My thoughts today tend toward the shopping season that is upon us.   That in itself seems to hit me the wrong way.  After we have just celebrated a holiday devoted to giving thanks for all we have been given throughout the year and beyond, what do we do?  WE SHOP!  At 5:00 a.m no less.  This leads directly to my subject.

We are such a manipulated society that lemming comes to mind.  We are a land of northern lemmings, eastern lemmings, gulf coast lemmings mid-western lemmings, left coast lemmings, liberal lemmings, conservative lemmings, libretarian lemmings.  Let's face it.  You name the sub-category and we have a sub-category of lemming to step in. 

We shop when we are manipulated into it.  We buy cars when we are price manipulated into it.  We buy stocks (or sell them!) when we are manipulated into it.  We are told by a news head that things are terrible in a region we have never seen that affects one of our fellow country-lemmings and our gas prices will sky-rocket.  We stop shopping.  Gas prices go down at the pump.  We start shopping.  Hmmmmmm.  Ever wonder how that all works?

Mark my word...gas that was $3.00 in August that is now $1.95 (Lemmings must shop! It's that season we are told.) will eventually be back at $3.00 in January when we are told to stop shopping and save to pay our taxes in April. 

Do yourself a favor.  Remember how you felt the day before "Black Friday" and carry "that" feeling of thanks with you throughout this season of "giving."  It's true we all will do a little shopping this season.  But we might do a little less shopping and do a little more thanking in the long run.