Reply #150: I don't understand what all of the fuss is about?

[Proud Liberal Dem]

I've been shopping at places like Best Buy and Circuit City for years and never really thought much about them checking my purchase/receipt before leaving the store, although from what I can recall they usually they've only checked my purchase if I had bought a large expensive item like computers, televisions, videogame systems, etc. I don't recall ever having to show them anything, at least at Best Buy, if all I've purchased is a DVD, CD, or video game. I actually don't believe I've ever been asked to show anything at any Circuit City store I've been at ever, although if asked, I don't see what the huge deal would be about doing it. The story that started this "debate" seems like an overblown and totally unnecessary drama over what appears to have been a simple request by the store to verify this person's purchase and it appeared that it became a legal issue only when this PERSON contacted the police and then refused to comply with the orders of the police. We all certainly need to stand up to "Gestapo"-like tactics such as those promoted by the Bush (mis-)administration and their "minions" but I believe that we seriously need to maintain some perspective about which battles we NEED to fight and those things, annoying as they may be, have only a minimal (if even that) effect on our everyday lives, particularly when they are a condition of shopping at a particular store. IMHO having to show your receipt/purchase prior to leaving a store at their request seems rather inconsequential and not worth the kind of trouble that the individual who wrote about their experience at Circuit City went through and if people DO have a problem with such requests, then they should voice their opinions and bring pressure to bear on companies like Circuit City to change their policies or simply shop elsewhere. Furthermore, I should add that I feel that there is simply NO reasonable comparison between acquiescing to simple requests such as showing purchases/receipts prior to leaving stores and accepting things like ILLEGAL warrantless wiretapping, "Free Speech Zones", "No-Fly Lists," etc.