[Porsche-O-Phile]

I had an interesting conversation with my wife this morning while getting ready to go to work which got me thinking... One of the potential upsides to the current economic depression (and yes, I think it's a depression) is the encouragement of what I like to call "economic honesty". I'll explain for sake of discussion/comment:

For too long, there have been a number of businesses and business models that have survived solely on what I consider to be "profit padding" - stuff that does not represent a necessary good or service, or even a justifiable good or service for a reasonable person. I'm talking about stuff like the following:

"We need you to bring your car in for service - we'll inspect the fluids and rotate the tires for $250"
[in other words, "we'll have the most unqualified, pimple-faced kid in our shop tell you your windshield washer fluid is low, fumble around trying to rotate your tires (which are probably unidirectional anyway), overtorque your lug nuts and then try to sell you new wiper blades for $100 and a bunch of other service at highly overinflated prices"]

"We offer an extended warranty for your new TV for an additional $500"
[anyone stupid enough to sign up for this deserves to be ripped off, IMHO]

"Can I sign you up for extended credit monitoring? It gives you a free credit report every year and it's only $19.95 a month"
[never mind the fact that you can get a credit report for free once a year by law anyway or by simply applying for a credit line, and many credit companies offer real-time FICO tracking as a free service to their customers]

"How about enrolling in our 'new every two' program - it gives you a new cell phone every two years!"
[and why exactly does one NEED a new cell phone every two years? Plus when you do the math, it's not that great a deal anyway, just a way to keep you roped into THEIR plan instead of considering potentially better ones from competitors]

"Do you want fries with that? How about a cup full of ice with a little bit of sugar water splashed in it for an extra $2?"
[this kind of "upsell" crap really irks the hell out of me and I deliberately avoid places that do it]

"'For your convenience' we require automated recurring billing to a credit card so you don't ever have to think about making a payment!"
[in other words, "for our convenience, we're requiring unrestricted access to your bank account"]

"For only $500 we'll send you a listing of all the foreclosure properties in your area!"
[which you can get as a matter of public record from any courthouse for free]

Crap like this.

It seems to me that these kind of bogus "add-on" things that are largely just nuisances and wastes of time to anyone with half a brain out there, and the individuals/businesses that promulgate them are among the first to get "cut" in a recession or depression. People that ordinarily might casually just stupidly agree to these kinds of things because money doesn't seem to matter so much during prosperous times suddenly realize (shocked) how much they've been spending on stupid, superficial nonsense that is available elsewhere for cheaper (or free), or that they can do themselves, or that they just don't need.

It just seems to me that there are WAY too many of these kinds of industries/companies/situations whereby people try to create something out of nothing. They get away with it because of complacency during good times (and a certain amount of stupidity on the part of the public-at-large) but in a recession, they get slammed. And they should.

And that's my theory anyway - that a depression or downturn will encourage a return to stuff that really matters. Kind of like killing the weeds in the garden - at the end of the day, you have less plant material, but the ones you have are strong, healthy and viable. They matter. They can sustain themselves.

Maybe it's good to have this kind of sleaziness/laziness killed off. The sad part is it's not JUST the sleazy/lazy businesses that get hit and potentially killed...