Toys R Us closing inspires some false narratives

You know the "retail apocalypse" is bad when the nation can't support a toy store chain. Toys R Us is closing all of its stores. All of them. This is a sad day for America.

I am not just sad, though, but angry reading all the false narratives out there. Here are a few I keep seeing and why I ain't buying them:

FALSE NARRATIVE: The Internet killed Toys R Us
How about it was just managed poorly? The stores often looked kind of dumpy, but they did business. We can't blame everything on the Internet. Maybe some of the debt restructuring plans killed it.

If people buy all their toys on Amazon, they are not doing their homework. Many if not most toys on Amazon are priced over regular retail price and are subject to wild fluctuations and quick shortages. Toys R Us is never a great bargain paradise, but even MSRP is better than paying inflated third-party vendor prices online, not to mention outrageous shipping costs.

FALSE NARRATIVE: Kids don't play with toys anymore. They play with tablets, video games, etc.
Ridiculous. Maybe out in public. You don't see a kid take a GI Joe playset down to the park or with him on a trip to the store, but at home, kids love playing with toys if you let them.

FALSE NARRATIVE:  Toys R Us sells only junk like movie and cartoon tie-ins and nothing that appealed to kids' imaginations.
Another goofy talking point. Every store I visit features an aisle each devoted to the following brands: Imaginarium, Melissa and Doug, Crayola...  You see stuff with Animal Planet and Discovery Channel branding, plus classics like Crayola and specific old-school favorites like Lincoln Logs.

As my astute sister points out, stores that are devoted to "imagination" toys have one thing in common: they have outrageous prices. Parents who can afford to overpay on adult things can afford to overpay for "smart" toys, but the rest of the population would like a place to get stuff at reasonable prices.

Let's hope the major general merchandise joints step up their game. Wal-Mart is great on price, Target less so. Both shrink their selections after Christmas shopping season. I just refuse to believe that this country is done buying toys in stores. This isn't like DVDs or books or all these other things that are going online. Kids like to see stuff, and parents like to see what they are buying their kids.  Maybe we need a return of this place: