By Andrew L. Jaffee

Our young men and women are dying for the cause of freedom and democracy in Iraq. Seventy-eight innocents were killed and 200 wounded by Islamist terrorists on Wednesday in Mumbai, India. Civil war rages in Somalia. Today in Valley Stream, Long Island, a Wal-mart employee was trampled to death and at least 3 other people injured when shoppers stormed the store, anxious to get their hands on holiday bargains. What’s wrong with this picture — especially if one were asked to prioritize this list of tragedies?

What has happened to our society when a “doorbuster” deal, like a half-price, big-screen TV, is worth more than a human life? Where are our priorities? Will today’s Wal-mart insanity give Americans pause to collectively consider where their own society is headed? These are questions I cannot answer, unfortunately, and I doubt we’ll see any mass introspection. Here are some details from today’s Wal-mart madness:

… A police statement said shortly after 5 a.m., a throng of shoppers “physically broke down the doors, knocking (the worker) to the ground.” Police also said a 28-year-old pregnant woman was taken to a hospital for observation and three other shoppers suffered minor injuries and were also taken to hospitals. …

Shoppers around the country lined up early outside stores in the annual bargain hunting ritual known as Black Friday. Many stores open early and stay open late. The Valley Stream Wal-Mart usually opens at 9 a.m.