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40 Ideas People Believe To Be Normal But Are Actually Propaganda Created By Corporations, According To Folks In This Online Group
It's not a secret to anyone that companies vastly care about money. Some are still interested in their consumers being satisfied with the products – others solely care about profits. Unfortunately, it is a massive problem in our society, and organizations have yet to overcome this issue.
Corporations will go out of their way to find a method of making even more pennies, and it's fascinating how nowadays we don't really question anything. For instance, one of the best examples would be commercials. Those endless ads you see on a website that don't allow you to binge-watch your favorite video in peace, practically forcing you to get that premium subscription – it's truly a brilliant technique.
Well, this online user took it to one of Reddit's popular communities to ask folks about certain things that might feel normal today, but are just successful propaganda made by companies. The thread received over 61K upvotes in just a few days and almost 40K comments debating over hugely influential business tactics.
More info: Reddit
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Immigrants are ‘taking’ our jobs, instead of employers seeking to pay criminally low wages to people with fewer choices.
The lie, in the US at least, that billionaires and CEOs are self made men and women. Most wealth in this country is inherited and most who claim to be "self made" were already born into wealthy families.
Working 5 days a week for 8 hours a day and still not being able to afford necessities.
What makes this worse is the fact it's the result of the very, very few at the top living in obscene luxury.
That global warming is the responsibility of the individual and not about 100 corporations.
Referring to insurance as "healthcare"
Insurance companies do not provide healthcare. They have inserted themselves as middlemen. Physicians, nurses, etc. provide healthcare. Insurance provide payment for costs that are inflated because insurance companies provide payment.
Logo T-Shirts. The consumer literally pays to advertise a brand.
"Ask your doctor if JDGYRHKX is right for you!" WTF isn't that his job? I don't ask my mechanic or plumber if I need a certain product. Pharmaceutical marketing is a total ruse.
Dandelions are weeds. They’re actually very nutritious and great for pollinators. Big Grass are a bunch of d**kheads
Technically, weeds don't exist at all. Where I live, they've now been rebranded to "wild flowers and plants" and are actively being handed out to plant everywhere because, as it turns out, bees are better off with more of these types of plants than they are with the garden varieties. Or so I've been told.
Attaching health insurance to your job and if you have a family and leave your job, you're f**ked.
I never understood why/how this started in the US. I don't think anywhere else in the world has it tied to their job.
Sugar industry blaming fatty foods for obesity, sparking the low-fat trends and ignoring how bad sugar is for your health.
Back in the 90's, fat was considered to be the cause behind obesity, hence the "fat-free" or "reduced fat" food trend.
Because producers of sugarrich food sponsored research claiming fat is bad
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Americans fell for this one big time (pun intended)! Their food is so sweet compared to everywhere else, including so called savory foods.
Same goes for South East Asia. Things like iced tea is much sweeter then in Europe.
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I use bacon grease in nearly all my cooking and am slowly losing weight! Along with getting back to a normal blood sugar and getting away from diabetes. Sugar is absolutely abhorrent and destroys any health you have. I wouldn't be surprised if it gets linked to multiple cancers at some point.
I once compared nutrition labels between butter and lard and butter was actually slightly “worse” for you. Yet, it was so taboo in the 90s for anyone to use animal fat for cooking.
Load More Replies... That’s because the sugar industry was paid to do the research on how bad sugar was for you. Surprise! They said it’s fine!
Fat is the healthiest source of energy. Carbs (glucose) and sugar/fruits (fructose) is the bad choice. It's also the cheapest to produce hence this anti-fat trend that's been going on.
That's nonsensical at best. Fat is A source of energy. There is no "best" source of energy. People require different sources for different activities. To imply that fruit is a "bad choice" is silly to say the least.
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1lb of Skittles and a 2L Mountain Dew is a fat free diet. Many 'lowfat' foods simply remove the healthy ingredients and substitute sugar.
Just like cigarettes and alcohol, everyone has always known that sugar is bad for you. People are just asking for someone to tell them that what they like to consume is safer than something they are willing to give up.
But, also like cigarettes, the sugar industry launched massive campaigns in order to try to convince people that sugar was GOOD for them. As late as the late 70's, there were ad campaigns telling people that sugar was a good diet aid. They said things like 'Sugar can be the willpower you need to undereat' or 'Get ready for the "fat time of day" ' (meaning the time of day when you want to overeat. Oof. The irony) and 'Sugar keeps your energy up- and your appetite down'... and other similar garbage. It's been so successful that people STILL think fat is the sole one to blame.
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I remember being told by doctors to eat a bar of chocolate because it's healthier than eating crisps😂, also what they don't tell you about is how high in calories a lot of fruit are.
I have researched the fat versus sugar to the point of total utter confusion. There are plenty of people who consume lots of sugar but very low fat who are slim and healthy athletic types. There are plenty of people who consume high fat low sugar diets who are the same. I am leaning towards thinking it's high amounts of both consumed together that is more of a problem. I do think fats are clogging though. Also whilst sugar is stated to be poison most health advocates tout more fruit and vegetables which are essential carbs which are broken down into sugar... aaaarrrrgggghhhhhh I don't know what the fudge to eat anymore and wish I never looked into it. I'm not overweight I don't have any health issues but now have numerous food confusion issues lol
Obesity increased when "fat free" but high in sugar products were introduced.
Misinformation campaigns started in the fifties. It's all about corporate greed and the ability to do it. Now, sugar, low fat, and lots of preservatives are the norm, and people pay for it in many ways.
And then low-fat and fat-free stuff having extra sugar put in. It is so hard to get full fat yoghurt these days and it drives me a little bit mad.
Most popular foods outlets and products will use varying amounts of sugars to enhance their foods. Makes people want more.
Here is what is bad for you: SAD .....Standard American Diet......Salt Sugar Fat!
too much fat and too much sugar are bad for your health but we aren't taught this. You learn it through trial and error and endless dieting.
However, take a look at these items also, they have sugar in them also.. watch what you eat and don't sit there and eat 10 cookies, 3 pieces of cake... Etc. Moderation is the best thing...
It's not just obesity. Added sugar is also responsible for diabetes, most metabolic syndromes and internal inflammation in general.
It's not only sugar - or fat - it's processed food in general. Your brain doesn't receive the I'm full signal as a lot of it isn't recognised as food
Let’s be clear though that both added sugar AND added fat are unhealthy, and not just for our waistlines.
Fat isn't really "added." It's one of the 3 macronutrients, most food are partially made up of fat. Trans fat is of course different
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I've been hearing the opposite. But now it's processed meat and some other thing causing obesity.
I believe that fatty foods are blaming sugar for bad health. Sugar gets a bad rap simply to promote chemical sweetener, and boy is it working
Big sugar has a lot of sway politically. The $ they pump into their puppets is disgusting. Corporate farming is killing people
Obesity on its own being bad is the real lie. How many skinny people do you know that eat fast food every day and never exercise? More than you think.
Actually, people claiming that obesity is NOT a serious health risk is the real problem.
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To late! we are all sugar addicts.. Even more so our kids.. Smoking reduces sugar cravings and obesity.. but hey.. Don't smoke.. It's a killer.. Wait what?
Are you suggesting we smoke? Are you a troll?
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It’s carbohydrates as a whole. You think big cane sugar went to bat for the sake of bread and pasta? People went after fats because the WORD FAT. Not big sugar… smdh
i have eating more carbs then suger, i don't seem to be getting any fatter.
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Saturated fat, sugar, carbohydrates (which are metabolized into sugar) alcohol (which is metabolized into sugar) and the fact that those things are often combined into one glorious example of empty calories surely plays a roll. But Americans for the most part consume processed garbage in portions large enough to feed 3-5 adults, 3+ meals a day (plus snacks!) while considering exercise to be that walk from the sofa/office to their car seems like a pretty important factor.
Patently false. Fat does not cause obesity. Sugar does not cause obesity. An excess amount of calories causes obesity, doesn't matter where they come from.
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Politicians being a middleman for corporations to influence government policies, instead of middlemen for the people to influence government policies.
The Citizens United decision by the Supreme Court practically guaranteed that this would happen. Equating corporate money with free speech was one of the most destructive legal decisions in the last 100 years.
Plastics Recycling.
It was pushed by the plastics industry back in the early 70s when laws were about to be passed to deal with the environmental impact of plastics. In reality a lot of the plastics that have a little recycling symbol on them are not feasible to recycle at all.
They are still pushing the lie to this very day.
And they ship them off to poorer countries to handle because 'we don't have those capabilities'.
Everything about wedding and engagement rings
Everything about weddings, imho. Such a con. I played in a wedding band a couple weeks ago. We were paid obscene money. I overheard a woman explaining to a friend that she and her fiance had saved $30k toward their wedding and therefore were about halfway there. I just find spending that on a one-day party to be absurd, I wouldn't expect someone to drop 30k just to show they love me. Good gods, just tell each other you love each other and put the money towards a house
Buying bottled tap water.
Yes! I can only see the point if it's an area where the tap water is undrinkable.
The whole work grind and everything associated with it. 40+ hour work week, health insurance tied to it, the need for daycare $$$, time spent commuting…how did all that ever become normal?
Because unions fought to get the work week down to 40 hours. Corporations wanted you to work 12 hour days seven days a week.
Diamonds.
Real men eat meat.
That cost of printer ink.
Sending your DNA in for sequencing is a fun and easy way to find out things about yourself, at least according to companies who contractually retain the rights to any and all findings, don't give a s**t about your medical privacy, and are constantly looking for ways to monetize that information.
I found my dads mum and family this way, no regrets and I’m a nobody, they can keep my dna 😂
That it is ok to produce a ton of single-use packaging as long as you don’t “litter” it.
I really wish the government would bring in regulations to limit the use of single use packaging. They banned plastic shopping bags of a certain thickness, but have not gone any further. (In Australia)
Most products made for the care of babies. Babies need very little in the way of furniture, gear, special foods etc. But people are so willing to buy so much stuff.
"Breakfast is the most important meal of the day" was a marketing campaign used by Kellogs to help sell their cereal.
Companies like Intuit have lobbied to make sure filing taxes can't be free and easy.
US is weird. The government already has all your information. In most countries people don't need to file taxes every year, unless they own a business.
Women shaving. In the US, Women shaving any part their bodies wasn’t even a thing before WWII, but all the men got drafted to war and razor companies took a big hit, so they successfully convinced all of us that natural hair growing anywhere out of a woman’s body besides her hair and eyebrows is disgusting.
I’m talking specifically about western culture/the United States. Evidence of ancient Greeks and Egyptians/etc shaving has no relevance in this instance.
There was also the fact that there were silk and nylon shortages during the war, so women's legs were on show so unshaven legs were noticeable. Then of course you had the swimwear fashion changing in the 60s+ and more skin was seen. The swimwear companies wouldn't show models with bikini lines in their ads, so razor companies profited from this too.
Terms of service agreements example when you buy a phone do you read all 30 pages of your service agreement letting you know that they have basically proprietary control over everything you say and do.
Years ago one company hid a prize in the terms and conditions that you only got if you read them.) It had instructions to claim the prize.) It might have been Apple, anybody remember that? I don't think that would happen today because the trick would be blasted on social media and defeat the incentive to read them.
The way we celebrate holidays is much more of a production than it used to be - Christmas, Halloween, Valentine’s Day. Just more excuses to consume c**p en masse.
what does "c**p" means? English isn't my first language and slang isn't my strong suit.
That you need to drink milk in order to get calcium. Calcium is a mineral and can be found in leafy greens and broccoli to name a couple. The whole, “got milk?” campaigns and all that were funded by the dairy industry. Pretty successful propaganda!
Buying a diamond ring when you propose
100% agree. Pointless. Use the money for something important and worthwhile. Down payment on something..or an emergency fund. A year after I was proposed to we sold the ring. He didn't pay for it so we just profited off it. Never regretted it.
Mothers Day. The original intent was to have a holiday to appreciate mothers, corporations ended up making it a big money grab, and then the person who petitioned for mothers day spent the rest of their life trying to get the holiday removed.
I don't want anything shop bought for Mother's Day, I couldn't care less - I live getting handmade cards from my kids, breakfast in bed and having them take over for a day - zero money involved, ideal day for me to sit and relax
An entire nurdle of toothpaste on your brush.
You don't need that much. A pea-sized amount is enough.
COMMERCIALS. they’re everywhere, YouTube, TV, Hulu, Spotify, etc. the only way to get rid of commercials is to, surprise surprise, pay more which is ANOTHER commercial. Just now realizing that commerce is the basis of commercial lol
This could have been the perfect place for this 'I make 123000$/month'-b******t..
Not discussing your income with coworkers. At least in the US, employees are protected, so they are allowed to discuss income amongst each other without fear of getting fired for it. However, a lot of companies have kept the idea that it is taboo or that your job may be at risk for doing so and a lot of people still buy it to this day.
Yes, most people that live in the US know that all states (except Montana) are "at-will" states, meaning that they can fire you for no reason at all, meaning that while technically they won't fire you for discussing pay, some companies will not like it and find any excuse to let you go, so keep that in mind.
Also, some companies will try to stop if right off the bat by having it in your employee handbook that you are not to discuss pay, so make sure you check that out in your case. My company actually has the opposite, stating that they will never go after someone for discussing pay, and they even have it posted in public areas. However, I'm not naive and understand that while it may seem that way, they can just be doing that to protect themselves, so who knows. I've been there for a few years now and we have not heard of anyone getting fired for anything that could be even remotely related to pay discussions.
The point of my comment was to let people know that the idea of discussing your pay with other employees being a "no-no" or taboo is an antiquated idea started by greedy companies decades ago to help keep the average worker from demanding better wages that they rightfully should be getting in the first place, and that legally they can't outright fire you simply for doing that (with exceptions, of course). I myself have no issues letting anyone know how much I make if they ask, and if they use that to get themselves properly compensated, then I'm happy for them at the end of the day.
Apple
Whoever is behind the apple marketing campaign is a genius and flooding the consumers with propaganda. There's no real correlation between how many apples you eat each a day and how often you visit the doctor or get sick
People eating KFC during Christmas time in Japan because of KFC's marketing campaign that promoted their products as a traditional Western Christmas treat.
Merch drops, secret popup locations, limited runs, etc.
These are just marketing tactics to create Artificial Scarcity and hype/demand that wouldn't be there otherwise.
That is just using the business rule of supply and demand...In this instance they have to create a demand and pretend that the supply is low in order to justify the higher costs...
Carrots helping you see in the dark was WW2 propaganda to confuse the Germans.
Carrots contain beta carotene which is metabolized into vitamin A, which is important in proper functioning of the eyes. One of the first signs of Vitamin A deficiency is night blindedness. So I guess it's not that far-fetched, although carrots won't give you night vision :)
“You should pay off debt by getting more debt!”
Note: this post originally had 44 images. It’s been shortened to the top 40 images based on user votes.
Think thees been some confusion/conflation of propaganda and scam.
I am commenting on this post. Thank you in advance for your reading of my comment.
Thanks for the pleasure of reading your comment!
Load More Replies... Shampoo! Consumer care companies pushed the idea that you need to do two washes, and later that you should wash it every day. Actually a disaster for long, curly or dyed hair, but it sells a lot of product.
The money I save on shampoo I end up spending on razors.
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Shampoo and all the other things you need (conditioner, styling products etc) because you f**k your hair up with shampoo.
What do you suggest we wash our hair with? If not shampoo, seriously
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What a crappy boring article, come on show a bit more effort. Usual woke s**t
I disagree with almost all of these. No one is forcing anyone to do most of these things. Stupid article written by broke people.
A lot of these are things society has accepted at a level that individuals can't really choose to avoid them without signing consequences despite them inherently doing more harm than good. I think the list is awfully trite, but I don't think most of these are just things it would be reasonable to expect people to ignore.
Load More Replies... Think thees been some confusion/conflation of propaganda and scam.
I am commenting on this post. Thank you in advance for your reading of my comment.
Thanks for the pleasure of reading your comment!
Load More Replies... Shampoo! Consumer care companies pushed the idea that you need to do two washes, and later that you should wash it every day. Actually a disaster for long, curly or dyed hair, but it sells a lot of product.
The money I save on shampoo I end up spending on razors.
Load More Replies... Shampoo and all the other things you need (conditioner, styling products etc) because you f**k your hair up with shampoo.
What do you suggest we wash our hair with? If not shampoo, seriously
Load More Replies... What a crappy boring article, come on show a bit more effort. Usual woke s**t
I disagree with almost all of these. No one is forcing anyone to do most of these things. Stupid article written by broke people.
A lot of these are things society has accepted at a level that individuals can't really choose to avoid them without signing consequences despite them inherently doing more harm than good. I think the list is awfully trite, but I don't think most of these are just things it would be reasonable to expect people to ignore.
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