Christmas Consumerism

Christmas Consumerism
It's cold outside, the traffic is heavy, the stores are packed solid with cranky, pushy people and Christmas music, and the news is dominated by stories about - what else? -shopping. It's that time of year again: The Annual Holiday-Themed Mass Consumption Month!
Actually, that's not exactly correct. It used to be just a month, but every year the Christmas shopping seasonis stretched a bit further to boost sales. I clearly recall hearing Christmas music playing at the FSK Mall before Halloween. That makes the Christmas shopping season stretch over a full two months;one sixth of a year. If this trend continues, the shopping season will literally be as long as an actual meteorological season!
If you think about it, it's truly remarkable how we Americans are driveninto a buying frenzy. The Christmas music is usually the first sign. Malls and stores will begin playing the music earlier every year, tricking the shoppers into thinking that the holiday season isquickly approaching. Besides that, it is scientifically proven that background music affects shopping habits, and I can't help but imagine that the music associated with Christmas is extremely powerfulin increasing buying.
Have you ever wondered what the "Christmas spirit" really is? It is a mindset that has been meticulously created by clever marketing over the last few decades. It has beenhandled so expertly that companies can now advertise their products and spread sappy messages about how Christmas isn't about presents at the same time!
The Christmas lights, the endlessly repeatingmusic, Photos with Santa, and storewide sales are all parts of the Christmas spirit, and all of them are intended to attract customers and entice them to buy more than they ever have in the past.
One ofthe lesser-known forces in driving sales is the televised news. For the last week or so, the news channels have featured numerous stories about how the day after Thanksgiving is expected to be the...