# Things advertised so much it makes you suspicious **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 16, 2011, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085 "2011-11-16T02:53:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/try2b_comprehensive/32/65_2.png) [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/1 "2011-11-16T02:53:20Z")
I find that some things are advertised so much, and seemingly so unnecessarily, that it makes me suspicious. I can think of two examples right off: Gold. I can hardly go a day without seeing a pitch to buy gold. I don’t need any gold. I can’t eat it or really do anything with it, except invest money. And it doesn’t seem to be that great of an investment, adjusted for inflation. But the media is practically screaming to buy it. I’m suspicious. Natural Gas. Geez, every.single.magazine has these full-page ads about how freakin’ great natural gas is. TV and radio too. Is it that people haven’t woken up to what a miracle the stuff is, or is somebody trying to shift the public’s opinion against its own best interests for their personal gain? If you would like to talk some more about my examples (or explain why they aren’t suspicious), feel free. Or provide your own- I’m really curious what people will come up with. ---
**Author:** ![Trepa\_Mayfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/edb3f5/32.png) [@Trepa\_Mayfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trepa_Mayfield)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/2 "2011-11-16T02:56:10Z")
**Geico** ---
**Author:** ![Farmer\_Jane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Farmer\_Jane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Farmer_Jane)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/3 "2011-11-16T02:58:28Z")
Milk? ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/4 "2011-11-16T03:04:14Z")
Car insurance. Is the business really that cut-throat that they need to have 6 commercials an hour on the radio, for three competing companies? Mattresses. There’s always a fucking mattress sale on and you can save “up to 50%” or some equally un-fucking-believable amount. Like, can’t you just price the fuckers right to begin with instead of telling me you have an-fucking-believable sale every week? ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/5 "2011-11-16T03:36:15Z")
So far, all of these with the exception of milk ( I haven’t figured out thier angle yet) are basicly scams. Your suspicions are valid. I will add “booty call dating sites”. Yeah, right. I’ll bet its more sausage than a Jimmy Dean factory. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/6 "2011-11-16T04:01:49Z")
“Financial services” of some kind, the exact nature of which I haven’t been able to discern, to those who have $10,000 or more in credit card debt. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/7 "2011-11-16T04:30:48Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > I will add “booty call dating sites”. Yeah, right. I’ll bet its more sausage than a Jimmy Dean factory. While I haven’t looked at them closely, I always assumed they were just thinly veiled prostitution services. ---
**Author:** ![Sudden\_Kestrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecd19e/32.png) [@Sudden\_Kestrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sudden_Kestrel)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/8 "2011-11-16T04:51:57Z")
> [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](#): > > Natural Gas. Geez, every.single.magazine has these full-page ads about how freakin’ great natural gas is. TV and radio too. Is it that people haven’t woken up to what a miracle the stuff is, or is somebody trying to shift the public’s opinion against its own best interests for their personal gain? Second this one and add in “clean” coal. I suspect these commercials are aimed at influencing public opinion before companies come in and try to mine silica sand, mine coal, or possibly run a controversial pipeline through the middle of Canada/the US, but that’s just a guess on my part. Why are there so dadblamed many ads for yogurt? Is it really that hard to choose between Yoplait and Dannon? Also, if yogurt is so great, why are they always advertising that it tastes like something completely different, like lemon meringue pie? I don’t understand why there are so many insurance ads either. (It’s not just car insurance, but those are the most annoying.) I’ve had the same car and home insurance for over 20 years, so I don’t know that it’s one of those things you change frequently. ---
**Author:** ![jabiru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@jabiru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jabiru)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/9 "2011-11-16T04:57:49Z")
Funeral plans. I’m sick of them but I guess they’re onto something. ---
**Author:** ![SnakesCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4af34b/32.png) [@SnakesCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnakesCatLady)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/10 "2011-11-16T05:16:19Z")
Durg advertisements where the side effects are worse than the problem the drug is intended to treat. And it just makes me roll my eyes when a commercial for a sleeping pill mentions it “may cause drowsiness”. Ya think? ---
**Author:** ![Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/try2b_comprehensive/32/65_2.png) [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 7:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/11 "2011-11-16T07:05:18Z")
> [@Sudden\_Kestrel](#): > > Second this one and add in “clean” coal. I suspect these commercials are aimed at influencing public opinion before companies come in and try to mine silica sand, mine coal, or possibly run a controversial pipeline through the middle of Canada/the US, but that’s just a guess on my part. I notice the ads for clean coal treat it like the technology is ready to go. It’s not, is it? That reminds me. I n_ever_ see ads for nuclear. Has anyone? > [@](#): > > Why are there so dadblamed many ads for yogurt? Is it really that hard to choose between Yoplait and Dannon? Also, if yogurt is so great, why are they always advertising that it tastes like something completely different, like lemon meringue pie? According to Jamie Lee Curtis, yogurt can taste ‘foreign’ in a variety of ways. I don’t think they advertise Jamie Lee Curtis too much though 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![voguevixen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5ac83/32.png) [@voguevixen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voguevixen)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 7:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/12 "2011-11-16T07:43:14Z")
> [@Sudden\_Kestrel](#): > > Why are there so dadblamed many ads for yogurt? Is it really that hard to choose between Yoplait and Dannon? Also, if yogurt is so great, why are they always advertising that it tastes like something completely different, like lemon meringue pie? (language) [http://www.meh.ro/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/meh.ro5150.jpg](http://www.meh.ro/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/meh.ro5150.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![chacoguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 7:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/13 "2011-11-16T07:50:49Z")
I had a friend in Special Forces that claimed that the cooler a given activity looked in recruiting ads, the more it sucked to actually do it. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 7:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/14 "2011-11-16T07:57:47Z")
The MagicJack™! It’s another telephony/VoIP service. ::shrug:: I never really looked into their product, but their smarmy spokesperson and infomercial-style advertising makes my skin crawl. Something’s not right… :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/15 "2011-11-16T14:57:18Z")
I am suspicious that all the phone/phone service ads are intended to lay the groundwork for implanting transmitters and receivers subcutaneously for permanent tracking and indoctrination by the New World Order. Plus the auto insurance ads are meant to drive us insane as a control measure. You can’t prove me wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/16 "2011-11-16T15:02:48Z")
For a while there, AOL. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/17 "2011-11-16T15:07:09Z")
Retirement homes. Let’s face it, they’re all the same. It’s a shitty place to go die. I hate hearing about all the wonderful plans and activities and outings and food and movies and dancing and singing and shopping trips and… I’ve visited these places and you’d be lucky to find a half dozen residents who you can even converse with. The reason you’re in there is because you’re no longer able to do things for yourself. Stop advertizing the fact that you’re running Club Med. ---
**Author:** ![Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/try2b_comprehensive/32/65_2.png) [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/18 "2011-11-16T15:11:41Z")
Years ago I had a job driving seniors around to appointments and what-have-you and believe me, there is a big difference between a good nursing home and a budget nursing home. It’s the difference between brunch+chandeliers and the constant smell of urine under flourescents. ---
**Author:** ![LionelHutz405](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lionelhutz405/32/536_2.png) [@LionelHutz405](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LionelHutz405)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/19 "2011-11-16T15:16:48Z")
> [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](#): > > That reminds me. I n_ever_ see ads for nuclear. Has anyone? Bruce Power advertises a lot during Toronto Blue Jays games, for some reason. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085/20 "2011-11-16T15:25:32Z")
This time of year, medical plans for seniors. Hey, I figured out the best plan for me, and it ain’t you. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-advertised-so-much-it-makes-you-suspicious/603085.md?page=2)