Everything is a Scam

Everything is a scam, a test of discernment and of will. You need a genie in a bottle, a wing and a prayer, an eight ball, and a lot of luck to get what you paid for.

If you want to make sure everything is legit, then you’ll need to become a part-time detective. Forget what the website says; do a background check and read all the customer reviews.

What happened to quality control? Why is there so much fine print?

Almost nothing is 100% reliable, durable, cotton. Instead, I look at the tag of disclaimers and a list of synthetic additives.

What happened to natural fibers and high quality? Why are there microplastics in everything?

Products and services are not as good as they once were. Even some restaurant food tastes bland and looks gray or unappealing to me. I seem to remember a time when things were of better quality, were satisfying and lasted longer.

Experts say the cause is corporate “shrinkflation,” widespread use of pre-packaged, Sysco-style ingredients, and supply-chain consolidation that forces restaurants to cut costs by prioritizing profit over flavor and visual appeal. But the price isn’t cut. Consequently, my taste buds and my bank account suffer a double dissatisfaction.

The same is true of online platforms. There is even a name for it: enshittification. It describes how platforms gradually degrade their service quality to extract maximum value for shareholders once users and businesses are locked into their ecosystem.

The three-step process is even documented: hook, shift, squeeze. How is this or dynamic pricing legal?

When did our business relationship change? When did I go from a customer to a consumer?

I want to talk to a lawyer. But why do I have to take it to court to get the food, the product, the service, the experience I literally paid for? What happened to a fair exchange?

Why does talking to a customer service representative suddenly feel like I’m in conversation with a guy in a trench coat, who sells wares taped or safety-pinned to it? “You didn’t like that? Let me trade you for, upgrade you to an even better product and three months of free services?”

Why didn’t you start with the better product? Why would you sell me a product you knew would break or fall apart, and that looks nothing like the picture on the website? Why did I pay extra for expedited shipping then?

When did everything become à la carte? Why is there a literal fee for every single thing?

And so many separate tiers for flying in the same plane, where everyone is going to the same destination: first class, business class, premium economy, economy, basic economy? Is this how invested we’ve become in hierarchy?

Where on God’s green earth are the consumer protection laws? Is no one enforcing the rules and regulations anymore?

And why has this experience been normalized? Why can’t I get what I paid for?

Why am I paying more to own nothing? Because everything is a subscription!

I’m shouting now and I can’t calm down because I’m being robbed, fleeced, looted, mugged, plundered, ransacked, burglarized. I would like to report a crime—except it’s not a crime. It’s capitalism.

It’s the way of the world. That’s just “the way the cookie crumbles.”

Where are the honest reviews? What about customer satisfaction? What about actual search results, Google?

Capitalism violates “community guidelines,” but we can’t flag it because it’s good for businesses and their shareholders. The profit-driven model inherently causes societal harms like mass inequality, systemic exploitation, and environmental degradation. Community guidelines like interpersonal respect and safety don’t matter to markets that prioritize competition and capital accumulation.

The debate over regulating these systems is ongoing. Economists and sociologists frequently debate how to balance free markets with regulations that protect public interests.

While the two groups strengthen their arguments on the ethics and impacts of modern economics, capitalism is crushing the impoverished. The wheels of the capitalist machinery keep turning. Because tomorrow is just another day to make money.

Here’s my review: Zero stars. Don’t buy into it. Everything is a scam.