A turkey of a blue law
WILL SOMEBODY please change the state law so people can shop for groceries on Thanksgiving? It would be a reprieve for cooks who have forgotten to buy nutmeg or who watched helplessly while the cranberries accidentally cascaded onto the floor.
In other states, people can run out to the store. But in Massachusetts, bits of the past still have an iron grip on the present. Current blue laws -- with roots reaching back to the 17th century -- now forbid most stores from opening on Thanksgiving and Christmas.
These laws arose out of the Puritans' religious desire to protect Sundays, to limit work and other activities on the Sabbath. One disputed claim is that these laws got their name because they were printed on blue paper. Another claim is that the name "blue laws" was coined by the Rev. Samuel Peters, who published a book in 1781, " A General History of Connecticut," that gave an exaggerated account of these laws.
One fact is clear: This is the 21st century, and the law should keep up.
Two years ago, Whole Foods was open on Thanksgiving Day. Then last year, Shaw's Supermarket cried foul, and wrote a letter to Attorney General Thomas Reilly saying Whole Foods' plan to open was a violation of state law. Reilly concurred. Shaw's won. And consumer s lost.
This year, the controversy continues. Whole Foods tried to get special permission to open, but Reilly said no.
Still, on Thanksgiving Day, some stores opened, including some of the Super 88 Markets, which traditionally ignore the laws. Comp USA stores were open, operating under the protection of one-day permits issued by local police departments -- permits that state officials say are meaningless.
It's time to end this farce. Reilly can only enforce the law. Change has to come from the Legislature. What's needed is a bill that moves Thanksgiving out of the state's category of retailing "restricted holidays," and into the category of "partially restricted holidays." This would put Thanksgiving in the same basket as New Year's Day and Independence Day: days when employees must be paid time-and-a-half and work only if they volunteer.
The state would have to strictly enforce that law, publicizing the fact that it would be illegal to compel people to work and aggressively prosecuting offenders.
The bill could limit hours, requiring retailers who open on Thanksgiving to close by early afternoon. Or the law might only apply to food stores, since other products are less essential.
Feed a hunger for Puritan morals with a nice copy of "The Scarlet Letter." And let the modern resident shop on Thanksgiving.
