1245: Black Friday | Skeptical Sunday

Welcome to Skeptical Sunday. I'm your host, Jordan Harbinger. Today, I'm here with Skeptical Sunday co host, writer, and researcher, Jessica Wynne. On the Jordan Harbinger Show, we decode the stories, secrets, and skills of the world's most fascinating people and turn their wisdom into practical advice that you can use to impact your own life and those around you. Our mission is to help you become a better informed, more critical thinker. During the week, we have long form conversations with a variety of amazing folks from spies to CEOs, athletes, authors, thinkers, and performers. On Sundays, though it's Skeptical Sunday, we're a rotating guest co host and I break down a topic you may have never thought about and debunk common misconceptions about that topic, such as the lottery, GMOs, toothpaste, Reiki healing, self help cults, diet pills, bottled water, and more. And if you're new to the show or you wanna tell your friends about the show, I suggest our episode starter packs. These are collections of our favorite episodes on persuasion, negotiation, psychology, disinformation, junk science, crime and cults and more that'll help new listeners get a taste of everything we do here on the show, just visit jordanharbinger.com/start or search for us in your Spotify app to get started. Today, we're talking about Black Friday, that wonderful time of year when Americans express gratitude on Thursday and commit petty violence over flat screen TVs on Friday. Black Friday is traditionally the biggest shopping day of the year, but is it really a deal? What actually drives us to run for these sales? Are we saving money? Are we just buying the illusion of discounts? Here to sell us the facts is writer and researcher Jessica Wynne. Hey, Jess. So you ready to throw some elbows for a good deal? Oh my gosh. No. I will stay home. Thanks. But I am fascinated that Black Friday is our most aggressive holiday and doesn't even involve fireworks or other explosives. And you're right. We do go from being thankful on Thursday to get the hell out of my way. That's my instant pot on Friday. Right. It's it's bizarre, but it's it's this is not a real holiday. Right? This is just kind of a made up thing. Come on. Technically, no. Black Friday isn't a federal holiday. The government doesn't recognize it. The post office stays open, and federal workers don't get the day off, but it is considered a retail holiday. The stock market closes early, and culturally, it's a holy day for spending. Retail holiday. But what is Black Friday yeah. Fake fake AF. What is Black Friday anymore? Is it still people camping outside Best Buy, or is it more like an Internet bloodbath now? I mean, honestly, it's both. So Black Friday and Cyber Monday have kind of fused into one long shopping week. Black Friday was for big ticket items like major appliances and electronics, and Cyber Monday was for clothes, …