what is a bargain?

What constitutes a bargain? Is it just purchasing items at significant price reductions? What if snagging this deal has hidden costs such as interrupting a recently acquired sleep schedule, abandoning manners and exposing oneself to the very worst in human nature?
Recently the biggest shopping day of the year took place; the day after Thanksgiving sales more commonly known as ‘black Friday’. But I take umbrage with the use of this description as a Christian who grew up referring to the day that Christ was crucified as ‘Black Friday’. How difficult is it to come up with an original moniker for a money making day? Wouldn’t ‘green Friday’ seem more appropriate; how about ‘greed Friday’?
I’ve often thought that Thanksgiving was the best and purest holiday. No gifts to exchange, no bastardized symbols for it; just simple food, family, gratitude and reflection on one’s blessings. OK, there is also that pesky pigskin sport that tries to hog television but that also serves as a gathering place for various generations to bond over team loyalty.
Now our store mavens are trying to turn Thanksgiving into another opportunity to make money selling things we can all wait for, at hours that our brains are not available for use, even if it means opening on Thanksgiving Day to beat the competitor.
I’m in full support of businesses maintaining a healthy bottom line, but I think the price of sacrificing Thanksgiving in order to do so is way too high for any cashmere sweater or shop vac! Let’s keep our dignity and our holidays and support the stores that don’t participate in the insanity of luring thousands with twenty-five advertised door busters that the majority aren’t going to be able to acquire anyway. Better still, participate peacefully in cyber Monday in the safety of your own home or office and let the Postal Service or UPS deliver the goodies right to your door! And parking won’t be a problem! Sounds like a bargain to me.