Pulling our strings, pushing our buttons
~ uniqueness and illusion collide ... now chew on that.
We live in a paradox, don’t we?
We are all snowflakes, so alike from a distance, yet breathtakingly different under a microscope.
But it’s not just me who’s a little different.
It’s all of us.
A lot different.
So why do we keep getting lumped, herded, profiled, sorted, and misjudged ~ first by others and, more often, by ourselves?
Some days, we feel in sync with someone.
Other days, we couldn’t seem further apart if we tried.
Are we really that different?
Or is it just perception, is that slippery lens fogged by mood, media, caffeine, or low blood sugar?
We’re manipulated constantly.
That’s no surprise. It’s the goal of marketers, political strategists, algorithms, and yes, even dentists!
Dentists?
Hold on now, are you serious?
Should we mistrust the motives of the common dental professional?
Yes, especially those dental people … the whole industry, from the tooth pullers to the denturists, to Polident/Polygrip et al and their imitators, the hygienists, the dental plan peddlers, the floss companies, the toothbrush, toothpaste and peanut butter vendors too - and, it goes without saying but I say it anyway, the dentists, orthodontists, periodontists … I’ve bought them all a fender or for their Porsches … it’s a conspiracy.
One minute it’s, “Chew gum for oral health!”
The next?
“Chewing gum causes environmental collapse and social decay.”
Meanwhile, somewhere in a gilded mansion, an oligarch is having his gum pre-chewed by a young scantily clad staff of chewers (a.k.a. toothless curtain climbers) … providing pre-chewed mint Trident, served on a silver tray by a child whose job title is Brand Ambassador.
Is that child abuse?
Is it illegal child labour?
Or benevolence, for letting those little tykes have something tasty to chew?
Absurd.
Real.
Oddly familiar.
Whether you chew, don’t chew, or simply gum your way through today (no shame for toddlers and denture-wearers to unite!) …
It’s all spin.
All story.
All positioning.
We are the same.
We are not.
We are manipulated.
We are not.
And yes, sometimes, we’re doing a little market manipulating ourselves. What would you expect from me on a Friday the 13th?
AND … I admit to being lax in adding bonus content lately.
That changes this weekend, so watch for some added postings tomorrow / Sunday - new postings … the ‘paid-subscriber-only + kind’ and something special that will interest everyone wishing to upgrade … watch for them.
Happy Friday the 13th.
All is well with the world?
Really?
No, but let’s laugh a bit just the same.
We may all be watching different manipulators, but we are manipulated.
P.S. … for some fun, here some other titles I was considering:
Same snowstorm, different flakes.
Are we all that different, or just better spun?
It’s not just gum they’re selling us.
Manipulated? Sure. But stylishly so.
Uniquely you. Mass-produced like the rest of us.
From snowflakes to algorithms, who’s chewing whom?
You’re special. Just like everyone else.
Chew on this: sameness is a scam.
Reality check: perception is for sale.
We are the story. And the spin.