"Is America a "Civilized" Nation"
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Though I doubt you were meaning to literally question the civility of America as a nation, I feel a compelled to put things into perspective. The population of Long Island is almost 7.5 million persons, and the population of the United States if roughly 300 million persons. If 2000 savages were gathered outside of a Wal-Mart on Long Island, that would only represent .0267% of Long Island's Population, and only .00067% of the population of the United States of America. An insignificant portion of the population, I am sure you would agree. I doubt a study complete with a legitimate control would yield significantly different figures.

How many people in that line were really citizens of the United States of America? We aren't even sure if ALL of the people waiting outside of Wal-Mart were really "Americans".

Now, the serious part of me agrees that this is a barbaric act that was perpetrated by an apparent group of savages. It only takes a few people pushing in a crowd to start a stampede, and it appears that those closest to the doors were being pushed.

I'll not excuse the act, and I would hope that most Americans wouldn't feel the need to wait in line all night to save a dollar on an Xbox. I'm not making light of this situation, as a man died, a woman lost her baby, and several others had to go to the hospital to have their injuries treated.

Wal-Mart could have prevented this by having more security on hand to handle the crowd as it grew overnight. The police can't be tied up with crowd-control at a Wal-Mart, and neglect the rest of Long Island.

The vast majority of the United States is civilized, in my humble opinion. Lots of impatient drivers make the roads dangerous, but not enough to indict the entire driving population of the country.

11/30/2008 10:46:25 PM [ Report Abuse ]

I found it hard to believe when I first saw the headlines. And, of course, I had to read the whole story. It transpired just as you explain here so capably. I agree with Kopp. Not only do I not need any item so bad that I'll get up at the strangest hours, but I won't get in such crowds either. Something like that. I'm proud of the civility we USUALLY demonstrate in our country, but it isn't like 24/7.

11/30/2008 2:59:01 PM [ Report Abuse ]

Carol. I agree with you. There's nothing commercial that I need badly enough to get up that early.

I miss our correspondence, but have temporarily lost your e-mail. I felt so bad when you had to go through that hurricane. I hope you're recovering
okay.

Your colleague,
Kathy Kopp

11/30/2008 2:33:23 PM [ Report Abuse ]