Who Cares if a Store is Open or Closed on Thanksgiving? [OPINION]

Why does anyone care if someplace is open on Thanksgiving? Or any holiday for that matter? Why is it anybody's business?

I like it when places are open on holidays. I'm even annoyed when someplace is closed on Sundays or after five o'clock. I guess the internet has conditioned me to expect access to any service at any hour.

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I do not get the Facebook outrage about retail stores being open on Thanksgiving. So what?

If an open store offends you to your moral core, then vote with your dollars and don't go there. On turkey-day or ever.

"But, what about the people that work there? They need to spend time with their families," I'm told by think-pieces shared by social media outrage addicts.

What about them? When I worked retail, food service, or other hourly-based jobs, the idea of the store being closed for a day in the middle of the week meant that I was out a day's pay. And if they were open it meant the possibility of extra hours and holiday pay.

You don't know anything about the people that work in the stores. Maybe they celebrate Thanksgiving on the following Saturday when everyone can get together. Or maybe they don't have any place to go, and going to work is better than staying at home.

Don't presume you know what people need. If the holiday is that important, one will ask for it off well in advance (if they don't it must not be).

But, don't demand that people give up paying hours so you can feel some moral superiority on Thursday and then trash their stores on Friday.

Also, what about all the people in jobs that can't stop no matter the day? Don't cops, nurses, firefighters, EMTs, or people in the airline industry deserve to celebrate  Thanksgiving? I don't hear anyone complaining that the ER stays open so they can get their turkey fryer burns treated.

How about football players, all the people at those stadiums, parade personnel, truckers, or city workers?

If it snowed on Thanksgiving I bet the same people that forward that 'Big Box Should Close on Thanksgiving' junk would be in a 'click here to share' rage if snowplow drivers took the holiday off.

Additionally, if there wasn't any money in it, stores would not be open on a holiday. Gas stations and convenience stores learned this lesson long ago. People still need and want, to buy stuff even on holidays. You can't make any money if the doors are locked, and if being open costs more than they make, it wouldn't happen.

But, I understand that the internet doesn't like it when people aren't complaining about something. If it weren't for empty social crusades there would only be pictures of cats, babies, and babies with cat filters. And who wants that?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Ben Kuhns is just some guy on the internet. He is a wannabe writer whose wife thinks is funny. He writes for Results-Townsquare Media in Sioux Falls South Dakota.

LEARN: How I'm Learning to be a Manager From 'Mystery Science Theater 3000'

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Results Townsquare Media, its staff, contributors, affiliates, or advertisers.

• ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Ben Kuhns is just some guy on the internet. He is a wannabe writer, and his wife thinks he's funny. He writes for Results-Townsquare Media in Sioux Falls South Dakota.

  LEARN: How I'm Learning to be a Manager From 'Mystery Science Theater 3000'

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