RE: Not rain nor snow nor Saturday...

[Tom Hansen <thansen@moscow.com>]

At 06:34 PM 4/14/2001 -0700, you wrote:
>I am not surprised at all... this is why I attack the method by which we,
>the consumer, decide to purchase goods and services. We are so lazy! We are
>so apathetic! We have been brainwashed to respond to annoying advertising
>instead of becoming active to promote our favorite businesses. Word of mouth
>is the only reliable method for any of us to get unbiased quality
>information about a business we are unfamiliar with. 

"Word of mouth" is unbiased???  This may be true in a society so bland and
apathetic that human interest is a mere concept.

I relied on word of
>mouth to promote my business because I refused to give in and waste natural
>resources to benefit my personal needs. I was able to see that those
>customers who were vocal about my service brought me many more customers.
>Unfortunately in today's "me" society many of us do not bother supporting
>our businesses. 

The "me" society??  That term expired in the eighties.  People have always
wanted more bang for their buck.  People today (and I believe that
encompasses most people) want a reliable product at reasonable prices.  The
old "Mom and Pop" stores offerred that.  The problem is that these Mom and
Pop stores (especially in Moscow, Idaho) are being squeezed out by chain
stores (i.e. Meteor Light Labs).  Meteor Light Labs offerred top quality
computers, software, and various peripheral devices at reasonable rates.
The problem I believe MLL faced was that the average person lacked
sufficient technical knowledge to understand the quality offerred by MLL.
These people "settled" for something less (for less).

We betray the people who have given us excellent service and
>buy from another source just to save a few bucks. We should support
>businesses that work hard for the betterment of our society. We should be
>vocal and enthusiastic supporters. If we are not we will loose in the long
>run. The individuals who dedicate themselves to social responsibility must
>eat too! If the only way to survive is through methods that are harmful in
>the long term then we, as a society and consumers, are to blame for the lack
>of ethics and social responsibility. Our wasteful methods might seem
>inexpensive now but as history should have taught us by now the costs of
>waste are paid by future generations. Do we really want to leave our
>children with the kind of mess that our fathers left us? Did we not learn
>anything about the affects of irresponsible business? The pollution, the
>health effects, the depletion of resource... none have taught us a lesson?

These questions have been around since the Reconstruction era.  We may not
have the answers.  But, we can provide some viable options (such as solar
energy, etc. etc.).

>Then we are blind indeed! If we continue in this path we will wake to a
>desolate world striped of personality and soul. Soon the only stores will be
>the huge national stores with their monopoly power and huge advertising
>budgets stuffing their products down your throat! We have already lost more
>freedom than most of us realize. The propaganda machine is strong! The same
>way that in china they are brainwashed to think that we were to blame for
>the recent crash of their jet fighter and our "spy plane", we are
>brainwashed to think that we must have a McDonnald burger every week or that
>Staples has lower prices or it is ok to target, corner, and force people to
>make financial choices to their disadvantage because it is "their choice".
>We are manipulated every day. Our entire economy... our entire country is
>based on theft, lies, manipulation, and deceit. We have to work together to
>fix these problems. We as a society have to oppose waste and injustice at
>every turn. We have to stand and speak up for Truth. We have to shun
>selfishness, greed, opulence and gluttony. We have to reward and respect
>those who champion Truth and act in a socially responsible way. We have to
>stop allowing the all mighty dollar to rule our dominion and extinguish our
>soul!
>
>
>"Your brother in arms"
>
>Shahab...

No, Shahab.  The glass is not half empty.  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

"All that man has ever learned amounts to nothing more than a grain of sand
on a beach that stretches to infinity."

          -  Author Unknown