going to open at five, 460 00:24:06,280 --> 00:24:09,119 Speaker 1: and a couple hundred were in between this little buffer 461 00:24:09,200 --> 00:24:14,000 Speaker 1: zone and those front exterior doors and being pressed up, 462 00:24:14,119 --> 00:24:17,480 Speaker 1: literally crushed to death. And there's this fascinating article in 463 00:24:17,520 --> 00:24:19,680 Speaker 1: The New Yorker by a guy named John Seabrook called 464 00:24:19,720 --> 00:24:22,560 Speaker 1: crush point, and it's about not just this incident, but 465 00:24:24,119 --> 00:24:26,679 Speaker 1: just crushings in general. Where yea a crowd on that 466 00:24:26,720 --> 00:24:28,080 Speaker 1: crush somebody. 467 00:24:28,160 --> 00:24:30,240 Speaker 2: Yeah, we covered that like years ago. 468 00:24:30,480 --> 00:24:32,880 Speaker 1: It seems like it, Yeah, totally, But anyway, you check 469 00:24:32,920 --> 00:24:33,679 Speaker 1: out that article. 470 00:24:33,800 --> 00:24:37,760 Speaker 2: Yeah, people literally yelling, pushed the doors in chanting this, 471 00:24:38,480 --> 00:24:41,679 Speaker 2: and just before five o'clock, it's it's a pretty bad scene. 472 00:24:42,160 --> 00:24:45,800 Speaker 2: And workers in that vestibule area realized that there was 473 00:24:45,840 --> 00:24:50,280 Speaker 2: a pregnant lady named Leanna Lockley being crushed against the doors, 474 00:24:50,359 --> 00:24:51,600 Speaker 2: and so they were like, we got to get this 475 00:24:51,680 --> 00:24:54,760 Speaker 2: lady in here, open the doors enough to squeeze her through. 476 00:24:55,320 --> 00:24:59,760 Speaker 2: She got in, and then the crowd surged forward and 477 00:24:59,800 --> 00:25:02,760 Speaker 2: it just kind of went downhill from there, and they 478 00:25:02,880 --> 00:25:05,879 Speaker 2: still did the ten, nine to eight countdown. 479 00:25:06,200 --> 00:25:07,159 Speaker 1: Isn't that mind boggling? 480 00:25:07,200 --> 00:25:09,560 Speaker 2: It's mind boggling that they didn't. Well, first of all, 481 00:25:09,600 --> 00:25:10,720 Speaker 2: that the cops left. 482 00:25:10,840 --> 00:25:13,520 Speaker 1: Yeah they said, they said apparently in the court deposition 483 00:25:13,600 --> 00:25:16,600 Speaker 1: that the cops when they left said, controlling this crowd's 484 00:25:16,640 --> 00:25:19,879 Speaker 1: not in our job description. Good luck. Walmart Hood hired 485 00:25:19,880 --> 00:25:23,200 Speaker 1: a security force of two for the event. One person 486 00:25:23,240 --> 00:25:25,520 Speaker 1: hadn't shown up, the other one was inside the store 487 00:25:25,560 --> 00:25:28,320 Speaker 1: not helping. So they got a bunch of their stock guys, 488 00:25:28,359 --> 00:25:31,200 Speaker 1: their their biggest dudes that they could find, ye, and said, 489 00:25:31,280 --> 00:25:34,320 Speaker 1: come stand as vestibule and help anybody who like falls 490 00:25:34,320 --> 00:25:34,840 Speaker 1: down or. 491 00:25:35,160 --> 00:25:37,000 Speaker 2: That's what I would have been liking, dude, that's not 492 00:25:37,080 --> 00:25:38,720 Speaker 2: in my job description exactly. 493 00:25:38,760 --> 00:25:42,000 Speaker 1: Well, they they didn't say that. And when the doors 494 00:25:42,040 --> 00:25:45,840 Speaker 1: finally opened after the festive countdown, while these people were 495 00:25:45,840 --> 00:25:48,840 Speaker 1: being crushed against the front, unbelievable, the doors started to 496 00:25:48,880 --> 00:25:51,760 Speaker 1: open and right when they opened, they actually gave way 497 00:25:51,920 --> 00:25:56,280 Speaker 1: and were literally busted by this wave of humanity. 498 00:25:56,960 --> 00:26:00,760 Speaker 2: Yeah, and at that point, the employees, their little roverline 499 00:26:01,200 --> 00:26:02,480 Speaker 2: was completely ineffective. 500 00:26:02,760 --> 00:26:02,960 Speaker 1: Yeah. 501 00:26:03,000 --> 00:26:05,600 Speaker 2: People are getting knocked down, some of the workers are 502 00:26:06,280 --> 00:26:08,080 Speaker 2: getting blown out of the way. Some are jumping on 503 00:26:08,160 --> 00:26:10,360 Speaker 2: vending machines. It's ridiculous. 504 00:26:10,480 --> 00:26:12,600 Speaker 1: Well, yeah, a couple of them like climbed up the 505 00:26:12,680 --> 00:26:15,000 Speaker 1: coke machine to like get out of the way first 506 00:26:15,000 --> 00:26:18,159 Speaker 1: safe harbor. One guy who was in the in the 507 00:26:18,200 --> 00:26:22,560 Speaker 1: way of the crowd when the doors gave way. This 508 00:26:22,680 --> 00:26:25,280 Speaker 1: article by John Sebrook puts it that he was blown back. 509 00:26:25,440 --> 00:26:25,760 Speaker 2: Yeah. 510 00:26:25,800 --> 00:26:28,920 Speaker 1: So again, there's a vestibule. There's the outer doors, there's 511 00:26:28,920 --> 00:26:31,120 Speaker 1: a vestibule. And then there's inner doors, and then there's 512 00:26:31,160 --> 00:26:34,560 Speaker 1: the store. This guy got blown from the outer doors 513 00:26:34,640 --> 00:26:37,479 Speaker 1: all the way through the vestibule, through the inner doors 514 00:26:37,520 --> 00:26:41,159 Speaker 1: into the store by this wave of people. Two thousand people, Yeah, 515 00:26:41,240 --> 00:26:43,240 Speaker 1: just coming in all at once, all trying to get 516 00:26:43,240 --> 00:26:44,399 Speaker 1: their hands on that doorbuster. 517 00:26:44,800 --> 00:26:48,679 Speaker 2: Yeah, like an iPod or something. Yeah, So that's not 518 00:26:48,720 --> 00:26:52,199 Speaker 2: the end of the story. Sadly, people are getting crushed. 519 00:26:52,200 --> 00:26:55,560 Speaker 2: This pregnant woman trips over some old woman. She's on 520 00:26:55,600 --> 00:26:59,080 Speaker 2: the ground at this point, pregnant. Yeah. Leanna Lockley in 521 00:26:59,200 --> 00:27:02,360 Speaker 2: danger of being, you know, trampled to death. And then 522 00:27:02,440 --> 00:27:05,000 Speaker 2: she somehow managed to get to her knees and saw 523 00:27:05,480 --> 00:27:08,360 Speaker 2: an employee. Do you know how to pronounce his first name? 524 00:27:09,280 --> 00:27:13,760 Speaker 2: Jim Ta de Moore, Jim T de Moore. He was 525 00:27:13,760 --> 00:27:16,840 Speaker 2: assigned to help people in case anyone fell fell down 526 00:27:16,920 --> 00:27:20,200 Speaker 2: next to her. The doors fell on top of him, 527 00:27:20,800 --> 00:27:24,800 Speaker 2: and two thousand people trampled over those doors and killed him. 528 00:27:25,040 --> 00:27:28,480 Speaker 1: Yeah, he was trampled to death. He died of asphyxiation 529 00:27:28,800 --> 00:27:31,280 Speaker 1: being crushed under the door. And he was a stop guy. 530 00:27:31,600 --> 00:27:34,040 Speaker 2: At six am, six oh three am. He was pronounced 531 00:27:34,040 --> 00:27:37,760 Speaker 2: dead one hour after the festive countdown to let people 532 00:27:37,840 --> 00:27:38,840 Speaker 2: get into shop. 533 00:27:38,680 --> 00:27:41,200 Speaker 1: And that was at the hospital an hour later. So yeah, 534 00:27:41,240 --> 00:27:45,760 Speaker 1: he most likely died on the scene, and pretty awful. 535 00:27:45,960 --> 00:27:49,359 Speaker 1: What's crazy, Chuck? If that story is not bad enough, 536 00:27:50,320 --> 00:27:55,600 Speaker 1: tramplings are actually really common. Yeah, and like, somebody might 537 00:27:55,640 --> 00:27:58,120 Speaker 1: not die, you might not be asphyxiated, and he might 538 00:27:58,160 --> 00:28:00,280 Speaker 1: not have died had he not gotten caught under the door. 539 00:28:01,480 --> 00:28:04,320 Speaker 1: But the people getting knocked down. If you want to 540 00:28:04,359 --> 00:28:06,679 Speaker 1: see this, just go on to YouTube and type in 541 00:28:06,760 --> 00:28:10,000 Speaker 1: black Friday, not even Black Friday tramplings. Just type in 542 00:28:10,040 --> 00:28:13,760 Speaker 1: black Friday and you will see tons of compilations of 543 00:28:14,119 --> 00:28:17,320 Speaker 1: store security footage of people coming in right when the 544 00:28:17,359 --> 00:28:20,600 Speaker 1: store opens on a Black Friday sale, just climbing over 545 00:28:20,640 --> 00:28:23,280 Speaker 1: one another, knocking each other down. Some people help other 546 00:28:23,320 --> 00:28:25,159 Speaker 1: people up or drag them out of the way or whatever, 547 00:28:25,480 --> 00:28:28,280 Speaker 1: but just as frequently people just climb over the ones 548 00:28:28,280 --> 00:28:32,800 Speaker 1: who are down for a sale. It's insane. I seriously 549 00:28:32,880 --> 00:28:35,080 Speaker 1: encourage everybody to go check out some video of it. 550 00:28:35,280 --> 00:28:39,600 Speaker 2: Yeah. I can't believe that after this incident that there 551 00:28:39,680 --> 00:28:45,040 Speaker 2: wasn't a law pass outlawing outright Black Friday sales. 552 00:28:45,200 --> 00:28:47,840 Speaker 1: You know that is not happening. 553 00:28:48,680 --> 00:28:53,040 Speaker 2: Well, but it's ridiculous because there's it's economists and analysts 554 00:28:53,080 --> 00:28:55,880 Speaker 2: have proven that you can have like even it's not 555 00:28:55,920 --> 00:28:58,000 Speaker 2: like they'd lose money. They would probably make more money 556 00:28:58,040 --> 00:29:01,440 Speaker 2: if they didn't have these blockbuster sales. So it's not 557 00:29:01,480 --> 00:29:03,000 Speaker 2: like they could say, well, like, you can't, you're keeping 558 00:29:03,040 --> 00:29:05,440 Speaker 2: me from doing my business. I don't know. I just 559 00:29:05,480 --> 00:29:07,480 Speaker 2: can't believe they can't outlaw something like this. 560 00:29:07,680 --> 00:29:12,040 Speaker 1: So that was a pretty horrendous example of a crowd 561 00:29:12,080 --> 00:29:15,080 Speaker 1: crush into trampling. Yeah, but other things do happen. You 562 00:29:15,160 --> 00:29:17,720 Speaker 1: mentioned the Toys r Us in Palm Desert, California a 563 00:29:17,720 --> 00:29:18,640 Speaker 1: couple of years back. 564 00:29:18,560 --> 00:29:20,440 Speaker 2: Right, Yeah, that was in two thousand and eight. These 565 00:29:20,440 --> 00:29:23,400 Speaker 2: two women got in a fistfight and then their husbands 566 00:29:23,440 --> 00:29:28,560 Speaker 2: got into it. And basically, first of all, these two 567 00:29:28,600 --> 00:29:32,400 Speaker 2: men were carrying guns into a Toys r Us a 568 00:29:32,560 --> 00:29:36,120 Speaker 2: Christmas shop, which a little weird, and they started a 569 00:29:36,160 --> 00:29:38,960 Speaker 2: shootout with each other basically, yeah, and not a very 570 00:29:40,120 --> 00:29:42,520 Speaker 2: skilled one apparently. I read about it like one guy 571 00:29:42,520 --> 00:29:45,640 Speaker 2: forgot to cock his gun. The other guy like his 572 00:29:45,680 --> 00:29:47,840 Speaker 2: didn't work either, So they start chasing each other through 573 00:29:47,840 --> 00:29:50,680 Speaker 2: the store, through the store, shooting at each other. Yeah, 574 00:29:50,760 --> 00:29:55,440 Speaker 2: luckily no one else died, but those two gentlemen shot 575 00:29:55,480 --> 00:29:58,280 Speaker 2: each other and died, and it Toys r Us because 576 00:29:58,280 --> 00:30:00,120 Speaker 2: of their wife's got in a fistfight. 577 00:30:00,320 --> 00:30:03,360 Speaker 1: On Black Friday at a Toys Arrus during Christmas shopping. 578 00:30:03,440 --> 00:30:05,560 Speaker 2: I'm surprised anyone else if they're running through the store shooting. 579 00:30:06,880 --> 00:30:10,680 Speaker 1: I think everybody cleared out of their way. Yeah, I know, 580 00:30:10,720 --> 00:30:12,800 Speaker 1: I wouldn't follow them around and be like, hey, guys, 581 00:30:12,840 --> 00:30:15,800 Speaker 1: what are you doing? Where's the Doorbusters. 582 00:30:16,000 --> 00:30:19,360 Speaker 2: In twenty eleven, a woman at a Los Angeles Walmart 583 00:30:20,200 --> 00:30:23,680 Speaker 2: pepper sprayed some people in the video games. Initially, the 584 00:30:23,720 --> 00:30:26,920 Speaker 2: cops sought, well, this lady was some Black Friday jerk. 585 00:30:26,840 --> 00:30:29,360 Speaker 1: Which would make her a pretty awful person. 586 00:30:29,640 --> 00:30:32,040 Speaker 2: Yeah, But apparently the real story is, and she actually 587 00:30:32,080 --> 00:30:36,560 Speaker 2: got out of it, was that her children were attacked, punched, kicked, 588 00:30:36,600 --> 00:30:39,240 Speaker 2: thrown to the ground by shoppers trying to get an 589 00:30:39,360 --> 00:30:42,320 Speaker 2: Xbox from these children, and so she defended her kids 590 00:30:42,320 --> 00:30:44,160 Speaker 2: by pepper spraying these jerks. 591 00:30:44,280 --> 00:30:46,840 Speaker 1: Right, And this thing still hasn't been settled. The most 592 00:30:46,880 --> 00:30:49,560 Speaker 1: recent thing I saw was that a year on. So 593 00:30:49,720 --> 00:30:53,320 Speaker 1: last year, the cops still hadn't filed charges, so I 594 00:30:53,320 --> 00:30:55,160 Speaker 1: guess they believed her story. 595 00:30:55,280 --> 00:30:58,640 Speaker 2: But she shopped anyway. After that happened, Yeah, and bought 596 00:30:58,640 --> 00:30:59,240 Speaker 2: her items. 597 00:30:59,280 --> 00:31:02,800 Speaker 1: So she pepper sprays a bunch of people, affects twenty people, 598 00:31:02,960 --> 00:31:06,920 Speaker 1: causes a bit of a trampling pandemonium. And then two 599 00:31:07,160 --> 00:31:09,680 Speaker 1: horrible things happen after that. One, like you said, the 600 00:31:09,760 --> 00:31:12,120 Speaker 1: lady took her at kids and her items and went 601 00:31:12,160 --> 00:31:16,200 Speaker 1: to the store and checked out. Yeah, bought her stuff. Second, 602 00:31:16,560 --> 00:31:20,240 Speaker 1: the people outside the immediate circle where she pepper spray, 603 00:31:20,280 --> 00:31:23,440 Speaker 1: but still in that little area, stuck around, still tried 604 00:31:23,440 --> 00:31:24,320 Speaker 1: to get their hands. 605 00:31:24,080 --> 00:31:26,960 Speaker 2: On the sale item and they're like checking out and 606 00:31:26,960 --> 00:31:29,040 Speaker 2: their eyes and those are watering. Yeah, there's like just 607 00:31:29,040 --> 00:31:30,760 Speaker 2: just ring it up. Let me get home. 608 00:31:31,080 --> 00:31:34,520 Speaker 1: Yeah, And then of course took there's the workers as well. 609 00:31:35,160 --> 00:31:37,920 Speaker 2: Well, yeah, I mean, no one wants to work on Thanksgiving. 610 00:31:38,040 --> 00:31:40,920 Speaker 2: And this year, like we said, a lot of retailers 611 00:31:40,960 --> 00:31:44,000 Speaker 2: are opening on Thanksgiving and there's really not anything they 612 00:31:44,040 --> 00:31:46,560 Speaker 2: can do about it if they want to keep their job, right, 613 00:31:46,640 --> 00:31:50,760 Speaker 2: which is really sad. And Walmart employees planned a strike 614 00:31:50,840 --> 00:31:53,480 Speaker 2: I think last year in twenty twelve, Yeah, and it 615 00:31:53,520 --> 00:31:56,080 Speaker 2: didn't work. Only twenty six of the forty two hundred 616 00:31:56,120 --> 00:32:01,080 Speaker 2: stores reported striking employees. So for fear of losing their jobs. 617 00:32:01,080 --> 00:32:02,479 Speaker 2: Probably they had to come to work anyway. 618 00:32:02,520 --> 00:32:06,479 Speaker 1: Well, Kmart in particular was criticized this year for opening 619 00:32:06,480 --> 00:32:09,480 Speaker 1: at six am on Thanksgiving. Yeah, and Kmart said, these 620 00:32:09,480 --> 00:32:12,040 Speaker 1: people don't have to work, like we're not forcing them 621 00:32:12,080 --> 00:32:15,120 Speaker 1: to work, and their critics are saying, well, actually, that's 622 00:32:15,120 --> 00:32:18,840 Speaker 1: not necessarily true because you're using part time seasonal employees 623 00:32:19,080 --> 00:32:21,800 Speaker 1: and there's no federal mandate that those people have to 624 00:32:21,840 --> 00:32:25,000 Speaker 1: have holidays or time off. So therefore they're in a 625 00:32:25,040 --> 00:32:28,040 Speaker 1: position where they either work or you can fire them legally, 626 00:32:29,200 --> 00:32:31,720 Speaker 1: so they kind of do have to work. So there's 627 00:32:31,760 --> 00:32:34,800 Speaker 1: a lot of ugliness on Black Friday. But chuck, if 628 00:32:34,840 --> 00:32:37,640 Speaker 1: you are just the average normal person, like my brother 629 00:32:37,640 --> 00:32:39,760 Speaker 1: in law loves to go a Black Friday shopping and 630 00:32:40,040 --> 00:32:43,400 Speaker 1: he'll go at midnight, Yeah, go to the Doorbuster sales. 631 00:32:43,600 --> 00:32:46,080 Speaker 1: But he's like, he's not crazy. 632 00:32:46,200 --> 00:32:48,440 Speaker 2: Well, the majority of them don't end in violence because 633 00:32:48,560 --> 00:32:51,080 Speaker 2: this happens all over the country. He's are isolated incidents, 634 00:32:51,080 --> 00:32:53,920 Speaker 2: so it's not like at every Doorbuster sale you're going 635 00:32:54,000 --> 00:32:54,640 Speaker 2: to get trampled. 636 00:32:54,640 --> 00:32:58,440 Speaker 1: But there is a risk, there is, and the people 637 00:32:58,480 --> 00:33:00,720 Speaker 1: you want to look out for, apparently, is a study 638 00:33:01,080 --> 00:33:04,000 Speaker 1: of consumer behavior at Black Friday sales, and it was 639 00:33:04,000 --> 00:33:08,040 Speaker 1: a legitimate study. Sure. It said that you want to 640 00:33:08,080 --> 00:33:11,200 Speaker 1: look out for the people who have done a lot 641 00:33:11,240 --> 00:33:16,040 Speaker 1: of planning because they exhibit the most anti social behavior 642 00:33:16,120 --> 00:33:18,040 Speaker 1: like shoving, pushing, yelling. 643 00:33:18,720 --> 00:33:21,000 Speaker 2: They've got their plan in place exactly and nothing's going 644 00:33:21,080 --> 00:33:21,640 Speaker 2: to alter. 645 00:33:21,520 --> 00:33:24,120 Speaker 1: That, and they feel like they've really put the time 646 00:33:24,160 --> 00:33:26,800 Speaker 1: in and they're not about to lose that doorbuster. 647 00:33:26,440 --> 00:33:29,040 Speaker 2: Some jerk who's never done it before and just showed up. 648 00:33:28,920 --> 00:33:31,520 Speaker 1: Who just lucked into line or whatever. 649 00:33:32,960 --> 00:33:35,640 Speaker 2: You know that, Like remember the famous Who concert in 650 00:33:35,640 --> 00:33:37,120 Speaker 2: the seventies where the people were trampled. 651 00:33:37,200 --> 00:33:39,480 Speaker 1: Yeah, that's in that New Yorker article too. 652 00:33:39,600 --> 00:33:42,400 Speaker 2: They got rid of general emission seating after that. Like, 653 00:33:42,440 --> 00:33:45,400 Speaker 2: why can't they do something about this? You know, I 654 00:33:45,400 --> 00:33:47,240 Speaker 2: think the law stepped in and said, wait a minute, 655 00:33:47,360 --> 00:33:49,440 Speaker 2: you can't just open the doors to a concert venue 656 00:33:49,480 --> 00:33:53,160 Speaker 2: and say first one in gets front row. They still 657 00:33:53,160 --> 00:33:56,320 Speaker 2: have general admission, not for big arena shows. 658 00:33:56,360 --> 00:33:58,800 Speaker 1: Oh yeah no, yeah, Well you know that there was 659 00:33:58,840 --> 00:34:03,200 Speaker 1: like just one door open and like four others locked. Yeah, 660 00:34:03,240 --> 00:34:05,680 Speaker 1: and people were getting crushed up against the locked doors, 661 00:34:06,120 --> 00:34:08,600 Speaker 1: and the people inside who are working at that concert 662 00:34:08,680 --> 00:34:11,840 Speaker 1: like just never opened the doors even though people were dying. 663 00:34:12,640 --> 00:34:14,680 Speaker 2: So remember what we cover that in Man. It is 664 00:34:14,760 --> 00:34:17,480 Speaker 2: so like vivid in my mind from way early on 665 00:34:17,960 --> 00:34:22,360 Speaker 2: because we studied the science of crowd surges. 666 00:34:23,480 --> 00:34:25,440 Speaker 1: I don't know what it was either, because this article 667 00:34:25,480 --> 00:34:26,120 Speaker 1: is not that old. 668 00:34:26,200 --> 00:34:28,080 Speaker 2: It's just like, no, it definitely wasn't about this. I 669 00:34:28,120 --> 00:34:31,840 Speaker 2: had to do with something else. But yeah, dirty bad stuff. 670 00:34:32,000 --> 00:34:33,840 Speaker 2: Or you can take another approach. 671 00:34:34,000 --> 00:34:36,680 Speaker 1: Yeah, this is a different approach, you could say. 672 00:34:36,760 --> 00:34:38,920 Speaker 2: In the nineteen nineties, an artist named Ted Dave gave 673 00:34:38,960 --> 00:34:43,000 Speaker 2: birth to what's now called Buy Nothing Day, wherein people 674 00:34:43,080 --> 00:34:46,680 Speaker 2: are encouraged to not buy anything for twenty four hours 675 00:34:46,960 --> 00:34:51,680 Speaker 2: and to fight the power and consumerism by not showing 676 00:34:51,760 --> 00:34:52,840 Speaker 2: up at all. 677 00:34:53,000 --> 00:34:55,120 Speaker 1: And not just fight the power. The guy who created 678 00:34:55,160 --> 00:34:58,640 Speaker 1: ted ted Dave, he's a Vancouver guy who came up 679 00:34:58,680 --> 00:35:01,799 Speaker 1: with it in the nineties. It was also not just 680 00:35:01,840 --> 00:35:03,640 Speaker 1: to stick it to the man, which I can only 681 00:35:03,640 --> 00:35:07,800 Speaker 1: imagine if nobody bought anything in America on Black Friday, 682 00:35:08,360 --> 00:35:11,200 Speaker 1: what kind of crippling effect that would have on the economy. 683 00:35:11,840 --> 00:35:15,239 Speaker 1: But he was also saying personally, that's a good day 684 00:35:15,239 --> 00:35:20,279 Speaker 1: to not buy anything and be take stock sure of 685 00:35:20,560 --> 00:35:24,040 Speaker 1: how much you do maybe waste or spend or whatever. Yeah, 686 00:35:24,360 --> 00:35:28,680 Speaker 1: just think about your consumer your consumerism for one day, 687 00:35:28,880 --> 00:35:31,759 Speaker 1: dirty hippie, and during that time, like, don't buy anything, man, 688 00:35:31,960 --> 00:35:34,040 Speaker 1: don't gass up your car the night before, don't get 689 00:35:34,040 --> 00:35:37,520 Speaker 1: a bunch of milk the night before, like, just be normal. 690 00:35:37,600 --> 00:35:40,080 Speaker 1: And on one day of the year, don't buy anything. 691 00:35:40,120 --> 00:35:42,120 Speaker 1: And that's buy Nothing Day. And it's kind of become 692 00:35:42,160 --> 00:35:45,359 Speaker 1: this big thing ever since ab Busters. The people who 693 00:35:45,360 --> 00:35:48,759 Speaker 1: gave us Occupy Wall Street kind of found out about 694 00:35:48,760 --> 00:35:52,520 Speaker 1: it and adopted it and just took the whole thing worldwide. 695 00:35:52,640 --> 00:35:53,520 Speaker 2: It's pretty amazing. 696 00:35:53,600 --> 00:35:55,440 Speaker 1: It is. So if you go to a Black Friday 697 00:35:55,440 --> 00:35:58,200 Speaker 1: sale and you see a bunch of people dressed as zombies, 698 00:35:58,600 --> 00:36:02,360 Speaker 1: they're making fun of you. They're making fun of zombie consumers. 699 00:36:02,480 --> 00:36:04,200 Speaker 1: Same with the people who are dressed as sheep. 700 00:36:04,680 --> 00:36:04,919 Speaker 2: Yeah. 701 00:36:05,480 --> 00:36:07,520 Speaker 1: And then there's zenta clause. Maybe I'll do that. 702 00:36:07,560 --> 00:36:09,160 Speaker 2: Maybe I'll dress up as a sheep. 703 00:36:09,320 --> 00:36:12,000 Speaker 1: Yeah and just walk around and buy in people's faces. 704 00:36:12,040 --> 00:36:13,440 Speaker 2: Yeah. And then if I'm there, I might you know, 705 00:36:13,480 --> 00:36:14,759 Speaker 2: pick up a laptop. Right. 706 00:36:15,719 --> 00:36:19,200 Speaker 1: There's also credit card cut up stations. 707 00:36:18,880 --> 00:36:20,760 Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, where you can get rid of your credit 708 00:36:20,800 --> 00:36:23,160 Speaker 2: card and just shoot his consumerism. 709 00:36:23,360 --> 00:36:28,120 Speaker 1: Yeah. And then there's the my favorite, the what is 710 00:36:28,160 --> 00:36:30,800 Speaker 1: it the wordly gig conga line? 711 00:36:31,560 --> 00:36:33,960 Speaker 2: Oh, I haven't heard of that? Is that to disrupt shoppers? 712 00:36:34,520 --> 00:36:36,759 Speaker 1: Uh? The whole the whole point is it just kind 713 00:36:36,800 --> 00:36:40,120 Speaker 1: of serve as a mirror I think to people like, 714 00:36:40,200 --> 00:36:40,920 Speaker 1: look at yourselves. 715 00:36:41,000 --> 00:36:43,600 Speaker 2: You're ridiculous. You think I look stupid. You're the one 716 00:36:43,600 --> 00:36:44,280 Speaker 2: that looks stupid. 717 00:36:44,360 --> 00:36:47,560 Speaker 1: Right, we're not even buying anything. But yeah, so there's 718 00:36:47,600 --> 00:36:49,279 Speaker 1: it's kind of a twofold thing. It's one like just 719 00:36:49,320 --> 00:36:52,319 Speaker 1: kind of reflecting personally slash sticking it to the man 720 00:36:52,480 --> 00:36:55,880 Speaker 1: as an individual consumer, like realizing your power in the 721 00:36:55,920 --> 00:36:58,880 Speaker 1: grand scheme of things. It's all kind of hinges on 722 00:36:58,920 --> 00:37:01,480 Speaker 1: you spending your money and if you don't, then you're 723 00:37:01,520 --> 00:37:04,600 Speaker 1: taking the power back or pointing out to other people 724 00:37:04,760 --> 00:37:08,520 Speaker 1: just how ridiculous they're being at consumers. As consumers, people 725 00:37:08,600 --> 00:37:11,560 Speaker 1: probably be like, would you get that cheap costume? Right? Exactly? 726 00:37:11,719 --> 00:37:16,919 Speaker 2: What all was that on? So I've got one last 727 00:37:16,960 --> 00:37:20,000 Speaker 2: thing I noticed the other day. I'd never heard of 728 00:37:20,080 --> 00:37:22,440 Speaker 2: this before. In China. You think we like the shop. 729 00:37:22,920 --> 00:37:25,399 Speaker 2: Chinese loved the shop and they have something that they 730 00:37:25,440 --> 00:37:28,719 Speaker 2: have created called Singles Day, Okay, and it is on 731 00:37:28,760 --> 00:37:33,120 Speaker 2: November eleventh, so eleven eleven. The four ones stand for 732 00:37:33,200 --> 00:37:36,439 Speaker 2: single people, and they're basically like, hey, cause in China, 733 00:37:36,440 --> 00:37:38,719 Speaker 2: I think you're encouraged to marry. So this is like, hey, 734 00:37:38,840 --> 00:37:42,160 Speaker 2: be single, go out and treat yourself to something online 735 00:37:42,280 --> 00:37:45,320 Speaker 2: and buy something because it's Singles Day and you should 736 00:37:45,320 --> 00:37:48,879 Speaker 2: celebrate being single. Really, and it's a huge deal. They 737 00:37:48,960 --> 00:37:53,520 Speaker 2: spent well, this e commerce platform in China called ali 738 00:37:53,520 --> 00:37:56,320 Speaker 2: Baba is the one who really got behind it recently, 739 00:37:56,960 --> 00:38:00,000 Speaker 2: and they spent five point seven billion dollars on Singles 740 00:38:00,080 --> 00:38:04,680 Speaker 2: Day this year, which dwarfs Cyber Monday by three times 741 00:38:04,719 --> 00:38:08,200 Speaker 2: almost Wow. And it's the biggest online shopping day in 742 00:38:08,239 --> 00:38:11,320 Speaker 2: the world. And in the first six minutes this year, 743 00:38:12,040 --> 00:38:14,840 Speaker 2: just a couple of weeks ago, they spent one hundred 744 00:38:14,880 --> 00:38:18,200 Speaker 2: and sixty million dollars in the first six minutes wow 745 00:38:18,320 --> 00:38:21,759 Speaker 2: online in China, geez, just to celebrate being single, and 746 00:38:21,800 --> 00:38:24,399 Speaker 2: they're encouraged the shop for themselves, which I don't think. 747 00:38:24,400 --> 00:38:28,400 Speaker 2: We pointed out a lot of people on Black Friday 748 00:38:28,840 --> 00:38:32,759 Speaker 2: when when asked, say that they do some of the 749 00:38:32,800 --> 00:38:35,879 Speaker 2: shopping for themselves. Yeah, all gifts. It's like I want 750 00:38:35,880 --> 00:38:36,480 Speaker 2: that laptop. 751 00:38:36,760 --> 00:38:40,040 Speaker 1: I think forty forty seven percent or forty one percent 752 00:38:40,040 --> 00:38:41,600 Speaker 1: of people who said they're going to stop on Black 753 00:38:41,600 --> 00:38:43,680 Speaker 1: Friday so they'll do most of the shopping for themselves. 754 00:38:43,719 --> 00:38:45,880 Speaker 2: I usually do that whenever I go out, like genuinely 755 00:38:45,960 --> 00:38:47,760 Speaker 2: Christmas shopping, I'll pick up something for myself. 756 00:38:47,840 --> 00:38:50,360 Speaker 1: But these people are saying they're mostly shopping for themselves. 757 00:38:50,440 --> 00:38:53,440 Speaker 2: I don't mostly, but I'll just I'll just treat myself 758 00:38:53,480 --> 00:38:55,160 Speaker 2: to something modest. 759 00:38:55,239 --> 00:38:57,279 Speaker 1: And I want to say, Chuck, we're not. We don't 760 00:38:57,320 --> 00:39:00,840 Speaker 1: begrudge anybody going to Black Friday sales. If that's your thing, yeah, 761 00:39:01,120 --> 00:39:02,160 Speaker 1: enjoy it, that's fine. 762 00:39:02,239 --> 00:39:03,479 Speaker 2: Just act like a human being. 763 00:39:03,680 --> 00:39:07,120 Speaker 1: Yeah, don't take anyone's life. No, don't trample over somebody 764 00:39:07,160 --> 00:39:11,839 Speaker 1: who's fallen down. And most importantly, I have a very 765 00:39:11,920 --> 00:39:15,240 Speaker 1: nice Thanksgiving. Enjoy the people you're with, whether they're friends, 766 00:39:15,360 --> 00:39:20,080 Speaker 1: family of old acquaintances, new acquaintances. Take some time to 767 00:39:20,160 --> 00:39:25,200 Speaker 1: really enjoy this Thanksgiving day and relax and just be I. 768 00:39:25,120 --> 00:39:27,800 Speaker 2: Agree, my friend. Yeah, it's Thanksgiving. Be with your family, 769 00:39:28,840 --> 00:39:32,440 Speaker 2: turn off your smartphone, maybe even wow, really get crazy 770 00:39:32,520 --> 00:39:34,399 Speaker 2: and just be in the moment. Yeah, how about that. 771 00:39:35,280 --> 00:39:38,719 Speaker 1: And we give you permission to shout down anybody who 772 00:39:38,719 --> 00:39:41,600 Speaker 1: says that trip to fan is what makes you sleepy. 773 00:39:42,360 --> 00:39:42,759 Speaker 2: That's right. 774 00:39:42,800 --> 00:39:43,959 Speaker 1: Do you go ahead and send them straight? 775 00:39:44,160 --> 00:39:47,279 Speaker 2: Yep? So Happy Happy Turkey Day Americans in other parts 776 00:39:47,320 --> 00:39:47,720 Speaker 2: of the world. 777 00:39:47,920 --> 00:39:49,080 Speaker 1: Whatever you're doing, I. 778 00:39:48,960 --> 00:39:49,520 Speaker 2: Hope you're well. 779 00:39:49,719 --> 00:39:53,640 Speaker 1: Yeah, nice, Chuck and Chuck. We should say that as usual. 780 00:39:53,719 --> 00:39:57,480 Speaker 1: If everyone wants to send us happy Thanksgiving wishes, you 781 00:39:57,480 --> 00:40:00,080 Speaker 1: can send us an email directly to Stuff podcast at 782 00:40:00,120 --> 00:40:06,080 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio dot com. Stuff you Should Know is a production 783 00:40:06,160 --> 00:40:07,000 Speaker 1: of iHeartRadio. 784 00:40:07,480 --> 00:40:10,680 Speaker 2: For more podcasts my heart Radio, visit the iHeartRadio app, 785 00:40:10,880 --> 00:40:13,760 Speaker 2: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.