Shopping has become a holiday and leisure pursuit in its own right and twenty four hour shopping is already a growing reality. Malls have become privately owned and managed public spaces. Kids go to hang out with friends, at least until, the security guards move them on. Of course this dream of consumer heaven cannot be true for everyone. The people at the bottom are excluded by their lack of resources and I suspect the people at the top would never be seen anywhere as vulgar as Burger King.
Some malls even exclude people without the right credit cards.
If you do not have that Gold Card you re not coming in. It is hard to escape McDonald s, Gap, Body Shop, KFC and Nike wherever you go. American popular culture, fast food, trainers, films, music and fashion are embraced in many countries but also widely resented. David Ellwood has recently pointed out that hostility to American mass culture and cuisine has a long tradition in France. The fast food eateries do sometimes make concessions to local taste by putting national and regional foods on the menu but these are often bland compared to the real thing and have to be modified so they can be produced and served in the fast food style.