Saturday April 15th (aka Tax Day?)

[Pagan]

I call it Americanization. About 1/3 of of television comes from the US, and another 1/3 from the UK. Since I moved here 5 years ago, I have seen the beginnings of Black Friday sales (Black Friday being the day after Thanksgiving, when most stores expect to be in the black as far as sales go. We don't have Thanksgiving here in Finland!). We now see rebel flags, American style diners with food seasoned to the milder Finnish palate, and an increase in American clothing being sold here. Heck, we even have Steve 'N' Seagulls that play bluegrass versions of heavy metal. American cars are highly prized too - if you can afford the gas! So of course, the next logical step is to keep the stores open 24/7 if at all possible, and do it 365 days a year just like they do in the good old USA. The Brits are almost as popular, btw.

Here's a bit of Steve 'N' Seagulls just for a laugh - https://youtu.be/e4Ao-iNPPUc

Not that long ago, many people here had cabins by the lake, and most would take the month of June or July off to go to the cabin. Many workers had a full month of vacation time. Even our city offices now shut down for the entire month of July. That time with the family or by the lake is treasured but there is now a movement to do away with that ritual. Seems people think we should be more 'American'.

The 2 main grocery store chains have reported a small increase in sales the first year of non-regulated hours. What they didn't allow for was having to hire extra staff or pay people to work full time versus part time, and that has hurt the bottom line. Daycare over the holidays is also tough. The daycare centers are closed, but many of the mothers have to work. What to do with the kids? It's great if you have someone to leave them with, but not everyone does. I much prefer the old way -- being closed on the holidays and allowing people some quality time with their families.

[ecchi]

(Warning - Ecchi gets a bit serious here - borderline rant.)

In my youth I worked in retail for many years. It is the "lowest of the low". Pay is usually "minimum wage". And there are a lot of people wanting each job, so there is a lot of unemployment in the retail sector. In short life is shit for a shop assistant. Little money and if they loose their job probably a long period of unemployment before getting another one.

When I started in that business it was illegal to sell non perishable goods on a Sunday. By the time I left the business this law had been revoked. There were (and still are) a few restrictions on Sunday trading, but not many, and nearly all shops open Sundays nowadays.

When the law changed, the effect on us at the bottom end of the ladder was tremendous. It was a Godsend. More jobs were available, we could make more money by working more hours, and in some instances store even had to pay a higher hourly wage to attract more staff.

When I see posts like your two posts (and I know you don't mean it this way, but it is the way it is) I see relatively well off people protecting their "rich" lifestyle and comforts at the expense of the poor. After all, there are plenty of poor people, what does it matter if a few starve, as long as us "better off" people get a nice holiday.

Originally Posted by Pagan

American style diners with food seasoned to the milder Finnish palate,

Bloody hell, the Finnish people have a milder palate than the Americans? I did not think that was possible! America the country with beer so bland you don't know if it is beer or water from a rusty tap; the country with coffee so tasteless you wonder why the bothered with the bean; the country where "spicy" food is so "unspicy" you begin to think the only spice they have in America is salt. And the Finnish people like it milder than that? How do do make food that mild?