Stampede death for a Plasma TV?

You could argue (incorrectly) that the shoppers at a New York Wal-Mart, where 2,000 bargain hunters surged into the store at Friday’s 5 a.m. opening and trampled a store worker to death, are a sign of the times — searching for that great deal has become a life-and-death matter. Rumors are circulating that some of the shoppers were heard discussing a Plasma TV deal the store had going.

Hey, we love HDTV as much as anyone else, but it isn’t worth risking life and limb for.

Today we learn that police are reviewing video to find out who was responsible for the death. It is not the first death of its kind (a few other incidents of this type have been recorded), but that doesn’t lessen the shock of considering that some customers reportedly “stepped over the worker and kept shopping even as the store announced it was closing because of the death.” Atrocious.

The buck stops at the door of the responsible parties, in this writer’s opinion. The media will want to blame “sales hype” or “bargain frenzy” for the death, but as adults we’re responsible for our actions, and hopefully authorities will follow through and punish those responsible for this tragedy.