Black vs. Red

Have you ever wondered about the origins of the name "Black Friday"?

The media would like us to believe that the name was coined because it is the day when businesses earn enough revenue to be "in the black" as opposed to "in the red", meaning at a profit rather than at a loss. However, the origin of the word is much darker than most people think. It was first coined in the sixties by the Philadelphia Police in a comparison to Black Tuesday. To them, the frenzied traffic and overcrowded stores reflected the chaos of that day when the stock market crashed in 1929.

To me, it is neither. "Black Friday" does not symbolize earnings. Nor does it symbolize a revival of "Black Tuesday", a time of chaos brought on by forces which, by the day of the crash, were more or less beyond human control.

It is not beyond human control, for example, when crowds turn so savage that they literally stampede through store doors and kill employees and fellow buyers, as has become an annual tradition. The day may represent "black" versus "red" revenues for retail stores, but surely it does not for most Americans who celebrate the day. Most of them will be "in the red" by Saturday, after charging hundreds of dollars of gifts to their credit cards.

Maybe instead of wondering where the name came from, we should start thinking about what it means to us today. Will Americans someday forget the real meaning of Thanksgiving? More importantly, have we already forgotten the meaning of the American way?

To me, the most disturbing part about Black Friday is also the most disturbing part about the American economy in general: its reliance on the use of credit and debt. In fact, both our everyday shopping expenses and the foundations of our very country are based on the excessive use and abuse of debt.

At the highest level, consider the $25 billion bailout proposed for three of America's largest car makers. It goes without saying that if these companies kept cash reserves rather than operating on debt they would be able to survive a few weeks of depressed sales.

Car sales would not be depressed to begin with were it not for the recession. Let's not forget how that began: millions of Americans nationwide became unable to pay their debts (namely mortgages), causing crisis in one of the largest sectors of our economy. Isn't the fact that American debt markets can cause a global economic crisis evidence enough that debt is being overused and abused in this country?

Of course, the red does not stop there. In response to the debt crisis our government has turned to the most obvious solution: more debt. For years, we thought the war in Iraq was breaking Uncle Sam's bank. In the past month, the government has allocated double the expenses of the entire Iraq war in the form of two $800 billion bailout plans. In other words, the government wants to get into more debt so that companies like the "big three" car manufacturers can borrow money from the government and get themselves in more debt, so that we Americans can buy their products with loans and credit cards and get ourselves in more debt.

I say we call it "Red Friday".

Even better, I say we forget about the occasion all together and find something really worth celebrating. Instead of using the day after Thanksgiving as an induction of the Christmas season, we could show our thanks for the freedom we enjoy by going out in our communities and volunteering with our friends and family. We could continue our celebration of America by holding public parties and events like we do on the Fourth of July. Or--going out on a limb here--we could simply use the day to take some well-deserved rest from the stress of our work and everyday lives.

Obviously it is idealistic of me to make these suggestions. Maybe instead I could suggest something a little more realistic--a new Black Friday tradition that embraces the unchangeable modern trends. Go out early on Black Friday and go shopping, and then later in the evening sit back and unwind by watching Scrooge starring Albert Finney. That way you can get your shopping done, get some family time, initiate the Christmas season, get a perspective on the evils of debt and greed, and maybe become inspired to turn over a new leaf like Mr. Ebenezer Scrooge.

Thank you very much!