i was working for george moral plumbing co. in portland orgegon and i felt like it was a very cult like orginazation. there was def. a "in" group who were mostly related through marage of life-long friendship, and the "outsiders" whom did most of the work, missed out on alot of the benifits, and were treated as outsides from the inner circle of cult like employees. as well as the leader, the guy who inherited the company had the most obvious behavior of a dictator and had massive egomeniacle problems. he really thought he was a king and all the empolyees were sheep, he actually reffered to us as sheep all the time. I personally heard him more than once say, in one case particular "ill hire and fire as many as these sheep as i need" to another "insider"

i thought this type of corporate culture (gmp is not actualy a corporation) was scary and obviously cult like. i wanted to leave the job for other reasons, and as soon as i found another, i left.


hadnt really thought about it much, then i was talking to a friend who still worked there about e new program they instituted to provide incentive for sales people. heres where it gets creepy and cult-like

the new program is a system of initiation w/ titles like, apprentice prince, and king. The qualification for the levels of initiation is based on extremely high sales rates. and the final initiation includes a knighting ceremony preformed by the pres. of the company himself in lasvegas. all of the initiory levels include a ritual ceremony.

sounds like the same type of ritual systems cults use to entice there members into a new identity of self with the entire group.

scary stuff.

[b:86ca81f428]1--You are powerless.[/b:86ca81f428]

Well, aside from it being a coerced assumption, it's a truth of our existence that we can't affect EVERYTHING in our environment. If we realize this, we can then understand what we CAN affect.


[b:86ca81f428]2--Happiness, self-esteem, worthiness, sex appeal, power and etc. comes from withOUT. So "BUY SOMETHING, DAMMIT; IT'S PATRIOTIC!"[/b:86ca81f428]

This does seem to be a common theme amongst people, more so among those that cannot, or do not, think critically about society or their own thoughts.


[b:86ca81f428]3--Your work is your worth; thus the more you make (and acquire) the more *worth* and *entitlement* you have as a human being.[/b:86ca81f428]

There's a fine balance between humility, charity, and homelessness. Alot of materialistic behavior is an off-shoot of the basic human desires for alpha status. Ultimately these pursuits do not reflect on our impact on the world and generations to follow.


[b:86ca81f428]4--Therefore if someone has less happiness or material possessions than you then they obviously are less deserving.[/b:86ca81f428]

All human beings have similar needs. Since the dawning of life, there have been creatures who are either genetically less able to provide for their self, or stricken with poor opportunity to proliferate. If the idea of deserving you are talking about refers to the attention and respectful treatment by others of the human race, then certainly they should initially be allowed that. IF by deserving you mean having their prayers answered by an all-powerful being, well obviously that is beyond reason and I have no answer.


[b:86ca81f428]5--People who deny the aforementioned "rules" are simply (with a patronizing tone of voice and expression) naive self-deluded kooks and/or trouble makers who simply "just don't get it."[/b:86ca81f428]

I think people have a variety of depth for compassion and understanding. There are people whos joy in life is to volunteer most of their time to a homeless shelter or a crisis center, and there are people who have a desire to open up casino after casino, seduce model after model, try drug after drug, seek the knowledge and behavior to get into heaven, or try to make the world a better place to live for generations to come that they might never even know. If everyone had the exact same purpose in life, we would be no different than single celled organisms. If we all had the exact same respect and understanding of other peoples worth or purpose in life, we might be a fascist species.


[b:86ca81f428] ?6?Therefore we, the elite, are justified in summarily dismissing anything that they think or feel and "take steps" if necessary if they get to be too "inconvenient. [/b:86ca81f428]

In my opinion, justification is subjective to a person's individual awareness, knowledge, and beliefs.
A materialistic person who sees the most importance in material wealth, physical satisfaction, and power over others, will adjust, develop and/or sustain the beliefs that make these pursuits acceptable.
A compassionate person who sees the most importance in sharing and alleviating the suffering of all others, will do the same with their beliefs.

It is my personal hope that the proliferation of mind manipulation for material causes is a wake-up call for everyone to think critically, and teach the importance and methods of critical thinking to others. If that fails, then maybe it will be some sort of natural selection.

It is my personal belief that when I die, my only eternity will be the affects my actions have on the minds and hearts around me. So I've found my truth, and my actions shall follow.

Freud is the most influential religious thinker of the 20th century. Marketing owes everything it knows to the evolving developments in psychology. The same case studies that are being studied by therapists, grad students, and those in the mental health system are being studied by advertising agencies who use this data to better predict the response their advertising will have on a prospective consumer.

This is why people pay 30 dollars for t-shirts with someone else's name on it. Because it replaces the communal desire to be thought of as within the culture's expectations of a such and such of whatever age group and social class.

So now symbols such as names and words, (say ralph lauren) point to social distinctions between people and become representative of characteristics of identity.

The tactics used are semi-subliminal, they are implicative but noticable. Like when the entire world screeches to a halt because one consumer doesn't have a check card and opts to pay in cash. So the psychically we link paying for something in cash to social disharmony. This is not coercion, people can choose not to buy into this type of mentality. Most of these decisions come down to mere pragmatism anyway.

Still the bond between our mental health industry and those in marketing is unseemly to say the least, and it does cause major health problems, such as body dysmorphia, and addictions, because the gratifying that is accompanied by buying something is externally produced.

Quote
"Coldnosesandfluffytails"

Quote
"rrmoderator"
Your post may just have failed approval.

Not a glitch in the system that I am aware of.

Regarding "brainwashing"

See [www.culteducation.com]

Adverstising is different.

See [www.culteducation.com]

Having reviewed this site, clearly mine is not the first non sequitor, highly speculative and/or emotionally charged observation posted here. And somehow, people being creatures far more of emotion than reason, I seriously doubt that it'll be the last...But at least I'm being honest about it.

As for the book, I own it, the full '95 edition as a matter of fact and read it cover to cover. Much like the book "A Tremor in the Blood" it should be required reading for all.

And thanks in advance for no more replies please. I'm not particularly interested if people agree with me or not. I just wanted to get people to consider television advertising in a new light.

And one more non sequitor!

I knew I had one in me!!!

Hey EVERYBODY! Want to do something partiotic!? How about slowing down on the freeways?!?

The typical SUV max's out on fuel efficiency at around 50-60 mph. After that you're simply trading gas for wind resistance.

What'll slower do?

It'll save gas which will lessen the terrorism tax (approx. 50 cents of every gallon) every time you fill up at the pump and ultimately low gas prices by saving more gas.

Next, OBVIOUSLY, it'll save lives, and finally that extra 10 to 15 miles per hour results in a negligible increase in how soon you arrive to your destination.

And finally nobody likes a road %$@*&! on their bumper.

Ciao,

CNFT

Hi Coldnosesfluffytails,

WHAAAAT!!!!??? - I have no idea what you are talking about!

Sorry moderator,
i think i sent you the message instead of "coldnoseandfluffytails" - i haven't quite figure out how to use this messaging system properly.

I had heard that subliminal stimuli could be used in TV commercials and advertising. Repetition can be used as a mind control technique, so I avoid most commercials for this reason, and also since they are a waste of time anyway.

I don't believe there is any validity to the "subliminal" effect of TV commericals, so please enjoy them. Many are (amazingly) funny and more interesting than the television program they are advertising on. I went through the whole "subliminal" craze of the late 70's early 80's and remember it fell to the wayside like the chaff it was.

If I am wrong, corboy and TheAnticult will jump in to correct me, but I think you are more cautious than this calls for. Corporate "Brainwashing" applies more to employees than to customers. Having worked in the corporate world for quite some time I can confirm this. You have little to fear (unless you get your info from Oprah or other less-than-skeptical media).

I'd heard that commercials use control-like techniques like flashing symbols, certain kinds of music, pairing a pleasant scene with a destructive product (like alcohol or cigarettes) and adding a humorous ending so people don't forget the product. I'd also heard that TV itself puts people in a daze to make it easier to put ideas into their minds. I'd rather be cautious and not mind controlled like the cult I escaped than take any chances. Besides, TV is terrible anyway.