The American Consumer - Part IV - Menagerie!

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2012/07/11/156625861/wake-up-call-to-grocery-stores-young-people-shop-around

Hey America!  Sorry 'bout the short break, I had to really reach to get some ideas this week, but I think I might have come up with a doozie or two.

Sooooooo......it was my decision that I would include one good post per night over the weekend, in emulation of a political runway, then shift into 5th gear come Monday. I'm gonna drive this one right on out there, then hammer out the next during the day tomorrow, then another for Sunday, daytime as well.  Our story today is one that I had intended to start a whole blog on...the American Consumer (and his/her little issues on and in today's world).  Once ADS kicked in and started collecting 10's of follows a day, however, then snowballed; time didn't quite allow me to add to it, so I abandoned it and wrapped it into this one.

We're gonna try something a bit different with this one though.  This one's gonna be a mini-collection of a bunch o' different beefs, probably one for just about every industry.  Like a collection of short stories in a novel.  Should be interesting at the very least!  So what're we waitin' fer?  Let's get it ON!!

NOTE:  As I finish each one, there will be an update to include the next...until all my little "mini-post-its" are finished.

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Electronics

This section does NOT cover computers or their products...those deserve their own section.  This one will be large enough, all by itself, believe that.

I don't know if you remember when TV's were only available in two types...too big and bulky, or too tiny to view from any further back than 5 feet...when the VCR was all the rage, or when clock radios and Walkmans were $40 or better.  It didn't matter what the price, the electronics department of ANY store had always held a big interest for me.  I would boldly and purposefully stride directly to it, no matter what store I intended to inhabit.  I did not tread into any store, sans that department, unless I had no choice in the matter (i.e., if I needed food, or had to get clothes; those were about the only exceptions).  My best friends were Best Buy, Office Depot, Sears, Target, Montgomery Ward, K-Mart and Wally World.

Oh, nothing's changed...or at least the fact that this is still my favorite department anyway.  No, what DID change were the products lining the shelves of these once great stores.

I'm not sure just how long it was that the tube TV was the only option you had, but it seemed like decades, easily.  They first came available in the 50's, and didn't disappear until 2000 and beyond...50 years.  The VCR lasted what, 30?  Stereos with record players (non-78's) enjoyed a very prosperous length of time in our history.  Then BAM.  All of a sudden, things that had made it a minimum of 30 years or more, were replaced with things that didn't last more than a single decade or so.  And keeping up?  Fahgetaboutit.  Not possible, by any standard.

The VCR was replaced with the DVD player.  I remember when that came out, they were a MINIMUM $200+.  CD's replaced cassettes and vinyl records.  Oh, I adapted, when I could no longer stand it, and believe me, I held out as long as I could.  Then, about the time my collections were above and beyond what I'd boasted with records and VCR tapes...it changed again.

Sure, the change had been a while in coming.  We still enjoy CD's.  They don't really put out the players like they did, but we can still play them.  In our DVD-Dual Layer Writers (If you have one in your computer that is) in the better portion of our cars, and if you're really sentimental, you've still got a boom-box with a CD player still lying around in your basement.  They're not Frisbees yet.  The one that made me mad was Blue Ray.  Not even a decade, and our DVD movie collection was worthless.  I can't sell the damn things for more than a dollar anymore.  Just as I was finishing up my desired DVD collection, out it came.  What gets me is, DVD's, if the choice is available, are still just as expensive as they were when Blue Ray's came out.  And Blue Rays, unless they're a crummy title that isn't selling, are still just as expensive as they were when THEY came out.  Most of all, the way technology is moving, in full-throttle, Blue Ray doesn't look good for longevity either.  I quit.  I no longer buy movies, or music either.  I watch the videos on Vimeo and YouTube for music, or wait for it to hit Netflix or Redbox to watch the movie.  If it's Epic, I MAY shell out the 20 bucks it costs to put a date and myself into a movie theatre seat, but it had best be something I'm dying to see, RIGHT NOW.  What's the point?  I get the collection going, and they're gonna change it right in the middle of my collectibles anyway!

But the biggest sponge of my wrath would have to be Flat Panel TV's.  This one irritates me like no other. In company with these, computers and cell phones are competing for 2nd place on my hate list.  Just as I'm re-adjusting the wiring to make it look good, and just find the perfect place in my living room for it, my TV is obsolete.  First, it was Plasma.  Then by the time I could afford that, it was LCD.  Then it was LED.  Then it moved to Smart LED.  HD LED's. Smart HDTV's.  3D LED's.  Smart 3D LED's.  Smart HD 3D LED TV's.  Some had Active 3D, some had Passive 3D.  Now, there's ULTRA HDTV's, with Smart and without Smart.  Cruising around, I found some with sticker prices that exceeded $10,000.  That's almost a CAR FOR CHRISSAKES!!  The description on that baby?  LG 84" (there was one bigger, a 90"...who has room in their living room for a 90" TV?  For real?), Cinema 3D 4K Ultra HD 240 hz. LED/LCD (huh?) HDTV w/Smart TV & 6 pairs of 3D glasses.  Wow.  $11,997.99.  Down from $14,000.

Oh, but I'm not done.  Noooooo...on that very same web page, there was one more...at (get this) $39,000.  Down from $44,000, this TV was dirt thin and on a swing of some sort...and the only differences I noted were micro-dimming (?) and Smart TV...with voice control.  The Rolls Royce of flat panels.  Who knew?  I bought a 39" LED, used, but still in the box, made by the least respected maker, and said SCREW ALL THAT!!...for $150, off of Craigslist.  I'm happy as a clam, tankyooberrymutts.  Enough of that...on to:

Furniture

Here's one that makes me want to fill the space between my ears with hot pudding.  Homemakers.  Nebraska Furniture Mart.  Lebeda Matress.  All of these places charge you millions of dollars above any value the furniture they sell, could possibly have.  These are prices I wouldn't charge for antiques!!

We had the extra money once, and bought a solid maple 4-poster bed, with almost the best mattress they had, thinking we would have it for an eternity.  We paid $2600 for the bed and the bedding for it.  A year and a half later, my home was STOLEN FROM ME...(Oh, I'll tell you that sad tale someday, rest assured)...and we had to sell the bed to survive.  I put it on Craigslist at $1600.  After a scam, (you know the one..."Ill buy it, but I'm out of state, I'll send you a check for $1000 more...deposit it in your bank immediately, then send me whatever money you don't use after you ship it"...and you get a Fed-Ex envelope, legal size, with nothing but a check in it, written to you from the account of some person in a different state...as if) then absolutely ZERO calls, I lowered the price down to $1300, $1200, $1000...then finally $800.  I sold it at $800.  $1800 less than what I paid.  Nice, eh?  Someone needs to tie a noose around the CEO's of all furniture companies.  If you made the quality of furniture you did when it was made by hand, and, maybe, after it lasts for 30 years?  I might buy another set at YOUR prices...sheesh.  Might just as well buy it at Wally World.  It lasts just about as long and is 55-75% cheaper.  Might be plain jane, but hey.  And you can't trust anything used anymore, what with the resurgence of bedbugs.  YUCKY!!  And what we have here?  OH NO IT'S...IT'S...

Cars & Trucks

EASILY my FAVORITE of all American Consumer categories, we have the massive collection of vehicular splendor that lines our streets, are parked illegally everywhere, pump more pollutants into the air than just about anything else we've created (that isn't a factory), and threaten to use up every drop of our planet's stored resources, in one fashion AND another.

It used to be that we were concerned about our environment.  I'm not sure when that ceased to BE a concern, but with the economy the way it is, everything that isn't a commodity or concerns people making more cash than they've ever dreamed of has been moved to the bottom of every list.  So, let's not worry about car-pooling or maybe taking public transportation to save our atmosphere and the very air we breath, let's just make sure to sell every person, in every household, who has a driver's license - a vehicle.  And not just a collection of steel and rubber (or plastic, computers and rubber, nowadays), no, we now have vehicles that could well carry a sticker price that rival the prices of some houses I've considered purchasing.

The price of brand new cars when I was 16 and thinking about getting my first one?  About $5,500.  The average price today, some 50 years later?  $31,500.  But with what they use to make cars these days?  I'd MUCH rather have the 50 yr. old muscle car that still runs on regular gas, and that only gets about 12 miles to the gallon, on which I can fix anything for $50 or less in about 5 minutes, with a 3/8 wrench and a flat head screwdriver.  These also had the added bonus of getting into serious wrecks and walking away with their engines laughing it off, like they'd just bumped a curb.  Oh, but wait.  The price for the same car I looked at with a $5,500 sticker price on it, back in 1976?  They want $50,000 for that car today.  SERIOUSLY??

And, if it ended there, I would be only miserable and broke.  No, even worse yet, when you crack the hoods of these vehicles, small intestines begin to look easier to navigate.  There are even car makers now that say if you do anything to your car besides pump it full of fluids or air up your tires, your warranty is null and void. This includes helping that poor 80 yr. old guy out, on the side of the road, by attempting to jump his car.

One thing I've always loved is the depreciation of today's products.  Cars?  The number one example of American gullibility.  Let's say you get that "average sticker price" on a new car, $30,000.  That new car loses 11% of its value the minute you leave the dealer's lot - over one tenth  of it's value.  Americans consider this "a fact of life".  It is NOT a fact of life!!  It's a fact of American Life, maybe!!  Then, it loses $5,500 more - in the FIRST YEAR!!  After 5 years of driving today's car, your car is now worth 63% less than the sticker price you paid in the beginning.  Absofreekin'lutelyunbelievable.  If this doesn't prove the existence of 306 million Sheeple in our country, NOTHING does!!  I want you to look me in the eye, and tell me today's Ford Focus is still going to be in the showcase window 50 years from now, selling at $50,000.  I DARE  you.

Then there's the cost of fixing them.  Even new, you pay a deductible.  If you lose your warranty (usually after 5 years or 100,000 miles, whichever comes first), and your transmission goes out?  You're looking at $12,000.  That's 3 1/2 brand new Dodge Chargers in 1973.  For a transmission.  Oh, but you can fix it yourself, right?  Riiiiiiiiiiight.  Let me know how that works out.  I'll call you in a month, when you finally figure out where everything is that you need to fix.

My favorite part though is the used car business.  Most states carry a lemon law...but it only applies to new cars.  Sure, a shady used car lot will eventually garner bad press and have to close its doors...but let's say I have 20 cars that I bought at auction for around $500 ea., that I now have $2500 sticker prices on.  Most of these have major mechanical issues, but with a $10 bottle of Engine Knock Cure or Radiator Leak Miracle Tonic, I can fix that, no problem.  So let's say I sell 10 of these at $2,500 ea., and they shut me down for selling damaged or unsafe cars.  I spent $10,000 and made $25,000, around $15,000 in profit, after building rental, utilities, etc.  Then, after I'm shut down, I can call the tow company and get an additional $200 per vehicle (if I don't further my deception and sell a few of them for slightly less on Craigslist), bringing my total profit to $17,000 dollars.  I don't have to refund any money (just make sure all of your stickers state "As Is" under the warranty section), I don't have to worry about court servers (I don't have a business anymore...remember?), and you have little or no recourse anyway, sans civil lawsuit, which could take as long as YEARS, then there's no guarantee that shady dealer will pay up.  While he's waiting for his court date, he can go start another lot somewhere else and screw more people out of their hard-earned money. NEXT PLEASE!!

The Pet World

Thank God!!  At least THIS category can be ridiculous and cute, all at the same time!!

So what's the average life of your average pet, usually a dog or cat?  Around 13 yrs.  Almost as long as one of your kids.  And, amazingly, almost as expensive as raising your own kids, as well!!

Let's compare the two.  Kids - you have a birthing cost.  OK, so that one is a freebie for dogs and cats. However, you could feasibly spend from $130 to $2000 depending on the breed.  Let's move on.  Kids - Diapers, shots, baby food, teething rings and toys, a crib, a highchair, a stroller, and baby powders, lotions and wipes.  Puppies and kittens - Training pads, shots, puppy chow, teething chews and ropes, balls, bells, fake mice, cat/dog beds, scratching posts, doggie and kitty food and water bowls, a leash, a collar, another collar for fleas, a harness, a coat, a rain-coat, and warm cover for cold weather, kitty litter, litter box, squeak toys and doggie poop bags.  Prices are pretty competitive between the two industries as well.

This is if you do NOT opt for these things as well:  A kitty scratching post/apartment complex, doggie kennels, Professional dog and cat kennelers, cat carriers, dog and cat groomers, shampoos, Frontline, vet visits and surgeries, pet funerals, licensing fees, dog park fees, leash law violations, doggie poop violations...and the list can go on...and on...and on.

And that's just dogs and cats....*whew*  Shall we? Move on, I mean?  Suuuuuuuuure.

Computers

I love computers.  I don't believe I've ever been all that upset with 'em.  I was good friends with the computer long before most people knew how to even turn them on.  Once upon a time, Office Depot started to kick around the idea of a salesman in the business machines department (the electronics department, in my language). I was one of those salesmen.  By the time I had finished there, I was so adept at computers, I started my own teaching business.

The computer business had started out with a lot of computers being Proprietary, meaning in order to make your current computer better, you would be forced to buy those parts from the company who had manufactured it.  Upon massive complaints from the consumer, however, computer manufacturers everywhere re-invented the PC, making it more generic and user friendly.  Now, you could buy parts cheaply and put them in yourself.

The Laptop started out pretty much the same as the PC, in that it was very proprietary.  It too took a hit and made things easier on the consumer.  Then, somewhere along they way, they managed to swing back the other way again.   Now, unless you have one built special, with a more generic user OS (like Linux), and because of the severity of viruses and ad ware, manufacturers are once again making their machines proprietary, and unable to be tampered with.  Gone now are the days when you could make your computer as bad as you wanted it to be.  You pay the money for the best, or you save money on a decidedly inferior product.  As for what you have in it, you're stuck with most all of it, with the notable exception being the amount of RAM you have inside.  Now, if your hard drive crashes, you have to either buy another identical hard drive, with the software the laptop came with on it for double the price stores charge for blank ones, or option 2, buy another laptop.  This, of course, is what the industry trusts that you'll choose.  Their bank accounts are counting on it.

So, not unlike the flat-panel TV beef, computers, alongside of cell phones (which are essentially computers themselves now, only pocket-sized) are bettering themselves very nearly weekly.  You may THINK you got it, but you don't, because they're shipping the bigger and badder model as you're ringin' yours up.  Don't try to keep up, you'll kill yourself off trying.

I suppose, what I'm trying to say America, is (like you had no idea), it's all about the mighty dollar.  No one believes in the word quality, or even knows what it means any more.  Cars, computers, cell phones, electronics in general, as well as just about EVERYTHING is expected to fall to pieces in short order anymore.  Why?  Because you don't speak up.  Like sheep, you open our wallets wider and incur larger credit card bills to have the latest and greatest thing, which, of late, really isn't all that great...it's only that the Jones, the Smith's and the Jackson's have one, so now you have to have one too.  And as you fall prey to yet another round of the latest and greatest, big business is meeting up in their boardrooms thinking of how they can make the next thing better, and have it shipped out before six months goes by.  Next thing you know, thanks to the usual rigorous ad campaign they launch, you hear about the new Samsung Galaxy IX making it's way over, and you're already reserving a spot on Craigslist for the old one, at around a fifth of what you paid for it.  It's only money...right?  Sheesh.