As a kid, I could never understand why so many stores were only open during the times when most of their potential customers were either at work or school. Sur

As a kid, I could never understand why so many stores were only open during the times when most of their potential customers were either at work or school. Sure, you could skip school or take an unpaid day off work to spend money, but that cost you double. So most of those stores are gone now, replaced by 24-hour wal-marts and internet shopping. When I grew up, I worked night shift for many years, which at least enabled me to get to the bank, doctor, or specialty stores occasionally by skipping sleep. It was still irritating that they weren't open on my nights off, but at least then the bars were. On the other hand, I couldn't very well go to the bar to hang out after work because there's still a bit of a stigma against hanging out at a bar drinking at 8 am. I'm all for taking days off and having time slots reserved for family, etc., but inconveniencing everyone else and forcing other people to conform to whatever hours/days you happen to want is just obnoxious. In a society where we can't all afford to hire servants to do our errands for us, people want things that they can't buy because the businesses aren't open, and there are tons of unemployed people who could be working if those businesses were open, it just doesn't make sense to arbitrarily force them to close against the will of the owners, potential customers, and potential employees. I'm amazed that these laws have lasted as long as they have.