First the complaint…
I virtually never return Christmas gifts. I cannot remember the last time I did. This stems from a Christmas childhood trauma. My poor father, who loved my mother dearly, would always pick out for her major Christmas gift a robe, a night gown, a blouse or dress that either didn’t fit, that was identical to one she already had, or that she hated. My mother, for all her wonderful traits, never gave him a break either: she would open the gift and immediately register disappointment. And Dad was always crushed. It got so he would make a joke about it, handing over a package he had lovingly wrapped while saying, “Well, Merry Christmas, let’s see what’s wrong with this.”
As a result, I have never reacted with anything but unalloyed joy when someone gives me a gift. Whatever it is, I love it. It could be chocolate-covered ape placenta, and I will still say, “Oh, this is wonderful! I’ve always wanted to try it!”
Nevertheless, the current practice among retail stores to charge “return fees,” some as high as $9.00 per item, is despicable as well as dumb. If stores want to drive people to Amazon, that’s the way to do it. If I ever did have to return a gift, and I won’t, especially now that there is almost nobody who is likely to give me one since my son/daughter has “cancelled” me for some reason, a store charging me for the privilege would land on my blacklist forever. It is also not consistent with the spirit of the season: I bet Kris Kringle would never let Mr. Macy do that without earning a cane to the noggin.
Ethics Alarms 