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There are plenty of seemingly innocent products and services out there that are just elaborate ways of getting you to part with your money. They might not try to bamboozle you as obviously as some spammers and con artists, but underneath all the glitz and glamor, they’re still scams.
Redditors have been sharing their opinions about what things they consider to secretly be giant scams after redditor MelteyReddit asked them to share their thoughts on this. In a viral thread, these redditors touched on everything from baby products and printer ink cartridges to a variety of questionable ‘health’ products and multilevel marketing companies. You could argue one way or the other for some of these, but that’s half the fun.
Check out what these people think are total scams, meant to get you to hand over your hard-earned cash, and upvote the opinions that you agree with as well. Disagree with any of these opinions? Know of any other things that you think aren’t much better than actual scams? Share your thoughts in the comment section. Meanwhile, be sure to read Bored Panda’s in-depth interview with the author of the thread, MelteyReddit.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
This might be unpopular but here goes.... The Catholic church. Currently worth 30 billion, the Vatican has 8 billion in assets . In 2014, it was discovered they were hiding 1.1 billion off the books. Why aren't these funds going to the poor? In 2019 it was discovered the Vatican was heavily invested in unreported luxury apartments.
Then there's the ugly stuff all this money is financing; Until 2014, the age of consent in Vatican city was 12. Yes. Twelve - the lowest age of consent in the world. It was only changed after the pedophilia scandal took hold. Then there's the wide history of evils brought on by the church; the ivory trade, castration of young boys (castrada), the Spanish Inquisition, Holocaust denial, cutting funding for the poor with LGBQ ties and on and on....
The Catholic church provides a thin veneer of "good" for their followers, but for centuries they've been feeding corruption beneath the surface and continue to do so.
Colin L 4 years ago
Yep, the church could stop harboring pedophiles. The church could have a zero tolerance policy towards sexual predators. Instead, they protect them. They hide funds from the churches victims. That is just one of the injustices that they perpetrate... they fight women's rights, deny gay people equality...
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Ozacoter 4 years ago
Definitely. They spread all kinds of discrimination like sexism, xenophobia, homophobia, racism... anything you want. In my country (spain) most bishops are against refugees (very christian), antivaccines, victim blame rape and pedophilia victims, are against gay rights, support the old dictature... All while making a fortune, commiting crimes and getting tons of public money.
ben woskje 4 years ago
I don't think anyone who is not completely brainwashed realistically thinks any religion does anything even remotely good these days. Some of the cruelest organisations on the planet.
fire bug 4 years ago
I've said it many many times. I am a Christian. The biggest problem with Christianity are Christian people.
Watching 4 years ago
Yeah the amount of people here defending the Catholic Church is astonishing. I mean it's literally a Cabal of sex predators that worked for years hand-in-hand to cover up their pedophilia and actually kept moving these pedos so they could continue to molest more and more children. Defending this makes anyone look really, really bad. There's no overcoming this for the Catholic Church. This is what they are known for and they will be known for for the rest of eternity.
Barbar Stewart 4 years ago
The Catholic church is the worse, then comes evangelism.
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Hugh Willie Mungous 4 years ago
But this is only the tip of the iceberg! Don't forget the Dioceses - who have unreported and independent wealth. And the Parishes who do too. The wealth of the Church is unknown and probably incalculable. However . . . . . you will need to be more circumspect in your criticism because . . . . . no one ever expects the Spanish Inquisition.
Marmen Pass 4 years ago
La inquisición católica, al contrario de lo que opina @Poco común Boston y con él miles de creyentes y no creyentes, pero sobre todo ignorantes, no era española. Fue creada en Francia (donde los reyes católicos no parece que tuvieran nada que decir) por la iglesia católica. De hecho se fundó 300 años antes de que naciera ninguno de los reyes católicos. La inquisición entra en España 150 años antes de que nazcan los reyes católicos. De hecho prácticas similares a las de la inquisición se dieron en la iglesia anglicana por los mismos motivos que la inquisición mal llamada española, pero también contra los católicos.
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Id row 4 years ago
All religion is a scam. It began as a way to explain the stars in the sky and other things they had no answer for, like lightning and earthquakes. Then they realized they could control the masses and increase their wealth and power and kept the ball rolling. You'd think people would have wised up by now, but nope.
Kenny Kulbiski 4 years ago
Any organized religion. Since way back when man was worshipping trees, rocks, the sun, etc there's always been some person who claimed the tree, rock, etc spoke directly to them. And the tree, rock, etc wanted people to give that person some of their stuff.
Brandi VanSteenwyk 4 years ago (edited)
As much as I admire a number of their community-oriented programs (which benefit members and non-members alike), the Mormon/LDS Church falls right in line with these same negatives expressed here. Billions (if not trillions) of tax-free dollars come in monthly via member tithes. Often paid at the expense of the members' health and home needs. Investments in EVERY TYPE OF BUSINESS imaginable bring in sooooo much more. And, although they will deny it, HUGE influences within state and national government that often protect the assets held by the LDS church and prevent others from prospering. Their association with plural & underage marriage, child molestation/rape/abuse and the failure to report to authorities, homophobia and questionable psychological treatments, protecting members at the expense of others (even other members) wellbeing, DENIAL... I could go on. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is A BUSINESS disguised as a church in order to profit tax free and protect their "employees" at all costs.
Giles McArdell 4 years ago
... and then their Churches have the gall to ask us for donations to fix a spire or the windows.
Devil's Advocate 4 years ago
Catholic church are the biggest sinners on the planet, if there's a God, then the Catholic church was set up by Satan.
Ivana 4 years ago
Oh I see, because your the Devil's Advocate, touche sir. You almost got me, but not today Satan!
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Diane Romero 4 years ago
They are a criminal enterprise. My entire extended family was raised catholic,
Catarina Pupillo 4 years ago
They also have a lot of art work stolen from Jews in the basement.
Got Myself 4 Dwarves 4 years ago
Absolute power corrupts absolutely I'm not against people having their beliefs. I'm 100% against organised religion - it's no longer about belief, it's about hoarding money.
Anne Mitchell 4 years ago
I would add ANY form of religion fleeces followers. After a tsunami in Samoa that wiped out all in its path, it was noted by community service clubs who went to help rebuild the schools that the Mormon church, 7th Day Adventist as well as other denominations churches had already been erected but not the schools.
May 4 years ago
I'm sure there are other religions with really horrible pasts as well, but due to being European, I mostly know about the atrocities committed by the Catholic church through the centuries. Can anyone enlighten me on if there are worse ones out there?
Burs 4 years ago
Well look at Afghanistan right now. Or the girls getting genital mutilation in many countries. Or the ones being kicked out to be ill during their period in Nepal. Most religions are extremely violent, sexist and discriminatory and do more damage than good.
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Christy Smith 4 years ago
I was raised Catholic, I'm a raging Atheist now and, minus the fact that I've never bought into magic wizards in the sky or demons down below, this s**t sealed the deal 100x's over. It's humiliating that my family still goes to mass, apparently f*****g little boys isn't a deal breaker for everyone.
David Woollands 4 years ago
Let’s pray to end hunger and war while I hold this gold encrusted cross!!!!
More Thinking Needed 4 years ago
Religion convinced the world that there's an invisible man in the sky who watches everything you do - George Carlin
Amazon QT 4 years ago
And they don’t have to pay any PROPERTY TAX to to govt. Along with churches here in America, not a lick of that 20% people put into the collection plate goes to PROPERTY TAX!!! That’s why there’s so much land that churches sit on… and a lot of times the church will pay for a house where the preacher get yo live FOR FREE!!! Let that em sink in!!!
Patricia the Grey 4 years ago
Even as a grade school kid, I wondered why we had the gold chalices, marble, and fine vestments, and they told us to give money for the poor.
Marmen Pass 4 years ago
He aquí un comentarista @Poco común Boston cuyos comentarios no permiten respuesta. Típico de los defensores de la iglesia, mucho sermón y poca oreja.
Marmen Pass 4 years ago
La iglesia católica, como todas las iglesias cristianas, no son herederas de quien les da su nombre, Cristo, sino de los mercaderes que expulsó del templo y que volvieron con más ganas que nunca de saquear a los creyentes. Las religiones, absolutamente todas, son la estafa más grande de la humanidad, por no decir crimen.
Michigan Guy 4 years ago
they have some of most beautiful ceremonies, structures, music...hrm. i wonder what's under all that stuff shoved out into folks' faces? ah. well. -- that's something we all shud have realized a few hundred years ago, really. liars and their techniques don't really change...
Caia Calabrese 1 year ago
The Spanish inquisition is like the protestant Inquisition but without the British trying to tarnish the Spanish crown reputation. And many things were alike in Catholic and Protestant countries. The age of consent...in the Vatican? There are no kids living there! But yes, the IOR, the Vatican bank, is where the criminals keep the money they stole. The Castro brothers, Maduro, Kirchner, and so many delinquents keep their money there now that Switzerland accounts aren't secret anymore.
Mary Haynes 3 years ago
and all the taught was guilt, guilt and more guilt (8 yrs of Catholic school)
Origami Chik3n 4 years ago
What i have learned over the years is this. The two things, furthest removed from each other, are god and faith on one side with church and religion on the opposite side.
Sloane Christopher 4 years ago
I think you are full of s**t and your text removed because it's total trash
Mary Hurst 4 years ago
The Catholic Church has more money than many small countries. Furthermore, they are often the primary religion in a lot of very poor countries, where for centuries the Priests have said birth control is a sin. Families who live in slums with more children than they can feed.
Myxomatosis 4 years ago
Why does no one care about said corruption? IT IS WHAT RELIGION IS ALLLLL ABOUT! NOT JESUS.
Petra Biedermann 4 years ago
I hope a lot of people reconsider their view of the Catholic Church!!!
Lisa Chambers 4 years ago
I really do not like bashing a religious faith in any way, however the papacy has a lot of explaining to do. The things we know about are undeniably not of God. But the things we do not know about....well this is going to be absolutely stunning when we do find out precisely what they are up to.
Molly Reece 4 years ago
Not to mention the abuse by nuns for decades (mysterious deaths of orphans buried in mass graves etc) ongoing pedophilia, the church’s solution being to merely moving the offending priest to a different diocese.. it’s a disgrace.
Molly Reece 4 years ago
Not to mention the many evils perpetrated by nuns (child abuse, orphans being killed and buried in mass graves) the on going pedophilia that is covered up by simply moving a priest to a different diocese. It’s a disgrace.
Kelly Hartle 4 years ago
It’s not just the Catholic church. Think of all the TV Evangelists with private jets, fancy cars, and multimillion dollar homes who try to guilt little old ladies into donating money to them.
Evripidou Maria 4 years ago
all religion is a scam. Started as man trying to explain nature and ended up as rich popes and archbishops exploiting the poor
catherine todd 4 years ago
I was raised Catholic and I can assure you that everything said here is true, along with money laundering for the Italian Mafia. As if pedophilia wasn't enough. Makes you want to cry.
Shelley DuVal 4 years ago
Good, about time this s**t was shown about the Catholic church. Pretentious bunch of con artists.
Pamela Scott 4 years ago
You had the one Pope who died fairly shortly after becoming Pope. He appointed an investigator to get to the bottom of the Vatican Bank ties to the Mob. The man he appointed was murdered and dumped in a fountain. Very shortly after that the Pope also died.
Harold Houfek 4 years ago
Pope John Paul II, Pope for 33 days ??? Died in his room. No autopsy report, buried immediately. British Journalist took 12 years to do his research on and gives a detailed " who dunnit " ?? The Pope discovered that the Vatican Treasurer, a Cardinal from Chicago, grew up with Lucky Luciano in Chicago. Lucky was funneling his illegal money to the Vatican Treasurer his long time friend and they were hiding it in offshore accounts. I read the book twice. As an 80 year old Catholic I remember many of the man made lies promulgated by the Vatican and down to the local parishes. Limbo for unbaptized babies who died. Suicide, right to hell. Only Catholics will go to heaven, etc. I am waiting for the release of the records from Poland to determine what and if the Catholic church assisted the Nazi's in suppressing the Jews into an 8 square block section in Warsaw. In the 1900's Warsaw was the European capital for abortion. The Catholic church has a rich history and legacy.
Colleen Hindson 4 years ago
The church has been on the dark side since its inception. They invented purgatory, denied women birth control, and convinced people that saying Hail Marys and Our Fathers repeatedly would serve as penance for all the wrong they did and the priest could absolve them of their sins. They ruled through fear and kept the people poor while they got rich. Then they convinced people that this was God's will. Amazing how many millions have fallen for this over the centuries.
Sandra Gould 4 years ago
Catholicism's biggest mistake was celebacy for priests. Thomas More knew. The apostles were married. Orthodox priests were married. Of course, there may still have been pedophiles, but I'll bet less (maybe not, I don't know), but the Jesuits have destroyed the Catholic Church. You'll learn more about the Bible in a protestant-based church. The first half of my life the Bible was only available in Latin. They were afraid they could not control you if you had knowledge of what Jesus and the Saints really said and taught.
Euni Hinojosa 4 years ago
Not big news to me. But like fundamentalists out there, most Catholics won't believe. Just the lapsed ones and the ones without blinders. Aaaaaammmmen.
Klára Buriánková 4 years ago
Catholic church has many problems as well as any other big institution. There are many oportunistic people who will use it only for there own good. But it is not fair to say that there is nothing good about it. There are planty od catholics who are truly helping to the most needed, who are giving up a lot in order to donate, who are in the public services etc. Catholic church did not deny Holocaust, many people died in concentrstion camps for what they believed in, including catholics. You cannot just name everything bad about it and forgot about all those really unsellfish people that are trying there best to make it better. That is just pure populism.
Sam Chilton 4 years ago
I was raised catholic, but I have nothing but contempt for it. I don't agree with religion as a concept, but Catholicism has a lot of blood on its hands.
Michael Violette 4 years ago
Are you telling me the largest and most profitable Nonprofit who doesn't pay taxes in the USA are crooks?!?! Shocking.
Londono Sierra 4 years ago
All religions. They don't let people develope their frontal cortex and makes them reliant on their reptilian brain.
Lemonclouds20 4 years ago
Poverty can't be solved by clicking fingers. Why didn't the three space travelling billionaires cure world poverty, hunger, injustice?
Ellen Turner 4 years ago
My mom questioned why the Virgin Mary was left out of the holy Trinity
Terd Fergison 4 years ago
https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/intelligence-report/2007/12-anti-semitic-radical-traditionalist-catholic-groups
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Daniel Marsh 4 years ago
$8 billion in assets works out to $6 per believer. Six bucks. The U.S. is in debt more hundreds of thousands of dollars per citizen. STRIKE ONE. There are no minors under the jurisdiction of Vatican City, so there was no need to raise the age the age of consent above the medieval norm. STRIKE TWO As for the Inquisition: All those horror shows you were shown as a child were what jurisprudence looked like BEFORE the papacy took control of Inquisitions. The Papal Inquisition practically invented modern jurisprudence: Separation of state (no-one could be convicted by the state for mere "religions crimes"; no-one could be tried or punished for any offense against the Catholic Church unless they confessed to be a Catholic; no-one could be tortured, meaning any "enhanced interrogation" could last no more than 15 minutes and could leave no physical harm. The majority of those killed by the Spanish Inquisition were killed for the crime of molestation. STRIKE THREE
Daniel Marsh 4 years ago
For comparison, Harvard university has assetts of over $50 billion
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Glynn Reid 4 years ago
Can't believe that money and finance hasn't made this list. Money has to be the biggest scam going. It's merely a notional theory and yet we're all enslaved by it. Needs abolished.
Grace and Lucy 4 years ago
The Catholic Church guilting parishioners into dumping money into the baskets passed around every Sunday. Even if you barely have enough to feed yourself. The Catholic Church, male unmarried priests telling women that it is a sin to use birth control. Even if the doctors told her another pregnancy could kill her. The Catholic Church is the smallest and richest state in the world. I learned that fact in Italy.
Ines Olabarria-Smith 4 years ago
I don’t like all the cover ups that they have been doing but also know so many people that works and do so much for many communities around the world. So, saying all the people involved in the Catholic Church are crooked is like saying all (place here whatever religion, organization..) are .
Rena 4 years ago
I am an atheist, but member of this "club". Why? Well. It is my experience with this, and it is very personal. In childhood I had my family, and school (mobbing from early age). The community and its activities (chorus for kids, theatre, gaming) prevented me from not suffering a trauma and helped to become a happy adult as last. Just when I wanted to quit, my parents went old, and again... The community is giving them so much comfort and contacts. Religiin is not my cup of tea, and I'll be never part of some community like this again. But after all, I am thankful that something of this is there.
Jill Bussey 4 years ago
I could have told you this 55 years ago. When I visited Catholic countries as a child, I was disgusted at the open display of wealth inside the churches, compared to the poverty outside them.
Ivana 4 years ago
I will take my Catholics over any Evangelicals any day of the week. 100%. But I have been thinking of switching to orthodox instead. Greeks give out really good bread for communion.
Terd Fergison 4 years ago
First you have to prove they even exist. They haven't come close to meeting their burdens of proof yet. That's an actual hard truth.
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Bob Belcher 4 years ago (edited)
The church does provide a lot of good too. I know this is unpopular opinion and I'm not saying all the predator issues are good. I'm just saying most of us are just regular people trying to help each other. Also, 30B is nothing compared to the major corporations in the world. Hell, there are plenty of individuals with more than 30B. How many of them have food banks, help shelter people during mass catastrophes, provide free school supplies and gifts, take care of the elderly with house calls...etc. Again, I know there are bad people in the church, but there is also a lot of good.
Terd Fergison 4 years ago
That good that the organization does doesn't even come close to washing away all of that bad. Why not join some secular charities and organizations?
Load More Replies... Kickin'Wing 4 years ago
You had a decent argument until holocaust denial. You know Catholics were killed in the holocaust too, right?
Terd Fergison 4 years ago
https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/intelligence-report/2007/12-anti-semitic-radical-traditionalist-catholic-groups
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jk nbt 4 years ago
the last thing Jesus does before the second coming in Rev. 18 is to judge the church... both catholic & protestant... boy, are some of these preachers going to be surprised...
Terd Fergison 4 years ago
Jk, There’s no such thing as the supernatural Jesus. There’s no afterlife and you don’t find out anything after you die. There is only this real world and human actions. We have to try to hold these monsters accountable.
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Candace Alagappan 4 years ago
THANK GOD I'M A SEVENTH DAY ADVENTIST AND NOT A FRIKKIN CATHOLIC
Watching 4 years ago
LOL the Smithsonian didn't allow its leaders to molest little children for decades. Take your false equivalence elsewhere.
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Laura1985 4 years ago
Yeah, Martin Luther was not quite the revolutionary he is made out to be. He never wanted to create such a rift, he was a raging antisemite, and he hated science with a passion. And that's only the tip of the iceberg.
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Watching 4 years ago
In no way does that excuse decades of pedophilia that were covered up by Catholics. The Catholic Church should be abolished.
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Watching 4 years ago
Do you understand how many children's lives have been destroyed because of Catholic priests molesting them? Do you understand how they worked hand-in-hand to protect these predators? There is no understanding sex crimes. They are pedophiles. The Catholic Church should be abolished.....
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#2
Convincing every high school kid they NEED to go to university. In reality skilled Trades or another specialized school would be the best route for a lot of people, and the pay can be very good.
Hugh Willie Mungous 4 years ago
One of the great mistakes of recent Western thinking was the decision to push so many of the young towards higher education (and in to degrees of limited use) and away from apprenticeships. This has resulted in heavily indebted graduates who are of no use to the job market and an extreme skill shortage.
Redditor MelteyReddit’s question got quite a bit of attention on r/AskReddit. Their thread got 20.2k upvotes and 15.4k comments, while the original poster racked up a whopping 55 awards at the time of writing.
“When I first published my question, I didn't think it would get so much attention. I thought to get a few responses here and there but quickly realized my phone exploded with notifications,” the redditor shared with Bored Panda how they reacted to their post going viral.
“The reason why I think [the question] resonated so well is because it's a very open discussion that can be easily argued about,” they pointed out that there’s quite a bit of nuance in the thread and not everything is as black and white as it seems.
#5
Anything that says it will detox your body. That's what your kidneys are for.
#6
US healthcare system. I went to the ER a few weeks ago for an unknown pain in my chest and overall sh***y feeling. Got slapped with a 1500 bill with what turned out to be viral food poisoning. My brother, who is a doctor, said that was normal. Why the f**k is that normal?!
MelteyReddit personally believes that it’s vital to know where your money is going. “I always try to stay up to date with where my money is going. If you are unsure if something is a scam, you can try looking it up on the internet to see how other people feel about it,” they urged people to do their own background research before purchasing something. What’s more, if your gut says that something’s off, chances are that something fishy is actually going on.
In MelteyReddit’s opinion, there are a few things that stand out and scream that something’s secretly just one big giant scam.
“I think the best way to recognize one is by a few factors, [for example,] if they are really pushy about a product that they wanna sell or if the website design/product design looks fake/rushed. Or if they ask an unreasonable amount of money for their product,” they shared their take on how to recognize hidden scams. “An answer posted a lot on my post was the lottery or casinos. Of course, we can't forget those.”
The author of the post added that they’re thrilled and thankful to everyone who engaged with their thread on r/AskReddit. “I want to thank everyone for answering my post, it means a lot to me!”
#7
Funeral services, preying on the grief of loved ones.
I understand that its really for the living to celebrate their lost loved ones, but when I'm done I just want my family to bury my dead ass in the backyard and throw a bash at the house in my honor. Doubt I'll mind considering I'm dead.
#8
That humans are here to just work and die. No way humans evolved so we can work 5 of 7 days of the week, trying to jam fun in on weekends
#9
Emails and messages from corporates and celebrities that "We are in this together" during the pandemic.
For an earlier article, I’d spoken with one of the mods helping run the r/Scams subreddit, a community that helps support the victims of scams and help inform them about the various ways criminals might try to bamboozle them.
One of the mods told Bored Panda that rudimentary research, education, and preparation all make a huge difference when trying to recognize scams for what they are. Nobody is ever 100% foolproof, no matter how insightful and perceptive they might be, but it’s always better to educate ourselves. Internet scams, in particular, can be more difficult to recognize in some cases because you’re no longer dealing face-to-face with a real-life person.
“When you have a real person in front of you, a typical person will feel shame or guilt at the thought of taking advantage of a person. With the internet, you aren't dealing with a person, but a username and avatar. It is much easier to act maliciously when you don't have a real victim directly in front of you," they explained.
#10
Planned obsolescence.
Gandalf the Pink 4 years ago
A bit lacking in elaboration here so: Planned obsolescence is the practice of artificially making a product's lifespan shorter so people will replace it more often. This leads to a massive waste of resources and towering amounts of hardware trash that most often isn't recycled. Poisoning the planet all in the name of profit. If you wonder why phones seem to generally break just in time for a new generation of phones that's why. Nokia bricks was never as profitable as today's iPhones which a lot of people replace semi-anually. Imagine building yourself a house but not making it as sturdy and long lasting as possible. Planned obsolescence is seriously a horrifyingly Earth-destructive strategy. Another good example is light bulbs, which early models could last many years or even decades but today's light bulbs are manufactured to last about a year. Check out "This is why we can't have nice things" by Veritasium on youtube!
#12
The whole baby product industry is based on making parents feel worthless and irresponsible if they don’t shill out for things that will be outgrown or unnecessary in six months.
Lytha 4 years ago
When my son was born, as soon as I went out with him, even for an hour, I literally took EVERYTHING I could need. My bag weighed tons, but I was like "you never know". A few months later, I took a diaper or two, wipes and something to drink. And I had a lot of stress in less. It's difficult because indeed, as young parents, we take a lot of judgment in our teeth. "Ah, didn't you take (insert here the super crappy trendy thing that everyone considers essential)?" "You only took 12 diapers for an hour's outing ??? how are you going to do it?" "Do you use disposable wipes? I thought you were green?" "Is your stroller a second hand? You should have bought the (insert here a trendy stroller that costs a kidney)" ....
“Online scams also use a lot of tricks to pressure buyers; low prices, pushes to buy now!, taking advantage of someone's kindness or naivete (re: advance check fraud, money mules, etc), or advertising one product and sending another (or nothing at all, by using a fake tracking number). Getting a person to make a decision via high-pressure tactics and preventing them from reflecting and making a sound decision is key," the mod from r/Scams told Bored Panda earlier.
"If a deal is too good to be true, it is. If you see a pair of brand new Apple AirPods advertised for $50, you are not getting an authentic product. There are many counterfeit items out there on the market, and you need to verify authenticity before hitting buy," they said.
"Not only to avoid contributing to the counterfeit market, but because these knockoff products do not always go through the same safety standards of the real item; they may not be UL certified, they may use chemicals or ingredients that are not FDA approved and are unsafe for use on or in the human body, or could cause major harm to human life or property."
#13
Any claim that a 'magic' drink will help you burn fat.
No, no drink or no food can burn that -- that is a pure fabrication.
#14
Ink cartridges for your printer are super cheap to manufacture but the retail price is really high
#15
The wedding industry in the U.S.
$20,000 - $30,000 for a single day, stressful-as-hell event. When I learned a photographer alone runs $5000 minimum I almost puked. And a lot of venues didn’t give a s**t about covid and hosted packed weddings, resulting in deaths because “wE gOtTa MaKe MoNeY sOmEhOw” Absolute slime balls.
Now before all the vendors dog pile me, let me be clear, I’m fully aware why you guys charge as much as you do. I also hope you understand why an average person like me looks at the price and says hell no.
And for those that want a conventional wedding: If you can swing it, do whatever you want. My wife and I did a Sandals all-inclusive vaca/wedding/honeymoon, which has its own pros and cons but still a no-brainer due to the cost and convenience.
Lytha 4 years ago
A closed friend had a "dream" wedding, very expensive, very "conventional", very "not her". And when I found out the amounts allocated for this wedding, it hurt me a bit, because if I had such an amount, I could have finished paying off the house ... (spoiler alert, this was 15 years ago and the house is not yet reimbursed: D)
#16
Bottled water, looking at you Nestlé
Hugh Willie Mungous 4 years ago
I've only ever bought bottled water when I was in a jam - whenever I needed water and couldn't get tap water easily. I've never understood why anybody would waste their money on bottled water.
#17
Instagram fitness model meal plans. I cant believe people still pay them a lot of money for cookie cut meal plans and fitness advice. They are literally just pulling s**t off of google, copy paste your name, and make you think its personalized for you. Taking advantage of dumb people who are desperate to lose weight. Its pitiful on both sides.
Suzanne Haigh 4 years ago
I would not call them dumb or pitifull, I would say "Hopefull" or "Desperate"
#18
Any online course promising to teach you how to make money
Chloe *Leah* Pheonix 4 years ago
I basically make 80000-1000000000000 per day>>>>>>>omg so life changing>>>>>>>work online>>>>>>>*insert sketchy link*
#19
Two-party political systems. They seem to be in opposition to each other but in reality take "donations" from the same entities to further their agendas, so the sense of choice is mostly false in reality.
#20
All multi-level marketing companies. They tell you that all you have to do Is get 5 people to sign up and they each get 5 people to sign up, etc. Except these are not mathematical geniuses running these companies. By the time you get about 12 levels deep, you’ve surpassed the entire population of the Earth. It’s a good lesson in exponents.
Kathryn Baylis 4 years ago (edited)
Just look at who falls for them, in huge numbers, and you’ll see why they don’t want the best and brightest. They don’t intend for anybody to do anything but spend money buying stock to sell.
#21
Companies saying their employees are valuable to them and they care about their employees.
#22
Casinos.
All of the casinos in my state are video poker and video slot machines. There are barely any table games left.
No one is happy, no one is having fun. It's just a room full of zombies feeding the machines and losing money. Every person I talk to is convinced that they know the secret formula to win. You cannot win.
It might sound trivial but the old slots were just a spinning reel. These new machines are extremely addictive. The way the lights flash and the sounds go off like: Bing Bing BING. WINNER of 40 cents. The entire thing is a psychology hack to give people the impression that they're winning when they're not.
Sam Kunz 4 years ago
We have a new Casino near where I live. I stopped in because they were offering a free buffet. I walked around and saw one person sit down and start to win hand over fist on a video slot. People crowded around the person. This person made thousands in minutes. Then got up and disappeared into the crowd but I followed and saw this "Winner" sneak into an employee only door. This person was paid to pretend to win.
#23
College tuition. I graduated with a B.S. Information Technology and Computer Science. Working at a job and earning just as much as my coworkers who didn’t go to college and earned certifications. They have zero debt, while I’m $40k in the hole.
beastmachine. 4 years ago
Dude I'll be getting into uni next month and my fees are about $300/yr for a STEM/CS deg that includes tuition and lodging along with food coz it's sponsored by government. For places that aren't sponsored you may have to shell out $4000-5000/yr and that's pretty reasonable
#24
Trying to look good for men by reading women's magazine articles! Throw those magazines away, take good care of yourself, make the best of what you've got and don't be defined by someone else's expectations of what you should be.
#25
Recycling plastics.
Less than 10% of plastic waste is actually recycled.
Hugh Willie Mungous 4 years ago
Why not just ban the use of single use plastics? It is easy - and quite a few countries have taken major steps in this direction. We can (and have in the past) relied on glass bottles, paper bags, paper straws, card burger containers, card ear bud shafts etc. etc.. Profits need not be affected (heaven forbid!) and most/many consumers would tolerate the tiny increase in prices.
#27
Apple cables
ben woskje 4 years ago
The apple eco-system - all of it. Intentionally created to be product specific, always technically behind the current technology standards - creates an obscene amount of waste... all to lock people in.
#28
In the US, doing my own taxes. The government literally has all my info and can do it for me, but their excuse is that "but Americans like doing their own taxes!". No. I especially don't like being forced to pay for a service like TurboTax either.
Gin. No tonic 4 years ago (edited)
In my country taxes are done on a government's website, where most of the info is already inserted and I just have to check it or can add some extra expenses (such as giving back education/housing loan). It takes no more than 15 minutes once a year
#29
Essential Oils being marketed as having these major health benefits/as treatment for illnesses. The only exception being clearing your sinuses. Some essential oils actually do pretty good work in that regard (at least for me personally... mileage will vary I'm sure).
#30
The entire working economy is a scam. You bust your ass for half of your waking hours, at least, then get told that your work is worthless and you don't deserve basic needs... even though your rich owners are making millions in profit off of your "worthless" labor?
#31
The "All natural" market/label. Means nothing.
troufaki13 4 years ago
Gluten free. Most people are not gluten intolerant, it's just a fad they need to follow.
#32
Adobe’s subscription based monopoly
beastmachine. 4 years ago
Dude, just search on Google and you'll find so many alternatives. Maybe try watching Linus Tech Tips video on how they made videos without using any Adobe product
#34
non-GMO food GMOs are safe, we have been unknowingly doing this for thousands of years. Now we just have a more reliable,safe and fast way to do it.
A B C 4 years ago (edited)
This. People need to understand that selective farming, e.g. taking only the seeds of the most productive plants for next year, is selection based on genetic mutations and therefore LITERALLY IS genetic modification, just on a slow term and based on observation rather than design.
#35
Adulthood because kids think it’s great but it’s not
hyperunknown 4 years ago
Adulthood rocks. I'm 43, my other half is 42. 13 years going strong. No kids = no stress, no drama, no school/government/etc hassle, a lot more money, travel when we want, sleep when we want etc. Basically 2 peeps in their 40's still living like we're 18. You get the life you make for yourself by good planning, and not letting the energy stealers, Karens and drama-people in. Again, adulthood is awesome :D
#36
Pretty much anything that says it will enlarge your penis
#37
Herbalife
#40
Eating/drinking raw eggs. The proteins found in eggs only become useful to your body after the structures are changed by applying heat aka cooking them. There's not only no point choking back a raw egg. You're also absorbing less protein from it than if you were to cook it. "Cooked eggs have a bioavailability of around 91% for protein, while protein from raw eggs only is 50% bioavailable (Evenepoel et al., 1998)."
#41
Insurance, health insurance in particular. The whole concept is pay into a pool on the off chance that something happens you can get some kind of reimbursement which sounds fair on the whole, but is so often bogged down with unfair terms and conditions that many get screwed over. This on top of predatory policies and greedy salespeople means a whole lot of people get [screwed] over.
Kari Panda 4 years ago
That depends heavily on the country and honestly, I think it‘s a major reason why universal health care has such a bad reputation in the USA. I was in a bad car accident two years back and had no trouble at all with neither car nor health insurance, which I am very grateful for because I had enough to worry about at that time.
#42
Tiktok. They now have an event where they pay you $40 if you refer a friend. It’s clearly selling your private information, but people ask their friends to be referred like crazy.
#43
Realtors, probably the most overpaid, under qualified profession. The commission based comp is crippling for some sellers, and if you try to sell on your own (FSBO), they will steer all their buyers away from you.
#44
Having a royal family. It’s bonkers in this day and age that a country as grown up as Britain has a monarch that costs us all money, just for privilege of having her. A literal Queen, wearing a crown, who believes that she was sent by God to sit on a gold throne. And we have to sing a song asking for her longevity at football games. The royal family are a scam, cost us too much money and are currently harbouring a nonce to boot.
Gin. No tonic 4 years ago
It's image also brings in a lot of tourists, helps sell loads of souvenirs, and overall adds to the economy. It would be interesting to know not just the cost, but also the value of having a royal family. Also it seems that countries with royal families tend to be more stable during crises.
#45
Paying for college in the United States.
#46
Corporate owned apartment complexes tacking on hundreds of extra dollars in monthly fees on top of rent. Mandatory cable TV packages, parking fees (on a flat surface lot, with no assigned parking), valet trash. All a scam and just a way for them to pocket incremental sales on top of rent.
Jjiinnee 4 years ago
Isn't this only a high-end complex thing, ..for Luxury Apartments and Condos for people who make the top 1% of income? It is in Boston...I know many complexes on the waterfront do, but...who else but a top earner can afford 7k in rent a month, and why would they complain if they could? LOL.
#47
The lottery
#48
NFTs. There will be a market for these in some form, but we are hip-deep in the rowdy, scam-filled early days.
#49
Chiropractors. "The only way I can help is if you come see me 3 times a week for as long as you live."
Valisbourne Spiritforge 4 years ago
I feel so much better after a visit to the chiropractor (once or twice a year) that I fail to understand the scam. I wanted my back to feel better and it does after I leave, service given, service paid for. Where was the scam?
#50
Fifa games
SykesDaMan 4 years ago
I know this post was meant for the video games (I've checked the reddit post) but it could also apply to actual real football (or soccer for US) games.
#51
“We’ll pay the sales tax” ads. It’s not even a 10% discount.
#52
I've heard Susan G Koman only gives 20% of donations to cancer research. The rest goes to administrative costs and advertising.
#53
Home Advisor and Angie’s List. Please stop using them. Each time you search for a contractor you generate a “lead” that then goes to a contractor on the network who gets charged a hefty sum for your “lead”, even if you aren’t really serious at all about the project you are looking up. The contractors have to pay for that lead regardless if you talk to them or not. The prices of these leads range between 50-300 dollars. Here’s where it gets REAL f***y. Both of those companies are owned by the same parent company (IAC) and leads generated on Angie’s list are turned around and sold to multiple other contractors on Home Advisor who also get charged for them even if the job for that lead has already been completed. Every single thing about these services is a titanic scam and I cannot fathom how these organizations are allowed to exist.
Dre Mosley 4 years ago
I just look for local business that have been operating for decades. As soon as someone tells me they or their company are on Angie's List, I tune them out.
#54
Supermarket orchids. They're planted in poor, degrading substrate and need to be repotted asap. But people don't and they die after at most a year, and the cycle continues.
#55
The Graduate record examination (GRE). It predicts only socioeconomic class, not success in graduate school. It’s expensive and stressful, and everyone from psychology to engineering take the same math portion, which COMPLETELY f***s the norms. Luckily, thanks to covid closing testing centres its being waived as a requirement for psych programs, and it may never come back.
beastmachine. 4 years ago
Dude tbh, GRE is such a scam especially mathematics. I kid you not an eighth grader from Asia can easily score full marks in it. It's just so easy and nowhere near judging a person's true capabilities for math specifically
Explore more of these tags
What do you think ?
Carol Emory 4 years ago
Surprised no one said Fashion. People making gaudy ridiculous clothing that couldn't cover a butterflies a$$ and charging $5,000 - $10,000 for the privilege of wearing the label. And how about the awards shows like the Emmy's and Oscar's that are an opportunity for celebs to wear those gaudy dresses and over-priced jewelry and for the film industry to sell more films (future film: "From the Oscar-Winning Director of blah-blah-blah-blah-blah.)
Don't Look 4 years ago
And even during an economic crisis fashion companies make too much money.
Load More Replies... Mike Crow 4 years ago
Most of these have to do with the goal of maximum profit and unfortunately it will get worse because anyone against it are usually called a communist.
sofacushionfort 4 years ago
Maximized profits for corporations, enabled by governments persuaded to de-regulate. The goal is to get as much cash in flow and out of savings. If you keep the roller coaster rolling it may dip but it will never crash. (And if we all clap loudly and endlessly, either Tinkerbell is still alive or Stalin won’t have us shot - I forget which).
Load More Replies... Terd Fergison 4 years ago
The USA military-industrial complex. We just wasted trillions of dollars and thousands of lives in Afghanistan. It's a scam that both parties continually vote for. It's our biggest source of pollution. Pollution exacerbates climate change. And climate change exacerbates conflicts, wars, mass-migrations, and instability.
Sean Harrison 4 years ago
Unfortunately pretty much all of these things are tied to one thing; the profit motive. Until humans get past that motive, nothing will really cha
Benjamin Tang 4 years ago
And is there any way to ever get rid of the profit motive?
Load More Replies...
Erika Jones 4 years ago
I would add: Raw food diets. The human body is uniquely adapted to utilize cooked food, (see our small jaws and teeth compared with other primates) with raw food being only a small part of our intake. Trying to survive on raw foods alone is a poor strategy long-term.
No you didn't 4 years ago (edited)
People "are revealing" scams? Let me reveal that the wording of this headline is a bit much. These reveals aren't quite Pulitzer prize worthy. Not sure BoredPanda needs to be so clickbaity.
David 4 years ago
What is wrong with profit? I never understood people who think making money is a bad thing. All of you have to pay for whatever device you are using, the internet service, the electricity, hell the food that keeps you alive. You couldn't have any of that if YOU didn't make a profit. And if you say it's just the companies etc that make too much. Well, they take on exponentially greater risk, and put out exponentially more capital to make those "obscene" profits, than you do for your paycheck. It's all about scale. To make huge profits, it cost you. To make your minimum wage doesn't take much of anything beside showing up.
Dora But Not Explorer 4 years ago
Human reproduction, unplanned in specific where I live. And social media of course.
Doc Thissen 4 years ago
Another one, (for the US) is A Place For Mom. We made the mistake of trying them for assisted living for an aging parent, they were relentless is their pursuit of us until I finally threatened to call an attorney. I did my own research and found a place that was not only ideal, but wasn't on any of the Place For Mom lists. A Place For Mom is a huge scam.
Whitey Black 4 years ago
Multi-billionaire team owners who threaten to re-locate if most or all of the new stadium, that will replace the old stadium that is perfectly usable & profitable, isn't paid for by anyone but themselves. They'll charge insane prices for personal seat licenses, (huge fees that give you the *right* to buy $200 game tickets) keep all parking, concession, tv income, advertising & stadium naming rights, charge $11 for a domestic beer, pay nothing zero rent & get massive breaks from city, state & federal taxes. Most days, especially for American football, the stadium will sit idle, generating zero dollars.
Ozacoter 4 years ago (edited)
Taxes. I used to be extremely pro taxes because they are supposed to be to sustain the social system, to help people in need, finance schools and healthcare. It is all bullshit. I spent my entire life paying taxes, same as my parents and my partner, but then when I became ill and disabled nobody gives a crap about me. My country (Spain) wont help because I migrated and my new country (Belgium) wont lift a finger because I am foreigner (and not human in their eyes I guess). They even threatened me with deportation solely for asking if I coukd get help (financially but also supprot groups, legal advice etc). My partner pays almost 50% of his salary in taxes all to be told that his disabled girlfriend wont get a cent when I need it. All while forcing me to get a extremely expensive insurance because I cant work. F**k them. I wish I did tax evasion all my life.
Ketan Shah 4 years ago
I thought the EU heaven that includes Spain and Belgium would have protected and helped you.
Load More Replies...
Harry Dougan 4 years ago
Work from home with your Pc or smartphone and gmail to earn $2,000 to $3,000 weekly. Ask how or inbox on WhatsApp +15025091425 for more details.
Carol Emory 4 years ago
Surprised no one said Fashion. People making gaudy ridiculous clothing that couldn't cover a butterflies a$$ and charging $5,000 - $10,000 for the privilege of wearing the label. And how about the awards shows like the Emmy's and Oscar's that are an opportunity for celebs to wear those gaudy dresses and over-priced jewelry and for the film industry to sell more films (future film: "From the Oscar-Winning Director of blah-blah-blah-blah-blah.)
Don't Look 4 years ago
And even during an economic crisis fashion companies make too much money.
Load More Replies... Mike Crow 4 years ago
Most of these have to do with the goal of maximum profit and unfortunately it will get worse because anyone against it are usually called a communist.
sofacushionfort 4 years ago
Maximized profits for corporations, enabled by governments persuaded to de-regulate. The goal is to get as much cash in flow and out of savings. If you keep the roller coaster rolling it may dip but it will never crash. (And if we all clap loudly and endlessly, either Tinkerbell is still alive or Stalin won’t have us shot - I forget which).
Load More Replies... Terd Fergison 4 years ago
The USA military-industrial complex. We just wasted trillions of dollars and thousands of lives in Afghanistan. It's a scam that both parties continually vote for. It's our biggest source of pollution. Pollution exacerbates climate change. And climate change exacerbates conflicts, wars, mass-migrations, and instability.
Sean Harrison 4 years ago
Unfortunately pretty much all of these things are tied to one thing; the profit motive. Until humans get past that motive, nothing will really cha
Benjamin Tang 4 years ago
And is there any way to ever get rid of the profit motive?
Load More Replies... Erika Jones 4 years ago
I would add: Raw food diets. The human body is uniquely adapted to utilize cooked food, (see our small jaws and teeth compared with other primates) with raw food being only a small part of our intake. Trying to survive on raw foods alone is a poor strategy long-term.
No you didn't 4 years ago (edited)
People "are revealing" scams? Let me reveal that the wording of this headline is a bit much. These reveals aren't quite Pulitzer prize worthy. Not sure BoredPanda needs to be so clickbaity.
David 4 years ago
What is wrong with profit? I never understood people who think making money is a bad thing. All of you have to pay for whatever device you are using, the internet service, the electricity, hell the food that keeps you alive. You couldn't have any of that if YOU didn't make a profit. And if you say it's just the companies etc that make too much. Well, they take on exponentially greater risk, and put out exponentially more capital to make those "obscene" profits, than you do for your paycheck. It's all about scale. To make huge profits, it cost you. To make your minimum wage doesn't take much of anything beside showing up.
Dora But Not Explorer 4 years ago
Human reproduction, unplanned in specific where I live. And social media of course.
Doc Thissen 4 years ago
Another one, (for the US) is A Place For Mom. We made the mistake of trying them for assisted living for an aging parent, they were relentless is their pursuit of us until I finally threatened to call an attorney. I did my own research and found a place that was not only ideal, but wasn't on any of the Place For Mom lists. A Place For Mom is a huge scam.
Whitey Black 4 years ago
Multi-billionaire team owners who threaten to re-locate if most or all of the new stadium, that will replace the old stadium that is perfectly usable & profitable, isn't paid for by anyone but themselves. They'll charge insane prices for personal seat licenses, (huge fees that give you the *right* to buy $200 game tickets) keep all parking, concession, tv income, advertising & stadium naming rights, charge $11 for a domestic beer, pay nothing zero rent & get massive breaks from city, state & federal taxes. Most days, especially for American football, the stadium will sit idle, generating zero dollars.
Ozacoter 4 years ago (edited)
Taxes. I used to be extremely pro taxes because they are supposed to be to sustain the social system, to help people in need, finance schools and healthcare. It is all bullshit. I spent my entire life paying taxes, same as my parents and my partner, but then when I became ill and disabled nobody gives a crap about me. My country (Spain) wont help because I migrated and my new country (Belgium) wont lift a finger because I am foreigner (and not human in their eyes I guess). They even threatened me with deportation solely for asking if I coukd get help (financially but also supprot groups, legal advice etc). My partner pays almost 50% of his salary in taxes all to be told that his disabled girlfriend wont get a cent when I need it. All while forcing me to get a extremely expensive insurance because I cant work. F**k them. I wish I did tax evasion all my life.
Ketan Shah 4 years ago
I thought the EU heaven that includes Spain and Belgium would have protected and helped you.
Load More Replies... Harry Dougan 4 years ago
Work from home with your Pc or smartphone and gmail to earn $2,000 to $3,000 weekly. Ask how or inbox on WhatsApp +15025091425 for more details.
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