Target needs a visit from Scrooge's 3 ghost

I really am tired of charities in front of supermarkets and stores.
Kuddos to Target for banning them all!

If I want to donate to charity, I don't need to do so when I'm
shopping.

From what I've heard the reason Target does not allow charities, such
as the Salvation Army, to set up shop outside their doors is because
they do not wish for customers to feel obligated to make donations to
these charaties. It also saves them a lot of hassle and cost (yes, it
costs the company money to make these decisions) in deciding which
charities to allow and which ones to turn away. This is the result of
an overload of "charitable causes" cropping up over the years. Many of
them are legit, but some of them may not be or may be associated with
ideals, beliefs or ways of life that may be found offensive or
distasteful by some shoppers.

Look at it this way, if Target allows the Salvation Army to set up
shop in front of its stores and a GLBT (Gay, Lesbian, Bi &
Transgender) group asks to set up a donation box in front of the store
for GLBT runaways then Target is put in a tough position. While, as a
company, Target supports its GLBT employees, it risks offending
conservative Christian customers if it allows this worthy cause to ask
for money outside its doors. It risks alienating its GLBT employees if
it refuses. Overall, the policy helps Target avoid many of the catch
22's that are becoming more and more prevelant in a world where
individuals are so easily offended and being 100% politcally correct
is an impossible task.

I sure hope you have other issues in your life other than this one.
Because if this is the "big" one for you on an annual basis, you
really need to get out more. Why are you worrying about where you're
shopping now for Christmas? It's not even Fall yet!
Wow........volunteer or something. There are way more important
things to worry about than this. I'm also quite positive that Target
won't go bust because you and others like you who feel this way will
shop somewhere else. Giving is in your heart. Target can set and
enforce any type of policy they deem appropriate.

Peace!

YOu don't seem to mind that they don't wish people Happy Chanukah or
Happy Kwanza.

Nothing stops you from giving to the Salvation Army - you don't need
someone ringing a bell in front of a store to give

Well, I know where I'm shopping for Christmas and it will be Target so
that I don't have to hear that freaking bell! I give to Salvation
Army, Red Cross and such and don't need someone ringing a bell at me
pushing for donations. And before anyone calls me heartless, I'm ADHD
(and may have Asperger's) and the bell actually triggers anxiety.

Target does still work with SA (though I still maintain that they
don't have to), they just don't allow the bell-ringing. I also think
there are better ways to get people to donate than constantly ringing
that awful bell.

Set a tree up in your house (nobody will know what you are doing) put
Perry Cuomo's Chestnut Trio on the HiFi, and ring up one of the
thousands of online retailers. You'll be as happy as a clam. Your
biggest decision will be "should I have the bulbs blink or not?"
Bonus - you won't have to fight the crowds and be offended by who did
and didn't decide to celebrate Christmas.

You arent through Christmas shopping yet?! WOW! I start the day after
Easter. I am pretty much done.

I dont care what a store does or doesnt do. I shop where I can get
what I want and/or get it the cheapest.

I tend to avoid bell ringers at all cost however and thank Target that
they dont post them at every door. Makes me more likely to go to
Target.

Fred, be a man. Do your Christmas shopping at 7-11, 6:00pm on
Christmas eve, on your way home.
Nothing says merry christmas like a pack of baseball cards and a 5th
of Vodka. Problem solved.

Not sure if someone else said this, but I didn't see it.

And my apologies that I "spoke" without having fully researched this.
Shame on me.

Target DOES partner with the Salvation Army.
http://sites.target.com/site/en/corporate/page.jsp?contentId=PRD03-002
480

So, all this anger at Target regarding the SA is misplaced.

I'm going to assume that any "Target" funds are not being used to
preach the gospel. If they are, by gum, that'll mean that I can't
shop there any more. (grin)

You are right. I am certain that Jesus would say, "Why does my
birthday not have the Salvation Army bellringers? I do not feel
honored.".
Like so many other people, you are caught up in a preconceived
concept of what Christmas really means.
You said, "A lot of shoppers base their shopping decisions on this
policy and I'd like to start planning for the holidays now."
I will plan for the holidays after Thanksgiving, that way I can enjoy
each holiday for its true meaning.
Happy Ho-Ho and honor your money bells.

I love the fact that SA bell ringers aren't allowed at Target. When I
lived in S. Florida, the ringers were plain RUDE! I actually had a
bell ringer shout at me once "Thanks for nothing!" What?? Do the
bell ringers know the financial status of everyone coming in and out
of the store? Do they know where my money goes if it doesn't go to
them?? It wasn't simply one bell ringer, but a majority of them who
would give you rude glares and sneers. Instead of allowing solicitors
in which they have little control over to bombard the customers with
requests for money, Target does it themselves...by POLITELY asking
whether you would like to donate to causes such as Habitat for
Humanity etc. Then, if an employee gets overly "ambitious" and starts
begging the customer for donations, they can handle the situation
internally. Target also donates a whole lot of money to schools,
which is a great thing as well. As far as the "anti-Christmas" bit.
I'm sick and tired of hearing it quite frankly. I feel that EVERYONE
should be included in the holiday festivities if they so desire. Not
everyone is Christian (I myself am), but I do not push my religion on
to others. In S. Florida, there is a large Jewish population. I
learned to respect those people and their beliefs. I did not assume
that any one person celebrated any particular holiday. I wish those
Christians that are still sitting on their high horses would come down
because you are giving us open-minded Christians a bad rap...

A few things bother me about the arguments in favor of Target.

First of all... Christmas, while claimed by Christians, roots itself
as a Pagan tradition involving FOOD and GIFTS, not CHRIST. For those
who have claimed to have read the bible, there are passages specific
to this tradition that tell people not to follow these traditions.
Check out Jeremiah 10:1-4 and tell me that doesn't sound exactly like
our modern day Christmas celebrations. Christ wasn't even born in
December. How would the angels have announced his birth to the
shepherds two months after they took their heard out of the fields?
They were home tucked in bed, not sitting in the harsh winter night of
Palestine.

Secondly... the argument of a lawsuit is flawed. Explain how so many
other stores allow the Salvation Army but still turn away other
organizations without lawsuits?

Anyway you slice it, it doesn't matter to me where the SA solicits
donations. I donate to an organization because I believe in it
(Rainbow Babies and Children's hospital, March of Dimes, various
cancer charities), not because they are in my face and I don't shop at
Target because I don't like their return policies. And to be honest,
after going in there the other day... they are SO not my style.

Several years ago,when the Salvation Army was labeled a "solicitor" by
target, I halted my shopping there. I emailed Target corporate
headquarters, explaining my reasons, and received a canned reply (
which I still have" from a corporate drone named Wendy , who stated
that they had decided to disallow letting the SA ring their bells in
front of their stores because "they needed to treat all solicitors
equal" and "if they allowed one to solicit in front of their stores,
then they would have to allow all" to do it. I replied that if that
was the way they felt, then I would be taking the Xmas money I had set
aside to shop for my 4 girls and use it at other stores. I bought 3
small stereos, a stick vacuum, assorted clothing items, cds and dvds
and a few other things, all of which I would have checked out and
possibly bought at Target. My Mom sent clothes, and I actually had to
return an item, and after standing in line at checkout to rebuy the
top in a larger size, I was asked " Would you like to buy a Target
gift card to support Habitat for Humanity?" wait a minute.....one
charity is a solicitor and one is not? What is the criteria for that?

SA puts over 90% of the donations they collect back into substance
abuse programs, help after a house fire, help for homeless
shelters,etc. Since when are they a solicitor? They stand in front of
doors in the cold, ring their bells, hold open doors, give polite
holiday greetings, and when you drop a donation in the kettle, you get
a "thank you." I don't feel that's soliciting.

Personally, I don't think Jesus would care whether or not He was
wished a Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays at Target. Isn't the most
important thing that you keep Him in your heart? That's always what
we were taught in Sunday school.

If that is the case, then why does it matter if a cashier wishes you
Merry Christmas if the spirit of the holiday is already there?

I just don't get it. I'm guessing you don't need to hear "Merry
Christmas" as a reminder of your faith. So what is the point?

I see how you've said that you original letter was misinterpreted.

Here's why...

You used the word "expelling" and the phrase "refusing to honor."

Them's fighting words.

You setup your letter with the concepts that (a) the Salvation Army
issue with an expulsion and (b) that Christmas is something that
should be honored.

You put pen to paper (err... fingers to keyboard) for a reason. It
sure sounds like that reason is that you believe that the Salvation
Army SHOULD be allowed to ring bells on Target property and that
Christmas should be honored by Target. You've asked for them to
state, in September, what they plan to do this year such that you can
make a decision whether to shop there or not.

If you didn't want to have a debate over Christmas, you wouldn't have
used the words you did.

And, getting to my comments... I think that anyone that boycotts
Target because they don't "honor" Christmas is a someone with
misplaced values regarding their Savior.

I know I'm probably going to get in trouble for saying this... but can
we just ban all Target letters from this site. I'm getting really
bored with hearing about registry problems, returns, coupons and
Christmas all involving Target.

Here's the thing...I am so sick of seeing christmas items out in
August (oftern before the halloween ones). Don't get me wrong, I have
nothing against any kind of religious holiday (it's your choice
what/how to believe or not) I just would like to get through Canadian
thanksgiving (Oct. 8) and halloween before I see christmas items in
stores. Why oh why can't we take things one holiday at a time?

Things I really, really hate.

Christmas talk in September.

Self righteous blow hards that assume the world revolves around their
story of which diety is the right diety. I think I hate that more
than chewing on aluminum foil. I don't give a rat's furry butt what
you worship, please just shut the hell up and worship already. If you
don't like the policy a store has in place, then don't shop there.
But please, for the love of your god, discuss it in your next meeting
while you're trying to figure out how to keep the gays from getting
married and leave the rest of us alone.

Shhhh.

As a non-believer, I have to admit I find this whole thing silly. What
ingredient is missing in your personal faith that causes you to need
constantly validation from those around you?

A couple years ago, I had a customer INSIST that I wish him merry
xmas, instead of happy holidays as was my preference. After going
round and round with him, finally lost my temper and told him I would
rather loose a limb than offer any validation to his psychosis and he
left in a temper. Not my best moment, I admit, but he annoyed me just
a little.

If your personal faith is damaged or somehow demeaned by the fact that
not everyone worships the same way you do, then you need more help
than this website can give you.

If I stopped shopping at every store that didn't wish me, a devout
Scottish Pagan, a Happy Yule Sabbat, I would literally never be able
to shop anywhere except for that one store downtown that always smells
like cats and patchouli. Not that I object to that store, but I'm not
sure what my mother-in-law would make of finding a wine bottle incense
burner painted with a dragon under their Christmas tree.

Yes, I said Christmas tree. See, I respect the fact that my husband's
family is Christian, and don't insist that they see things my way.

Now. Can we PLEASE, for the sake of the deity of your choice, not
have this stupid Christmas debate again this year? Seriously, I've
been a good girl, and that's all I really want!

Are we going to have to go through this malarkey again this year?
Every Xmas, there's always a few idiots who feel the need to post
ridiculous letters about this very topic.

For God's sake, celebrate Xmas anyway you want: Pray in church for 24
hours, stay at home with the family, dance around naked and swing from
the chandelier if you like. But don't expect each and every business
to celebrate your interpretation of your religion. Seems kinda silly
to expect a big corporation to have your religious thoughts, while
their very existence relies on the exploitation of a shopping season
based around a religious holiday.

Man, can't anybody ever think for themselves these days?

I, for one, am glad they don't have the bell ringers. Both my husband
and I have problems with high pitch sounds. And around Christmas time
our ears ring non-stop (Yes, even when we are trying to sleep!)
because just about everywhere we go are the bell ringers. Now, we do
put change in to the bucket when we go by. But we love going to
Target knowing we will still be able to hear when we get out. I am
happy they decided to follow their OWN Policy and have them not be
there. For once, don't listen to what your Preacher is saying.
Listen to why Chist said. Christ was AGAINST orginized religon (I SO
spelled these wrong. Sorry I SUCK at spelling!) Yet people listen and
follow blindly what the preacher says. Listen to your heart.
Christmas is NOT about Bell ringers and what store has them or not.
Christmas is about family.

Why are we talking about this on SEPTEMBER 11th??? (My thought go
with the ones remembering this day siz years ago)

Oh, and I ALWAYS save my receipts from Target! ;-)

of an OP who posts based on 3rd party information.

Fred,

First of all, do you KNOW why Target stopped supporting Salvation
Army? http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/charity/sallyann.asp

Even though they opted to enforce their own rule (which they
benevolently bent to accomodate the bell ringers), they are still
finding other ways through partnerships and online contributions to
continue their support of this charity.

Secondly, what bizarre sub-planet are YOU residing on? Every Target
in my area honors Christmas - everything is decorated for the holiday,
there is an ENTIRE holiday section and many of the toys and other
merchandise is packaged and in the store just for Christmas. So how
are they not honoring Christmas?

Next time, before you opt to shar your ignorance with the class, I
suggest doing a little research first. It seriously cuts down on all
that egg you've got on your face.

I support the Salvation Army and I shop at Target. I believe a
retailer has a right to not have the bell ringers in front of their
store. I especially support it if they say no to all charities
collecting outside the store. I do believe Target donates a lot of
money back into the community.

As I said, I support the Salvation Army. What does bother me is, at
my local supermarket, they are right outside the door. I almost feel
guilted into giving them the money. Since I do like shopping at that
store, I just stretch out my donations to cover the entire Christmas
season. If my plan is to donate $25 that season and I average twice a
week at the store, I'll drop $1 to $2 a visit.

There are other religions besides your own. "Happy holidays" includes
everyone. Grow up.

I went to Target on my birthday and they refused to honor it.

My mother went to Target on grandparents day and they didn't do
anything special for her.

This Thursday is Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. I wonder how
Target is doing to honor it... If they don't wish me l'Shanah Tovah,
I'll know that every one of those employees is anti-semitic.

Yeah, that's right.

How do you think the ghosts of past, present and yet to come will
visit an entire store?? I know it was a metaphor but I had a funny
picture in my head.
Seriously, Target can do what they want. If you don't like it, don't
go there.

For crying out loud!! It's September! We haven't even had Halloween
yet!!

Boy, I know what you mean. I was in Target earlier today and there was
no Salvation Army bellringers to be found. And not only that, but
would you believe that not one employee said Merry Christmas to me? It
was all, "Hello" and "How are you?" and "Have a nice day!" Bunch of
freaking pagans. They're lucky I didn't call Fox News on them.

I am interested in your statement that says "a lot of shoppers base
their shopping decisions on this policy". Can you please explain the
basis for this statement?.

I know you say down below that 700,000 people signed a petition
opposed to Target's position on the bell ringers. I wonder how many
of them still shop at Target though if the store has what they need at
a good price. Are there any statistics on that?

Perception = Reality

Target is anti-Christmas; I do most of my shopping on-line anyways,
but when I do go out, I would'nt be caught dead at a Target.

As far as Walmart's employee benefit packages; they ain't running a
sweatshop, the employees are free to seek employment elsewhere.

SPIN it however you want, Target decided to sanitize Christmas.

On a positive note; if you want to avoid the crowds during the
Christmas shopping season, shop at Target!

Before you start spewing half-truths, you should be aware that Target
really had no choice but to disallow the Salvation Army from its bell
ringing. The alternative was to allow countless nonprofits an
opportunity to solicit customers for money. THAT surely would have
alienated customers even more!

So go ahead and shop at Walmart, which in comparison to Target, pays
its employees less, offers minimal to no benefits, contributes less to
the community, and uses legal maneuvering to force itself into
communities that don't want a Walmart store.

Easy...

The Salvation Army WON'T be there.

And they always have honored Christmas.

Done!