Every money-hungry American thirsts for the annual arrival of Black Friday. Whether you’re fighting for your life just to have a new TV in your arms or avoiding the riots, I think we can say we all appreciate this holiday dedicated to saving money.

Samantha Dunn: To mark the beginning of Christmas shopping, every year after Thanksgiving, for one day, Black Friday, people around the world show their true selves when it comes to major deals. By using techniques to lure shoppers in, for decades, stores around the world have released deals too hard to resist. This year, we’ll see people camping outside stores all night, tackling people for the best TV or throwing punches just to say they were there. I know this must sound quite scary, but in truth, I love it. Unlike Lea, I’m not about the business where I’ll stay inside when my favorite shoes are $2instead of $200. Sorry! But my paycheck only covers so much. This year, I’ll get my Christmas shopping done, and unlike Lea, I’ll get it at a cheap price. 

Lea Olivares: Unlike Sam, I am not a fan of Black Friday shopping. Although the overall idea of a day where name-brand stores drop their lavish prices to an affordable deal is enticing, it is all an elaborate plan to keep their sales up as you thirst over this false conception of a bargain. It is all a scheme produced by consumerism that is consistently manipulating our everyday money-spending choices. On top of that, the rates of inflation seen in society today lead to both a higher retail price and a clearance tag full of exceptions and empty promises. Altogether, I do not blame you if you find yourself fighting over a $20 Walmart TV, but stay conscious of whether you really want the item or if you just want the bargain.

Parker Morgan: If we consider Black Friday as the typical Thanksgiving gathering, then the distant aunt you haven’t seen since birth is Small Business Saturday, and the annoying iPad baby is Cyber Monday. Although widely unheard of, Small Business Saturday takes place every Saturday after Thanksgiving and encourages consumers to purchase from locally-owned, mom-and-pop type businesses. Small Business Saturday originated as a promotion from American Express in 2010 to pump money into the local economy during the great recession. On the other hand, Cyber Monday is a day dedicated to purchasing online, with companies plastering discounts and sales everywhere. The name emerged from a press release taking notice of how the Monday after Thanksgiving had the most online shopping. 

Zelda Zamora-Villa: Lea’s take on Black Friday being a scheme to boost consumerism before the holiday season is not far from the truth. In the early 1960s, tourists in Philadelphia would go crazy with their spending the day after Thanksgiving, causing angry crowds, traffic and other headache-inducing issues for police officers at the time. This led to the officers calling it “Black Friday,” due to how hectic the day would get at shopping centers. Corporations took advantage of consumers’ spending habits on this day by creating massive sales, incentivizing shoppers before the holidays. This tradition seems absurd when you see shoppers drooling at the mouth over 75 percent off TVs, although the in-person aspect of this has been lost over the years.