Style Debate: Is Black Friday Worth It?

If the Thanksgiving Turkey was put on the table at midnight, do you think people would be busting through the door to chow down?  Probably not.  Once again, Black Friday shoppers will hit the mall and big box stores at 5:00, 4:00, and even 12:01 on Friday morning.  But will you be one of them?

The Case For Braving the Black Friday Crowds:  If you have a plan, know exactly what you want, and have an idea as to how you’re going to get in and out of the parking lot, then it’s worth it.  Sure it’s a bit of a game and the Black Friday crazies can take it a step (or nine steps) too far, but hundreds of dollars can be saved on big ticket items.  For example, this year Target is doing an in-store special on a 46″ HDTV that was $550, and on Black Friday it’ll be just under $300.  Stay focused and don’t buy anything you didn’t plan on getting, and you’ll come out ahead.

The Case Against Getting Trampled on Black Friday:  I would rather drive overly salted pretzel rods into my eyes.  I’ll gladly trade an extra 10% off or whatever it may be on Black Friday for the extra hours of tryptophan soaked sleep.  I’ll also shell out for shipping and handling on Cyber Monday if need be, as long as I don’t have to do battle pre-dawn with every God Warrior lookalike hell bent on getting her rugrat a Furby.

Have you ever done Black Friday in person?  Do you stay as far away as possible?  Leave your take below.  Also, swing back this way on Friday to see our annual rundown of the best Black Friday deals (online mostly), as well as a day long three-part giveaway.