It’s My Birthday,
And I’m Mad As Hell …
Dear Web Business Builder,
Today’s my birthday. I’m 39 again this year. Accolades … condolences — both welcome in the comment box below.
But I’m fit to be tied!
In fact, in true Taurus the Bull fashion, I’ve got fire blazing out my flared nostrils this year. Why?
Because amid the balloons, confetti, and wanton overindulgence, I’ve got to stop and send a check to the snake farm in Ottawa that could easily put a top-of-the-line Lexus in my driveway.
Yes, today’s the income tax filing deadline in Canada once again. But what I’m about to say is relevant on both sides of the border, and many other countries around the world as well.
This may offend — so fair warning …
Is it just me, or does anybody else notice how “left” the world seems to be leaning these days — no I’m not talking about Communist or Socialist dictatorships that openly coerce their citizens — I’m talking about places like Canada, the US, Australia, the UK, France and dozens of other countries who claim to be democracies or republics operating under the free enterprise system?
In Canada, we pride ourselves on a kinder, gentler kind of capitalism. Take “free” access to medical care as an example. A noble concept perhaps, but when you and your family move to a new town, there’s a very good chance you won’t find a family doctor for love or money.
Doctors and nurses are overworked, underpaid, grumpy, terse, and insensitive — if you can get access to them. The good ones have either left the country or quit medicine in favor of selling stuff on the Internet.
Canadians routinely go south for elective surgery, while our government spends with reckless abandon delivering sub-rate care. And poor suckers like me foot the bill!
The same deplorable inefficiency and waste exists in countless other government-controlled or highly regulated service industries. Capitalist, free market operation is in many ways in Canada — and countless other countries — a charade!
The old joke about how many Canadian bureaucrats it takes to screw in a light bulb is more truth than jest: The answer is three. One to assure the public everything possible is being done … another to supervise … and a third to screw the damn light bulb into a water faucet.
The point being …
Interventionist, big government
policies make me sick!
They subvert innovation, low prices, value-for-value exchange, and everything else that motivates proud, independent people to make the world a better place.
And it’s only going to get worse as liberalism continues to gather steam throughout the developed world. Take Old Glory for example …
America has drifted so far to the left that the free enterprise system is on the verge of collapse. It’s under attack from both sides. On one hand by socialist, glad-handing liberals … and on the other by loose spending turncoat faux conservatives … each pandering for power based on their ability to buy votes by giving away more PORK to an entitlement addicted citizenry.
If party A pledges to provide free prescriptions for senior citizens, party B has to promise to trump that with national health care. If party A vows to provide free high school, party B has to up the ante with free college. If party A pledges affordable housing for all, party B has to reduce lending standards to zero so money that should never have been printed can be lent to people who have no hope of ever paying it back.
And even with onerous taxation, there’s still not enough money to pay for it all, so what do the parasites in Washington do? They borrow it!
According to official government figures, the American public debt now stands at an unbelievable $9.3 TRILLION dollars. That number is growing by more than $1 million a minute! And like most government figures, it’s been sugar-coated for public consumption.
As shocking as these numbers are, they do not include the "off balance sheet" liabilities of the US government, such as its promises to pay benefits to Social Security and Medicare recipients far into the future, as well as military and civilian government workers’ pensions.
These additional commitments rightly taken into account, the US national debt stands in excess of an unfathomable $55,000,000,000,000.00. That’s over $183,000 for every man, woman, and child in America. And make no mistake, that’s who’ll be paying it back!
More than 200 years ago, the American people fought a whole revolution trying to get government to leave them the hell alone!
The Constitution was specifically drawn up to protect the people from big government and the infringement of individual rights and freedoms, and to prevent political parasites from sucking the blood of the electorate. But who the hell in Washington has time to read the darn thing?
Uncle Sam is too busy reaching into your pocket and stealing your hard-earned wealth. For every dollar of funny money the Fed pumps into the economy to service the ever-increasing mountain of debt, you pay a price.
By the laws of supply and demand, the more dollars in existence, the less they are worth. Your cost of living rises in direct proportion to the number of dollars in circulation. Either the cost of goods soars, the quality plummets, or both.
As sickening as that is, it gets worse …
Bloated, interventionist governments
breed weak, dependent people …
Many young people today behave as though they’re somehow entitled to the good life without having to work for it or sacrifice anything. Our soft, undisciplined society has conditioned them to behave this way. Many whom I encounter seem oblivious to the basic capitalist concept of fair exchange, are hopelessly lacking in initiative, and have come to expect the world owes them a living.
Now before I go totally off the deep end with this self-indulgent rant, let me stop and ask the all-important question. Is there a marketing lesson here? I believe there is …
More than ever — and especially if you are marketing to younger people — you are dealing with people who expect things delivered to them on a silver platter. They don’t want to have to learn anything. They don’t want to have to do anything. And they don’t want to have to be responsible for anything.
You can react to this with disdain, or you can — in the true spirit of capitalism — adapt your product offerings and marketing to accommodate it.
With respect to marketing messages directed at constituents of the mass market I just described, you can go one of two routes.
You can pander to their laziness. You can inflame their petty jealousies and incite their envy. You can justify their failures, helping them to cast blame in all directions. And you can help them to throw rocks at their perceived enemies. The mass media does this all the time, and the people who fit the mold (the majority) eat it up.
Or you can be a voice crying out in the wilderness — and call them on their crap …
Hey, there’s a reason Michael Gerber’s e-Myth is still a big hit. It says, “Hey look, if you’re wondering why your business is a shadow of what it could be, stop looking around and blaming everyone and everything. It’s you!” Different crap maybe, but the point I’m trying to make is that acute polarity is the key.
Harmonize or confront. Either extreme will work, as long as you skillfully acknowledge and tap into their core underlying beliefs. Avoid the no-man’s-land in the middle.
One Man’s Laziness
Is Another Man’s Wealth …
And when you’re developing products targeted toward mass markets, capitalize on sloth. For inspiration, just go to the grocery store and do a little research. Run the numbers on a few of the options available in the produce department. Just for fun, as I ambled up and down the aisles the other day, I took a few notes.
In a bin was a pile of plump little watermelons. $5.99 each. A couple of aisles further along … a refrigerated chest with quartered plump little watermelons in cellophane wrap, sold by weight. You could get one for $4 to $5. Are people going to eat the plump little quarter watermelons without slicing them? Why else would they be willing to pay $10 to $15 to save three knife strokes?
In another refrigerated case were heads of Romaine lettuce. $1.29 a piece. Just a couple of aisles over, I found Romaine salads in plastic containers.
The salads looked remarkably like the heads, the only difference being they were about half the size and had a little white cheese and bacon bits sprinkled on the top. You could buy them for $9.99 a piece. That’s a 1,550% premium if you were to buy two. $18.80 for what?
Is the time of the people who are buying this stuff worth that much? This is not just a convenience tax. It’s a laziness tax. And people are perfectly willing to pay it. Who’d have thunk it?
If you’re operating in these markets, you gotta ask yourself: “Are there opportunities to pad my margins sky high by doing stupid little things my customers could easily do for themselves but are just too darn lazy to do?”
End rant.
Until next time, Good Selling!
Daniel Levis
Editor, The Web Marketing Advisor
THE TOTAL PACKAGE™
Daniel Levis is a top marketing consultant and direct response copywriter based in Toronto, Canada and publisher of the world famous copywriting anthology, Masters of Copywriting, featuring the selling wisdom of 44 of the “Top Money” marketing minds of all time, including Clayton Makepeace, Dan Kennedy, Joe Sugarman, John Carlton, Joe Vitale, Michel Fortin, Richard Armstrong and dozens more! For a FREE excerpt visit http://www.SellingtoHumanNature.com
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23 Comments »
Join the Discussion!
Let us know what you think. Or ask us anything. Or offer your own sage advice.
The only rule: RESPECT THIS HOUSE! Postings that contain abusive language and/or personal attacks will be cheerfully VAPORIZED. One cross word and – POOF! – your well-thought-out post will be gone in a puff of smoke.
– Clayton
Comment by Nathan — April 30, 2008 @ 10:51 am
Great rant Daniel… You really hit the nail on the head - so its not just me thinking the world is getting lazier and stupider…
and like you say - we can see the smart companies exploiting this laziness - the whole pre-packaged foods business is insane, and yet growing every year - vegetables and fruits come in their own wrapping - it keeps them fresh and lets them last longer - and here we see people paying a crazy premium for them to be unwrapped so they rot in the fridge in half the time and lose all their flavour. Laziness and stupidity - too many dollars and not enough sense…
Comment by Lara — April 30, 2008 @ 10:56 am
Happy Birthday Daniel!
From one fellow Taurus to another, I share your enthusiasm and spirit on this subject. I’m tired of seeing lazy sloths show up to work every day just to collect a paycheck. The entitlement has got to go! It’s deplorable that the generation behind me expects to receive all the gifts & fruits of life with none of the effort & energy.
I love Gerber’s book & I agree 100% - let’s call them on their crap!
Happy Birthday again - here’s to many, many more years which each one being better than the previous.
Comment by John C. A. Manley — April 30, 2008 @ 11:15 am
Happy birthday, and I hope the rest of the day goes better now that you’ve got that out of your system.
Living in Canadian 90% of my life I agree with you about the situation. In particularly the heatlh care.
Furthermore, I don’t like the fact that my taxes are be used to fund only ONE type of healthcare: surgery and drugs.
They take my money, then, when I hurt my back a few months back and was in unbelievable pain I had two choices: 1) Go to the emergency room (no doctors available in my town, like you said), wait 6-8 hours, and be prescribed some costly muscle relaxers or anti-inflammatory drugs that would do nothing but mask the symptoms.
Or I could fork out about $360 to pay for chiropractic treatment, which corrected the problem 100% in three visits, and has kept me in good shape ever since.
So I’m paying for the stuff I don’t want to use… and then having to pay for something that would actually help me.
I’m not saying emergency rooms don’t do great stuff. If I’m in a car accident I’m forever grateful for their presence. But I find it suspicious that are government is only giving our tax payers dollars to high-priced surgery and prescription writers, which are so supposed to be the last resort.
We can’t possibly afford to pay for this.
Why stop at healthcare? Everybody needs food, don’t they? Maybe the government should start supplying food to everybody.
We can all get in line for 8 hours to pick up a carton of egg.
Comment by Christine Fuller — April 30, 2008 @ 11:20 am
Daniel,
Happy Birthday! Your rant today is right on target. From what I observe, the people who buy the pre-packaged and prepared foods are the ones who can least afford them. Somehow, these people are convinced that the convenience factor saves them so much time that it’s worth the price. I know a gal who works in my office (unmarried mother of 3 school age children who are on Medicaid with a "sick" mother also living in the household who receives Social Security disability and is on Medicare, wow, my tax dollars at work) who apparently cannot make a peanut butter sandwich. She stops at McDonalds or Starbucks every day for coffee, eats a prepared or pre-packaged meal 5 days a week, drives to the gas station about 10 times a month to put in $3 (while using her remaining $3 to buy cigarettes) and is continually cash strapped. Wonder why? Yet she praises the convenience of pricey pre-packaged foods since she doesn’t have time to cook. She is the pre-packaged food industry’s dream customer. What did Nathan say about the world getting stupider and lazier?…
Comment by CommonSenseLiving — April 30, 2008 @ 11:21 am
Happy Birthday!
You are so right! The lack of common sense would have Thomas Payne reeling in his grave. People are so commercially brainwashed that they can’t even think for themselves anymore. The food industry is killing people, but they won’t stop gorging themselves on the poisons. Then they buy all kinds of stuff to treat the illnesses they could have prevented if they’d only eat right in the first place. And they’re completely oblivious to the fact that they are pumping thousands and thousands of dollars back into the industries that are killing them in the first place.
Talk about great marketing!
Great Rant.
Carole
Comment by Phil Spinelli — April 30, 2008 @ 11:26 am
We have a nutrition store in a fitness center.
Protein shakes sell for $4 each.
Customers could buy the powder, and make the shake themselves for about 75 cents.
thanks,
Comment by deanna — April 30, 2008 @ 12:14 pm
Happy Birthday, Daniel! And great rant. You hit the nail right on the head. People are getting increasingly lazy and seem to expect to get something for nothing. Smart marketers stand to make a fortune off of them!
Deanna
Comment by David Foley — April 30, 2008 @ 12:31 pm
Birthday greetings, Daniel.
There’s a big traffic tie up on the 400 between Barrie and Toronto … could be people leaving town after reading your post … or, it could be government workers "inspecting" bridges. It’s the latter, and my bet is that seven people are doing the work of two.
I just dropped off my tax return. Like 65% of Canadians, I’m getting a refund, but, believe me, I’d much prefer writing a cheque since that means my income was WAY UP. Next year, for sure!
David
Comment by Hendry Lee — April 30, 2008 @ 2:05 pm
Hey.. happy birthday Daniel. Thought-provoking post. Human being is a dangerous and ignorant creature. They are lazy, yet exploiting the planet that gives them a place to live…
Your mention about Michael Gerber reminds me about his Awakening the Entrepreneur Within book that I planned to reread since a few weeks ago.
Comment by Nick — April 30, 2008 @ 3:54 pm
First things first, Happy B-Day Daniel!
Second, hats off for having the guts to stare down the liberal left, who are the majority of the internet surfing population, and call them on their crap.
Third, a standing ovation for voicing your outrage at cutting the government a massive check. If I have to hear another happy-tax-paying fool tell me I should be thrilled about having so much of my money seized by the government because it means I’m doing good for myself I’m going to scream.
It eats me alive to see such great countries (US, Canada, Europe) go down flames at the hands power hungry monsters we elect in to office.
On a side note I think the freelance copywriter market is primed for a product about relocating offshore. I know I’m ready to opt-out of America.
Comment by Hugh Simpson — April 30, 2008 @ 3:56 pm
Happy Birthday! I have been saying this for years - since I became AWAKE to what is REALLY going on in the USA and the world back in 1989. I’m a former TV news reporter for Post Newsweek TV that use to believe that crap they told us to sell to other Americans! NOT anymore and I will continue to say what I say my blog Survival of the Prepared on Blogger American Nazis carry me away!
Comment by Hugh Simpson — April 30, 2008 @ 3:58 pm
This software lost part of my last sentence which should read: until these goose stepping American Nazis carry me away!
Comment by Eileen Marrinan — April 30, 2008 @ 6:48 pm
Daniel-if ever there was a time you are entitled to a rant-it’s your birthday!!! I can’t blame you for being twitchy as you nudge one year closer to glorious retirement.Oh sorry- not on the cards cos you are too busy working to pay for an able bodied freeloader (or two) fellow citizen. In a local store near me there is a tee shirt emblazened with-Work Harder-the Millions on Welfare Need You!! and that sums up the dire situation here in Australia. The malaise of government entitlement coupled with denial of personal responsibility is crippling our country and with a newly elected Labour government that will now have to deliver to the bleating masses-there’s no end in sight. And as for the work ethic of our young people-well it’s practically non existent. This is in staggering sharp contrast to our northern neighbours with HUGE populations of young, educated citizens who greet the opportunity for a day’s work with zeal-they are on fire to better themselves and it’s a given that will only happen with hard work not a hand out!! You are right though-we need to get our little thinking caps on and see how we can market profitably into this mess-cos we sure can’t bank on our respective governments to fatten our bank accounts. Gee-I think I’ve had a little rant myself-I feel so much better-thank you-it’s reassuring to know that I’m not the only one out there that thinks like this!!
Comment by Sharon — April 30, 2008 @ 6:59 pm
Happy Birthday Daniel!!!
It’s hard to believe that the gov. says that they are taking care of everyone. They say that to make the public believe that they can trus them. (This is good marketing) And just like the "human nature," people don’t see it unless they study it.
This is there master plan. If they get people lazzy enoph, they know they have absolute control to "brainwash."
They tell people to look left, they’ll look left,
They tell people to look right, they’ll look right.
since last year, when I started studing marketing, every door opend up in my mind. I started noticing things I never noticed before. This was such a shock but yet such a blessing.
I can now see the brainwashing and the lazzyness more and more.
What bothers me more than enything, is when all the illegals come to the US and are able to get food stamps! I’m paying for their groceries?!
People live off the system and say they diserve it when they are living off my hard earned money!!!!!
I can understand helping people get up on their feet, but only for a "limited time." I see wemen go grocery shopping with their hair nails nicely done. …..And then buy food with food stamps. I have never gone to get a manacure or a petecure before (because I don’t have that kind of money………yet) but they can spend usless money on themselves and get money from the gov. to help them on that?!!
I don’t understand how people don’t see this. Money is being spent on the lazzy. And the hard working people pay for it. The gov. encourages the lazzy. No wonder people are so bitter. And the ones who are more bitter, are the lazzy.
Comment by Daniel Levis — May 1, 2008 @ 1:19 am
Thanks for all your well wishes. Yes, I feel much better now. It’s a wonder what a good rant will do for you now and then.
Comment by TJG — May 1, 2008 @ 11:01 am
As a U.S. citizen, I would like to thank you so much for your comments. Politically, you are right on target, and you expressed your thoughts (and mine) perfectly. I am forwarding this to my very "left" step-children - they’re young, idealistic and foolish. Hopefully, maturity will cure them. I, also, appreciate your thoughts on how political persuasions affect marketing. This opened my eyes. Thank you for the insight.
By the way, Happy Birthday! May you have a truly enjoyable day!
Comment by Ryan Healy — May 1, 2008 @ 12:23 pm
I have a feeling America is headed for a hard landing sooner or later. After that, other countries are bound to feel the effects.
Until then, keep spreading the message.
Comment by karen — May 1, 2008 @ 3:59 pm
amen
Comment by Lucille Flint — May 1, 2008 @ 4:16 pm
Happy Birthday Daniel - one day late!
I am going to print this out and send it to every politician I can. It expresses my sentiments perfectly. I’ve done a lot of business in Canada, and have hundreds of friends. I’m going to send it out via e-mail to all my friends in the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand & the UK.
I love getting your e-mails, but this one really hit the spot!
I’m 73 and still going strong. Most of my life I’ve been busy building a successful company in the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, UK. I sold the business to Australians. Retired and did all those "things" I was going to do when I "retired" in 5 years, Retirement is a joke, so now I’ve started several new businesses, mostly on the internet. I always written a lot of articles that have been printed in magazines, etc. But now am flirting with writing a book.
You keep up keeping up, and we’ll see you in the beyond, beyond where? Good question. Have a great year and next one should be even better.
Luci Flint
Comment by Daniel Levis — May 1, 2008 @ 4:29 pm
Thanks for your support Luci. I’m glad you’re one of us. It would make Clayton and the red head happy if you were to spread the word via email, with this link http://www.makepeacetotalpackage.com/daniel-levis/its-my-birthday-and-im-mad-as-hell.html#comments directly to the article in the TOTAL PACKAGE.
Comment by Chris McMorrow — May 2, 2008 @ 1:51 pm
Daniel, you’re absolutely right about the Republican Party. Their leaders fool their constituencies into believing they really are conservatives, when, in reality, they’re actually … Pigs at the Public Trough! When Republicans start sponsoring legislation requiring members of Congress to pay for their own health insurance, only then will I believe that they’re serious about putting a stop to this endless flood of red ink. (That would only be a small start.) Leaders must lead by example. Of course, the American people have become extremely soft and lazy, as well. On a massive scale, the minds of Americans have been infected by the lethal virus of liberalism. Cancer will kill the body, but liberalism kills the soul. America is now a dying civilization.
Comment by Chris McMorrow — May 3, 2008 @ 4:54 am
I had to come back to this, mainly because I regret having spoken so harshly about our government leaders. We’re slowly but inevitably going under as a nation because we have departed from Biblical principles - timeless, axiomatic truths that have been supernaturally revealed to us in God’s Word, the Bible. For example, 2nd Thessalonians 3, 10 reads: "For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat." This principle clashes with the Great Society programs of the 1960’s (and beyond), which decimated inner city families and robbed men of any chance of cultivating their God-given talents. When people look to government (and make it their religion), rather than to the God of the Bible (the one and only true God), they put themselves on the road to serfdom. We have become a nation of serfs, and Big Government is now our fearful, tyrannical, totalitarian taskmaster.
Comment by Sophia — May 4, 2008 @ 5:56 am
Completely agree with Chris McMorrow (comment number 22). Our God had blessed the nation - as he promised in Deutronomy -owing to its God fearing leaders who read, knew and followed the Holy Bible. Now, US has strayed faaar away from Him and is appalingly unfaithful to Him. God save America.