Bed Bath and Beyond Goes Bust

John R. “Buck” Surdu

Bed Bath and Beyond is contracting and closing stores. Their creditors stopped their line of credit. We never bought a lot from Bed Bath and Beyond, but we shopped there. Much of what is in our kitchen came from there. I don’t know if they have mismanaged their affairs, if they are one of the companies driven out of business by COVID hysteria, or what, but I am sad to see them go.

Why am I sad to see them go?

Well, I am really sad to see any brick-and-mortar store close. For most men, shopping is a commando raid. I know what I want, I make a stealthy approach, stalk my quarry, fork over some cash, and make a hasty egress. But sometimes, I am ambushed by a cool thing I didn’t know I needed before I complete my withdrawal. Just about the only store I just wander through aimlessly, like Biden after a speech, is Hobby Lobby.

I know many people who wander into stores to touch and fondle merchandise and then go home to order online to save a dollar or two. For the 50% of the population that is suffering from Bidenflation or is oppressed by whiteness, conservatism, religion, free speech, showing work on math problems, slavery they never experienced, or punctuality, maybe that is their only recourse. But, the media, my own government, the Left, and academia keeps telling me I’m an oppressor. So, we oppressors should have cash falling out of our pockets and can afford to pay a few dollars more for an already overpriced four-quart pot.

This quote is on permanent display in the US Holocaust Memorial Museum:

First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist.

Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.

—Martin Niemöller

I don’t want to trivialize Niemöller’s dire warning about everything we are seeing happening in America today; however, every time one of us shops in a store and then goes home to order online and save a nickel, we are pounding another nail in the coffin of some business owner or franchisee struggling to make ends meet during record inflation – and the workers who make their livings in those businesses. When you want to go into a brick-and-mortar store, and there aren’t any, we should all remember that we played a part in their demise.

First, I went to the video store, but there weren’t any.

Then, I went to the bookstore, but there weren’t any.

Then, I went to the hobby store, but there weren’t any…

Admittedly, some brick-and-mortar stores make loyalty hard. The millennials (and non-millennials) often treat you as if they are doing you a favor to take your money. Frequently, I know more about the products than the salesman. Often, you must shoot up flares and blow a bugle to get someone to help you.

Remember, though, that when you buy things online, you are generally purchasing from woke PACs identifying as mega corporations. Amazon, Etsy, and other have all shown their wokeness by supporting fascist organizations like Antifa and BLM. Most cell phone providers, Coke, and other large corporations funnel money to Leftist candidates and causes. The 87,000 armed IRS thugs want to track all your online transactions and raid your house for $4.85 of undisclosed income from selling your grandmother’s doilies on Ebay. Avoid all of that.

Shop in mom-and-pop stores, avoid chains.

Eat in mom-and-pop restaurants, avoid chains.

Don’t feel obligated to leave a tip for surly service.

Shop at ACE Hardware instead of Woke Depot.

Buy groceries locally, not on Amazon.

Find small businesses, like DVDPlanet or ChirstianBooks to purchase your DVDs, not Amazon.

Generally, patronize brick and mortar stores. They contribute back to your local community. They provide jobs for your neighbors.

And one day when you want one, there might still be one in your neighborhood.