It's almost time for Black Friday

I remember Black Friday way back in the day … way before it was ever called Black Friday.

Grandma Morgan and Mom would get up early and go to Flint for the annual "Day After Thanksgiving Shopping Experience." It would start on Thursday, Thanksgiving, when we would all look at the unusually large number of sales ads in the Oakland Press and Detroit News. It was as much a holiday tradition as the Lions playing later in the day.

Now, I see that retailers are upset because of Black Friday sites releasing their information and ads early. Many "shoppers" out there are making their lists and checking them twice … and Black Friday sites only help the cause. I subscribe to a blog, http://bfads.net/, and I always know that in the middle of October, the rollouts are going to begin.

But, instead of being upset of getting upstaged, how about if you release the information yourself and help get people planning for the Black Friday events? Would that solve the concern?