It’s a little more than a year now that there has been Sunday Shopping in the province of Nova Scotia. That’s right, there’s a place in North America that you weren’t able to walk into a store and buy all your groceries. You couldn’t walk into an automotive store and buy  a new tire, or much of anything. Oh, you could go to the movies or to one of those restaurants that stayed open, but for the most part if you couldn’t get it at a convenience center or a Tim Horton’s coffee joint, all bets were off.The courts finally told the province to stick it, and now stores are able to remain open on Sundays, though it’s still hit and miss as to what’s open; some stores are open, some malls are. That’s right, some indoor malls in Halifax are effectively CLOSED on Sunday, with only one or two stores still giving it a try.

The trouble is that for the past year, the talk at the local Tim’s and on online message boards has been pretty consistent about their feelings on Sunday shopping; they’re ag’in’ it. They speak of those poor unfortunate souls that are forced to work their minimum wage jobs, against their wills, on The Lord’s Day of Rest! Oh, for shame, for shame! Won’t someone think of the children?

Now the provincial government has decided to fan the flames and work to support and pass a bill that would effectively force stores to adhere to government mandated hours of operation; barring all stores of a certain size from opening on Christmas, Boxing Day (December 26th), and a handful of other statutory holidays throughout the year.  Maybe the talk about taking another swing at the Evils of Sunday Shopping is in the works as well.

I’m Joe Billy Bo Bob over on the latest bunch of fun at the Halifax News comment boards, should you have the stomach to read what the best and brightest (well, they have computers, anyhow) in the area have to say about the surprisingly contentious issue of how and when people are allowed to sell things to you.

When I was in high school and in college, I loved the idea of working on a statutory holiday; as soon as I had a job where there was a chance of working on Christmas Day or another stat holiday? Sign me up! That $6 per hour became a lofty $15; I’d be eating steak that weekend. Well, that or maybe paying my electric bill. When the options were sitting around the house with the room mates or the family? Give me money…

I wasn’t always an evil atheist, so my enjoyment of working on days when nobody would bug me all day and yet I’d be paid well to do so wasn’t based on annoying the Pope, but rather on the earthly practicalities of keeping the lights on at home.

As soon as all of Halifax joins in with Ramadan or Diwali or goes to a Krishna vegetarian feast, I’ll join them in the celebration of Christmas. Can you imagine if restaurants were told they couldn’t open until sundown for a month? No Tim Horton’s coffee-flavoured beverage and a cruller for you! Until then, I’ll be the asshole with the big amps and speakers in the back of that UHaul blasting Iron Maiden while you try to enjoy your peaceful day of enforced relaxation.  I think that National Day of Slayer would have more impact if it were held on December 25th…