The Customer is a Jerk and a Liar. Lets Reward Them!!

I recognize the face that customers are the life's blood of a company, but thanks to moochers and takers that have become prevalent in our society today, the term "The customer is always right" has been taken way out of hand. Quite frankly, it has been abused to the point that it needs emergency reconstructive surgery.

What am I talking about? Well, go into any chain retail store. They will let you walk all over them, and get whatever you want. All you have to do is say the dreaded magic threat: "I'm gonna call corporate!"

I used to work in the rent to own field. You will never see a more pathetic display of humanity than a large percentage of customers in that field. Some of them would be more than happy to shoot you over a 27 inch TV rather than turn it back in because they can't make the payment. I know this because I was shot at over a 27 inch TV. Others will rent things, and not make the payment, and disappear for 6 weeks, then finally get in touch with the store, and apologize. The merchandise is then picked up, and a week later, they come back and re rent the same item, and the process starts again. They do pay into principal, and eventually, they will pay it off...several years later. But, in that field, there are no customers who are blacklisted. They can walk all over the employees, threaten, and belittle the employees all they want, but corporate will not let a store ban a customer. The person I mentioned who shot at me? After the TV was recovered with a police escort, we were delivering the same TV back to them a week later.

As a rent to own employee, I dreaded the "preferred customer" mailers. They were mailed out to every person in the store's database, yet for some reason, only the worst of the worst came in with them. And, they would always come in with an attitude. "I'm a PREFERRED customer, so I deserve this or that!" And, that is the problem. These pathetic people are rewarded for their poor (and sometimes criminal) behavior, and of course they will keep coming back.

Think that guy learned his lesson?

True story: One customer had a rather nice dinette set, and had been paying on it for several years. As far as the company was concerned, they had gotten all the money they needed out of it, so if the customer decided to steal it, they could charge it off, and no one would lose any sleep over it. In fact, the customer only had maybe 3 more payments on it until they owned it. But, they would disappear like I mentioned before, and the set would have to be picked up, then redelivered. In a year, I picked up and redelivered that set 6 times. So, I got tired of it, and the last time I picked it up, I asked the manager how much value the set had to the store. He checked, and that was when we found out that it was paid for as far as the company was concerned, but the customer had a few payments left to go. I offered the manager the total of the 3 payments for the set, and he sold it to me. This was in 2006, and I still have it to this day. I bought it to be a desk. In fact, I am typing this post on it right now. The customer had to start all over with a different piece. I bet he never missed a payment again!

But this type of behavior getting rewarded by businesses is not limited to retail, or rent to own. There is a pizza chain that has a policy that states "If the customer complains, give them what they want, and something extra." As a result, they are delivering food to low lives who will order a pizza, call up, complain, and get another pizza and wings delivered for free that same day. And, these people never tip the drivers either. The chain thinks it is good customer service, but all it is doing is sending the free food beacon to low lives who find out about it, and tell their friends. Before too long, they are delivering free food to an entire neighborhood on a regular basis.

These people are the lowest scum on the planet. They are the people who do not work, yet eat better than I do because the government has no cap or term limit to the free (taxpayer) money they shovel out to them. And, it gets worse as the time goes by. Today, its a pizza. Next thing you know, they are stealing from stores, and threatening the store's employees for trying to stop them. And, corporate will actually reprimand the employees for trying to prevent theft. Trading customer service for emboldened thieves. Also, these people would gladly cost a hard working employee their job in order to get something that costs 5 bucks for free! Don't you see a problem with that?

The problem is not going to get better. In fact, its going to get worse. I could not work in a retail store. I would likely wind up getting fired for beating the crap out of someone who threatened me. And, they will come over the counter and threaten violence if they don't get their way!

Basically, the customer is NOT always right, and if a company wants good employees, they need to start standing up for THEM, and not the leeches who would just as soon stab someone over a pair of shoes or shoot at someone over a 27 inch TV.

 If I had a business of my own, I would have a blacklist. And, all it would take would be banning just a couple people, and the word would be out that my business is not one that can be walked all over. As a result, my cost goes down because I wouldn't be paying for these jerks to rob me, AND the good employees would find their way to my store.

And, you'd better believe that sign to the left here would be hanging in my store's front window!

Its just common sense. Although, fewer and fewer people seem to be born with it these days.

Quitting Smoking SUCKS...A Smoker's Story

Ok, let me first let you know that I am a 25 year smoker who is on day 3 without a cigarette. I admit, I'm pretty antsy right now, but its all good. Hopefully, this will translate into a better blog post because I AM THERE right now, and I want to rip someone's head off! But, I must admit, I am cheating. I'm using Ecigs. I'll tell you the brand later, but first before people call me a fraud because I'm using Ecigs, let me tell you this...Ecigs give you the same amount of nicotine as the patch or nicotine gum. And, if you've ever been around someone on either of those products, you know they don't work very well. The main reason is because they do not deposit the nicotine where you need it...Your lungs! I've tried nicotine gum and the patch. They did not work at all because while I could feel that there was nicotine in my system, I was still burning for it in my lungs.

But before we get into Ecigs, I am going to go on a rant about non smokers, and how they treat smokers. Smokers have been reduced in stature to below that of a Muslim terrorist. Case in point: I was at an Atlanta Falcons football game back in 2005. The Falcons have a smoking section outside the stadium, but that isn't what I am talking about. After the game was over, I got outside the stadium. This game was in October, and in Atlanta, its still pretty warm. I came out, and lit up a smoke. Instantly, there were people around me fake coughing. I ignored them, but the person I did not ignore was wearing a turban, a multi layered winter coat, and had a full beard, and was standing alone. NO ONE other than me noticed this guy. I got the hell out of there, and as I went, I heard people yelling at me, saying that I was damn right for getting my filthy smoking ass out of there.

I am glad this guy was not a terrorist, but can you imagine if he had been, and blew himself up? All those people who were judging me about being a smoker, and cheering when I rushed out of there would have been dead. My point about all of this is that there are MUCH worse people out there than smokers.

Need I remind you that smoking is LEGAL in this country? However, crossing the border without a passport is illegal, and most of these politicians who want to gouge the smokers with taxes as punishment for smoking seem to have no problem when it comes to illegal aliens...or should I say future Democrats BREAKING the law to come into the country. They have no problem wiping their ass with the constitution if it means more votes for them.

That brings me to the biggest hypocrite of them all...President Barack Hussein Obama. In the campaign for his first election, he swore that he would not raise taxes on the middle class or poor people. THE FIRST THING HE DID while in office was to sign a bill that doubled the price of cigarettes. And, HE IS A SMOKER!!! (or he was when he was elected, and signed that bill. Not sure if he quit smoking or not.)

That was a tax increase, you asshole!

Not to mention the fact that smokers have to stand outside, and listen to snide remarks from the enlightened nonsmokers as they walk by. One time, I lost it. I was in a designated smoking area outside a mall that I worked in. A man and a 10 year old girl walked by. There was a no smoking sign on the entrance to the mall. The girl fake coughed, and asked her dad what the sign said. The dad laughed, and said that "that guy must not know how to read." I flipped, and said that I was sitting in a designated smoking area, and that I didn't appreciate them talking about me like that. The father gave me his wounded liberal response, asking me how dare I talk to him like that. I asked him "Oh, what? You're offended? I'm in a designated smoking area, and YOU and your daughter are the aggressors here." He just mumbled something and went inside.

That is what smokers have to put up with. Its ridiculous. Do you non smokers realize how much YOUR taxes would increase if tobacco was suddenly declared illegal, and the government lost all that tax revenue from smokers? You spiteful, hateful, holier than thou nonsmokers should be thanking smokers for voluntarily paying that extra tax!

While I want to become a nonsmoker, I will never look at a smoker as a second class citizen, which is what many who have never smoked do. 

Quitting smoking is VERY hard to do. I made it a week once. And after a week, you have done it. You're home free, but some friends asked me if I wanted to go to a bar. I agreed, drank a beer, and another one...OOPS! 

So, here I am, quitting smoking. I have been getting some warning signs like pain while breathing. That was enough. I'm done. But, I'm smoking Ecigs, and they are helping. 

Most people don't realize that smokers are addicted to many other things than just nicotine. There are many other chemicals in cigarettes that are addictive. Believe it or not, you are also addicted to the SMOKE itself.

So, let's go to my current situation. As I mentioned, nicotine gum and the patch don't work. You will still crave the feeling in your lungs. Enter Ecigs. Its just water vapor with nicotine. My theory is simple. Use Ecigs until you've broken the addiction to all the other crap in cigarettes. Once you've done that, back off of the Ecigs until you're free! Its just like the directions on nicotine gum or the patch. Except like I said, with Ecigs, you are getting the nicotine where you need it. 

I'm using Mistic. 

They taste the best, and have the strongest nicotine available that I've seen, at 2.4%. nicotine. I'm drinking tonight as I write this, on day 3 without a cigarette, and I'm doing just fine. Want to quit smoking? Find an Ecig that works for you. Use it for a couple weeks to get rid of all the other crap in your body from cigarettes. Then, back off the Ecig. All the brands have different levels of nicotine to step down to.

Wish me good luck, and I wish you good luck too!

 

EDIT, a year later, I picked the habit up again, and haven't been able to stop. Ecigs didn't work this time. Dammit. I suck.