I think midnight is derived from the old english, which is probably derived from mitnacht or some germanic derivation.
The 'rip off' thing seems to be all to common. It's good, in a way, since kids are getting more savvy to being wooed, but it is also giving them the impression that normal business is somehow wrong. I guess we can only hope that kids will be tempered later by their massive need to be consumers later, lol.