As IF Times

Recently, revelations about the number and efficacy of vaccines taken by people have finally been called to question.  For several generations, vaccines of all kinds were foisted on the public, who generally acquiesced to the ‘wisdom’ of the medical industry.  The Covid nonsense woke up the public and suddenly the revelation that children were obliged to take, in some cases over 72 vaccines as compared to only about 4 in the early 60’s, came under renewed scrutiny.  These statistics are sobering.  Populations become de-sensitized to the abnormal.

We’ve become acclimatized to other things as well. It occurred to me that a big chunk of our modern lives is consumed with maintaining records or logs of some kind with all kinds of organizations, without us even realizing it. Everyone and I mean everyone in the world (with access to a smartphone or computer) is obliged to maintain a password of some kind. Losing or forgetting this password leads to all kinds of inconveniences and aggravation disrupting our daily lives.  That’s the least of it.

In reality, to function in today’s society, there are passcodes and checks on every aspect of our lives.  Banking; Netflix; Spotify; Amazon; health clubs; loyalty cards; government services; airlines; etc. etc.   My own survey reveals that I need passcodes to enter over 100 different sites and services. We become indoctrinated to believe that this is just part of life.

Even going to McDonald’s these days can be an IQ test, since there are often electronic kiosks to enter your order in place of communicating with a real person.  You are prompted for your membership identity first.  Someone decided that having machines with member requirements were more efficient than telling a human that you want a big mac. Let’s not even mention the byzantine hoops of government websites and services one has to navigate if you want some kind of government agency information.  May God have mercy on anyone who is the subject of a government clerical error on a form that needs to be fixed.

But those are just nuisance inconveniences. The real oppression comes in the form of fees, taxes and costs… simply to exist.  A quick Google search reveals that the average American pays over 97 distinct taxes including of course, the hated income and property taxes.

From the time you are born, there are fees and costs for you to exist.  Someone has to pay for the hospital costs and I understand that there is even a movement to implement a ‘birthing tax’ on newborns. From that point forward, your entire life is spent in pursuit of making enough money to pay taxes and fees just to be a human.  A massive lucrative industry exists just to guide people on how to keep the money they earn and shield themselves from taxes.  Nowhere else in the animal kingdom are animals required to pay just to live.  If you are fortunate enough to have anything left to leave to your family after a lifetime of paying taxes, then surprise, surprise, there are death and estate taxes.

All of this is tied to the exponential reach and growth of government over our lifetimes. If I wanted to enumerate all the taxes and fees that have been introduced in the past 50 years, it would be an exhaustive list and not really the point of this discussion. Suffice to say, you’d be hard pressed to cite a case of a removal of any given tax or fee once implemented.  Thus, taxes tend to stack up like vaccines doses as people accept them without questioning them.

People have now become accustomed to the mountain of taxes and fees foisted upon them without adequate justification.  It’s accepted as the cost of living. It’s like the new normal of 20% minimum tipping at restaurants. People may complain, but they go along to get along. Never ending taxes and fees are like parasites eating at the body, subtly but surely.   Politicians know this innately.  They will never have the pressure of having to justify their spending bills because public pushback is tepid and passing.  What’s more, they have the ability to vote themselves raises…because of the price increases that they cause.  Thus, people’s fight for simple existence is really against those supposedly charged with their care!

In the animal world, most creatures have to worry about the dangers posed by other species for their survival.  Only in the human world is the most dangerous animal their own species, slowly pecking them to death without them even being aware.  The best analogy is the one about the frog being unknowingly boiled in increasingly warmer water.  It seems as if humans are in a lot of hot water.

Source: Why Amazon is eating the world | TechCrunch

By now we know that Amazon has become ubiquitous in our modern lives.  The erstwhile bookseller has become THE 800 pound gorilla in the retail space as its shadow looms over all types of commerce.  Not content to just sell books, Amazon’s reach extends to every consumable product imaginable and recently, they’ve made a foray into the grocery business by buying upscale grocer, Whole Foods.   Lesser known perhaps was the purchase of the Washington Post newspaper by owner Jeff Bezos, giving them a political platform as well.

After reading the convincing story in the above link, we feel that Amazon is not done with world domination.  There’s no reason to think that they would not one day push into the field of pharmaceutical delivery or even for medical services.  Why not legal services, dating services and pet adoption?  Home and car buying are probably already in the works.  How much easier would it be to get a new spouse online?  A few convenient clicks, no expensive dating required and especially if they have the no hassle return policy.

Amazon is not as some think, a technology company.  They are the epitome of the most efficient logistics company.  They are able to provide consumers with the cheapest, largest selection of goods in the most convenient way for customers.  As Bezos famously said, “I’ve never had someone come to me asking to be charged more and to have it delivered more slowly”.  That is the nub of the business model: people want convenience.

How lazy have we become as a society when we can’t even be bothered to go to the mall to buy shoes?  Are we really that busy?  What are we doing that’s so important that we can’t do a stroll to buy something?  There was a story today which claimed in despondent terms, how customers at McDonald’s would now have to wait….one extra minute for their burgers because they were going to  use fresh meat instead of frozen!  The horror!  How is the company going to survive?

In unrelated developments, the rush is on to introduce self driving cars, because apparently, driving and parking are too much trouble for a stressed populace; and besides it’s easier to use Amazon apps to buy stuff if you’re not actually driving.  It all sounds good as a marketing ploy; convenience, cheap and likely green, but aren’t many of these inventions and services created in search of a use? Sort of like an electric dog polisher or an automatic nose picker? How did the world get along before expecting things to happen instantly?  How are we better off because we received the latest shoe 3 days earlier than by standard means?  How did our time become so precious, that saving a bit here and there is essential for happiness?

A friend remarked about how purchasing the latest space age bicycle seat post on his $7000 road bicycle would shave 150 grams from the curb weight of the machine.  In reality, a quick trip to the bathroom would save just as much if not more weight.  But it all sounds good, so it must be better.