So says a survey conducted by the International Council of Shopping Centers and Goldman Sachs. Does that fact make the Wal-Mart worker's death at the feet of shoppers last Friday any more tragic? Either way it was a senseless death and a needless sacrifice at the altar of holiday consumerism. But there seems to be something qualitatively different between a parent looking to capitalize on low prices so they can see a child's eyes light up on Christmas morning and someone just looking to pimp-out their living room with a bigger flat-screen TV.

Maybe I'm getting it all wrong here and rushing too quickly to judgment. I've never actually been shopping on Black Friday, so maybe for most people it is about thriftiness and giving rather than greed and needless consumption. But I find few things so eerie as the primal behavior of shoppers moving in herds and the inevitable injuries or deaths that seem to result every year.

As always, there's plenty of finger-wagging after the fact. David Carr takes a look at the media's tendency to blame "a broken culture of consumerism in which people would do anything for a bargain" merely a few days after encouraging that very behavior—even going so far as to publish guides for maximizing Black Friday shopping.

In the wake of death by shopper, Newsday, the daily paper on Long Island, wrung its hands in the opinion page blog: "Was this deadly rush to lower prices an illustration of the current economic malaise (people mobbing Wal-Mart because they fear they can't afford higher prices elsewhere) or just proof that even a recession can't suppress stuff-lust?" Then it added, rather unfortunately, "This awful death is another Joey Buttafuoco-like stain on the too-often sordid image of our island."

But on the run-up, Newsday offered a "Black Friday blueprint," with store openings listed so shoppers could plot strategy, including noting that at 5 a.m., the Green Acres Wal-Mart would open and customers could expect to buy a 42-inch LCD television for $598. Many continued to pursue that particular bargain even as Mr. Damour lay dying.

Media and retail outfits are economic peas in a pod. Part of the reason that the Thanksgiving newspaper and local morning television show are stuffed with soft features about shopping frenzies is that they are stuffed in return with ads from retailers. Yes, Black Friday is a big day for retailers -- stores did as much as 13 percent of their holiday business this last weekend -- but it is also a huge day for newspapers and television.

I'm not placing the blame on anyone in particular. The shoppers share some, as do the retailers, the media, etc. But the bottom line is the mindset permeates our culture. Our economy in many ways depends on this type of behavior. Its strength is often measured by retail sales. Which do you think would be considered a more successful Black Friday: A relatively safe one with low sales, or one with record-breaking sales and a few injuries and deaths?

I'm not writing a screed against capitalism here. But when people start losing their lives so others can save a few bucks on gifts—or worse, personal wants—I think it's worth stepping back for a little sober reflection on what's really important.