Shopping violence and near riots in the USA as “bargain hunters” go a little too far in their search for gifts and sale items.

Nine examples Via Pravda :

#1 At a Target store in Buffalo, New York the crowds waiting impatiently outside suddenly became a chaotic mob once the doors opened at 4 AM on Friday morning.

One man that was lying on the ground remembers thinking “I don’t want to die here” while he was being trampled by crazed shoppers….

#2 Crowds were becoming so violent at a Wal-Mart in Sacramento, California that the police actually evacuated the store early Friday morning.

#3 Three women from West Palm Beach, Florida said that $1,000 in presents that they had just purchased at Best Buy were stolen from their vehicle on Friday morning within minutes of being purchased.

#4 One U.S. Marine reservist that was collecting toys for children was stabbed with a knife when he attempted to stop a shoplifter in eastern Georgia on Friday.

#5 Blogger Lynne Elder-Blau has posted about overhearing police officers describe a huge brawl that erupted this year at one well-known store on Black Friday….

Well, the girls and I were in a popular convenience store in Garden City last night while a store employee and a Garden City Police Department Officer were visiting. They were conversing about a large group of customers who got into a knock-down brawl at a nationally-known variety store in Garden City yesterday morning. Several police officers were brought in to break up the ball of adults who were pulling and tugging at products and actually punching other customers in their faces and stomach areas! We’re not just talking about a few people who were involved in this violent non-sense. The officer said that there was a large amount of people involved in this particular altercation. Ridiculous!!!

#6 A 21-year-old woman from Middleton, Wisconsin was arrested when she threatened to shoot other shoppers while waiting to get into a Toys R Us store for Black Friday. The other shoppers had objected when she attempted to move to the front of the line.

#7 The following is video of customers literally tearing apart a store display at a Wal-Mart in Douglasville, Georgia as they pushed and shoved each other in an attempt to grab the best deals….

#8 The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department actually “locked down” a section of a Cerritos, California shopping mall after a wild fight broke out in the food court. There were even reports that some people were flinging chairs at other customers.

#9 At one Wal-Mart in Texas, a near-riot broke out right in the middle of the store as a huge crowd of customers pushed and shoved each other to get a handful of Black Friday deals that were being wheeled out to the floor….

Want to see screaming, crazed shoppers in action?

Then look no further :
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At least that sort of thing hasn’t made it to these gentle shores just yet.

Oh, wait a minute …

It was not about race relations, deprivation or capitalism, but the riot still managed to leave one policeman injured, eight people under arrest and a shopping centre closed for the day.

The issue that exercised the people of Leeds so much was, in fact, squeaky trainers.

A BBC TV’s Watchdog programme had claimed pairs of the new £100 Nike Air Max 95, which uses air bubbles as a cushion, had failed to lose an initial squeak, and left many viewers convinced they could exchange their shoes for a silent pair.

Dozens of customers arrived at the Foot Locker store, in the St John’s shopping centre, on Friday clutching trainers – of all ages – and demanding new ones. Staff refused to comply, tempers became frayed and the police were called.

By noon the shopping centre was closed. Police said yesterday that of the eight people arrested, three – a boy of 15, a 20-year-old man and a woman in her twenties – had been charged with public order offences and assault and a 19-year-old woman had been charged with public order offences.