OM, I'm with you.

I applaud REI, and think the fact that this is so rare now is really what drives the potential to get free publicity for this.

They may indeed have realized they can take advantage of this policy and may have even worked to project the numbers. That would've been a smart move and if they did they probably found it's not a very risky bet. Could even make them money.

A few years ago people on my Facebook feed started saying they'd not shop at all at stores that were open on T-Day or Black Friday, and I've seen that trend fast grow since. I've already seen it this year. I'm sure REI has seen that too. All the big retailers should be aware of this and understand the downside potential they face by promoting "Deals" on a traditional family holiday.

It's a marketing ploy that worked for awhile, but we all lost something much more valuable than we got by allowing them to lure us away from time spent with family and friends.

Hopefully, we'll see this skeezy trend fade away as fast as it started.
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"You want to go where?"