Drat this working for a living all to heck.

Okay.  I am officially pissed off and am going to rant:

Dear Alexander Keith's beer making company,

Your latest internet ad, which pops up over my log-in for Live Journal so that I have to wait for the simpering maiden to finish signing her name in a saucy manner, merely puts an identifiable barrier between me and the task I want to do - sign into Live Journal.  It may only take three seconds for her to finish and your nasty little pop-up ad to get out of the way, but that is three seconds where I have your company's name associated with annoyance.  There's too many beers in the world - now, the next time I am ready to order a beer in a restaurant, I may not know which beer I want, but I sure as hell know which beer I will NEVER EVER ORDER AGAIN!

Sincerely,
Extremely Pissed Off Live Journal User.

 Lately I've been steamed about the institutionalization of scamming.  I mean: I've just recently made purchases that are a big deal for me, based on how much the cost represents of my after-tax money, and they are suboptimal.  Calling them suboptimal is throwing roses at them.  There is no local place for repairs, and complaints are met with a ho-hum-we've-already-got-your-money-what-have-you-done-for-us-lately attitude.  There is no point blaming the poor functionary who conveys this company attitude; this is not only a whole company attitude, but an entire culture's attitude now that we are pretending that the best human relationships are exemplified by corporate rutting.

I think this is best demonstrated by the office complex I am currently working in.  It is a reinforced concrete structure, probably completed in the early 60's.  These types of structures always have big honkin' pillars everywhere, to hold things up.  Welcome to Carnac.  The ones we have are at least 18 inches in diameter - I couldn't put my arms around them and have my fingers touch.  These are in the middle of the rooms - only to be expected in a big room, but usually artfully made part of a wall in smaller rooms.  Not here.

Every third office has a pillar right in the centre of the room.  No matter where you put the desk, you are going to roll your chair back into the pillar at least once a week.  No matter where you put the table for meeting clients, the pillar is going to occupy the guest of honour position.  I didn't actually notice this at first, since I am using a pillar-less office.  I was surprised to see that one of the lesser status people using what should be a beautiful corner office, wall-to-wall windows on two sides, with a view of oak trees.  Hah.  Big grey pillar stab in the centre of the room.

Now.  You know that the architect who designed this never had to use one of those offices.  And you know that whichever Minster of Education presided over the cutting of the ribbon ceremony never had to use one of those offices.  And you know that whichever President/Dean/Figurehead who shook his hand never had to use one of those offices.  Nor did the contractor who completed the building.  And so, there was never any incentive for the creators to not be so bloody stupid and so ho-hum-we've-already-got-your-money-what-have-you-done-for-us-lately.

Basically I expect to be lied to by everyone who has something they want me to buy.  This includes my present Provincial and Federal Governments who are patting themselves on the back for remantling social programs they took so much joy in dismantling earlier on.  It's no good ranting about elections - we elected the current parties so they must be satisfying the desires of some part of the electorate - hah, in fact: the dominant part.  Are there really that many people who are in the business of over-hyping things they know to be shoddy that they welcome similar rhetoric in their leaders?  Have I perhaps answered my own question?  I have, in fact, just purchased expensive-for-me items from people for whom the same items are so inexpensive and insignificant that  they really do feel contempt for me insisting on complaining about these trivial things.  They sincerely feel I should just suck it up and stop whining and bothering them when they have more important things to do.