Why do We Pay for Stuff We Shouldn't Be Paying For?

Written by Matendis from the blog DRAMA QUEEN on 02 Nov 2007
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Fellow bloggers...hear me out...Why is it that we are consistently duped into paying for stuff we should not be paying for???I mean day in and day out we part with our hard earned cash and we seem to be happy doing it...Acting like we are rolling in the dough when most of us know that when bra Tito raises those interest rates again we’ll be feeling the pinch like it’s some contagious disease??? Is it, that everyone else has won the lotto and I’m the only one seeing this phenomenon as strange? Or is it deeper than that?

So why is that you my brother and sister are okay with:
- Paying for plastics bags????
I mean really now, I know the government is trying to curb pollution and the negative environmental impact of plastic bags but really now we the consumers have to bear the brunt of it! The government has set a specific amount that should be charged but your friendly corner supermarket can charge whatever else they feel like on top of that government regulated amount and thus make a fortune out of us...Seriously next time you go shopping check out how much a bag costs at Retailer X vs. Y vs. Z....They charge differently...depending on their appetite for mooola....
Ja, I don’t think we should be paying a cent for those bags coz we know most people don’t have cars and buy those bags out of necessity more than anything else...So why r people being punished when already the food prices are out of control??? (Have you had a look at the price of milk lately) anyway my point is if government is going to force this price for plastics bags down our throats then the least they can do is ensure that retailers do not charge 1 cent above the regulated government price! Life is hard enough as it is without having to pay for plastic bags as well!!!
So why is that you my brother and sister are okay with:
- Paying for parking at shopping malls????
Take Sandton city for example....You go there and inevitably part with your money in those lavish (read “over priced”)shops and then when you walk out you are expected to fork out R10 bucks or more in parking fees??? It’s a rip off!!! Hello why don’t these “lavish shops” subsidise this parking? It is their shops that we are there to shop at so why in the world must I pay to come shop at your store? Isn’t my money for the product enough???I know that mall management will argue that your R10 bucks goes to ensuring your car is safe, the loo is clean (and they are often not!!) and that your overall experience at the mall is amicable...Amicable my voet! If I’m an Edgars customer then Edgars needs to make sure that my car is safe, the loo is clean etc, If I’m a Louis Vittone customer then LV BETTER make sure that my car is safe and that the loo smells like roses!!! So my question is why am I as the customer footing that bill???Why is it not added to the retail store’s monthly rental fee??? Or do I have it all wrong? Peeps are rolling in the dough and I’m just left out???
So why is that you my brother and sister are okay with:
- Paying for bottled water????
Now we know our tap water in SA ranks amongst the best in the world so why are we paying for bottled water???? Huh???Now who ever came up with the bottled water scam must be sum rich bugger today!!! Really it’s just bordering on being a bona fide pyramid scheme???
I mean the only time a bottle of water is justified is when you are in the middle of Driebuffelsfontein without a tap in sight..But most other times it baffles me why peeps so willing to pay for something that is their human right...clean water....How do we know that the bottled water really comes from some remote spring /fountain in the mountains???Or that it’s really from Oom Piet’s backyard tap??How do we know???I guess we never will...Yet we are so quick to throw money at those bottles of water?
Come on guys the bottled water industry is a multi million rand industry...We should rather use that cash to feed hungry kids??? Now that makes sense to me...Or have I missed boat completely?
Help a sista out!

This blog is dedicated to Segololo: A blogger amongst bloggers, A champion for consumer rights, A journalisto of note, A truly committed online stalwart and comrade...A beacon of light in the often dark and dingy world of blogging....Halalala Segololo Halala...Viva Segololo Viva! :-)

12 Comments

MADENZA
02 Nov 2007 06:16

I am feeling you, Some of the things we pay for are just not it.

zozozo
02 Nov 2007 07:30

Thank u Matendis for bringing this forwad, everything is f*****ck expensive these days it's not even funny. U know the so called"tax subsidised"products are so expensive., take bread for example a brown loaf is R5 and above(depending on where u live) I won't even tell te price of the red meat, cheese , maas and milk.

In some of the malls u have to pay to use the loo(which is not always clean). bear in mind that most prices have been,rates raised, but they 4got to raise the salaries of those hardworking brothers and sistas.

Toxic
02 Nov 2007 08:10

*applause*!

Can we campaign against charges for making a credit card payment...WTF is that????I'm get interest charges on overdue accounts and i get payment charges for paying???? FNB charges me - i don't know if it's the only bank that does this.

KeleFabulous
03 Nov 2007 02:29

bank charges period! i read somewhere that SA is the only coutnry in the world htat charge bank charges. i mean really! i pay +-200 a month on them alone. nx! they charge u for not having money on your acc...for putting money in your acc (WTF!). it's absolute bullcrap!!!

Toxic
05 Nov 2007 01:49

they charge u for not having money on your acc...for putting money in your acc (WTF!). it's absolute bullcrap!!!

TRUE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

faraimagic
05 Nov 2007 02:00

its craaazy i know..it reminds me of phone calls i got from S.A.R.S..THEY ARE HORRIBLE what is it we are payimg for by the way?

Dimago
05 Nov 2007 02:11

So why is that you my brother and sister are okay with:
- Paying for plastics bags????
You dont have to, you can bring a bag to pack your groceries in....as per government recommendation. I wonder if they are getting the benefit from selling palstic bags as in has the enviromental issue been solved....

So why is that you my brother and sister are okay with:
- Paying for parking at shopping malls????
Unfortunatley this is a necessary evil. With the crime rate in SA, you have to do what's necessary to protect your posessions. Otherwise you can always park in the street, rely on "bo my brada" to look after your car. Hopefully they are not part of a syndicate...

So why is that you my brother and sister are okay with:
- Paying for bottled water????
I only buy it when its sparkling and flavoured...that way its a substitute for coldrink....

Renegade
05 Nov 2007 02:15

Pay no-no's:
SABC Tv licence, esp when u have DSTV.
Bank charges
Cellphone caller identity if u on contract(prepaid ppl dont pay for that mos?)
Administration charges for a flight missed(pls, like there's that much admin)
Service charge at some restuarants, which is separate from the tip.
Admission fee at Bruma lake flea market(or any other flea market)
Tax( i think its too much dat we pay, i think it should be halved)

There's a lot more i'm sure, jst cant think of them rite now

Segololo
05 Nov 2007 03:01

Dimago, Please send me some of your money... I really feel you are too understanding about these issues!

Matendis, thank you my friend!

Plastic bags! On one of Oprah's Julia Robert's intervies the famous actress admitted to returning plastic bags to the stores for a refund of her money! Why don't they change the law to allow us to pay a deposit for the bag and then when you return it you get your money bag- you serve two purposes - recycling the bag and also getting your money back! It is a hassle to carry the bags around, Dimago!

Dimago
05 Nov 2007 03:32

Dimago, Please send me some of your money... I really feel you are too understanding about these issues!

Sego, don't get me wrong, i am with you on these issues, but for every issue there is an alternative, as per my explanations above....

Sdakamiswa
05 Nov 2007 10:27

On Bank charges, as far as I am aware all the BIG FOUR banks (Standard, First Rand, Absa and Nedbank) give you X interest free days on things bought with your credit card, with standard i know it is 55 days. It is stupid to use ur debit card to pay for stuff cause the transaction fee is some crazy percentage of the amount u paid for ur goods and it is charged immediately. U could instead use your credit card to pay for stuff and then transfer the amount before the interest free days lapse. This obviously does not apply if u've maxed the card... this is definitely one way u can use to minise ur charges..... another thing, banks give u an option where u can pay a monthly charge or u pay as u transact, i think each individual needs to study and know their patterns so that they can choose the best option that will suite their needs and minimise the costs..... Banking is a lucrative business and like any other business they will do anything to maximise their profits....

Krazy boss
05 Sep 2009 03:01

The government are puppets to the whites n wil do anyting the whites say for they are still yes baas thats why the stupid *bleep!* utito raises the rates to such a ridiculous height to cripple the honest living south african, banks av becum crooks they harasse u 4ur own money n charge such stupid charges fnb is the number culprit i tink we shud al kip our money unda the bed o sum hole so no fuckerz cn interefere wit it, sabc is a sham broadcaster why shud we pay 4 *bleep!* thats nt even local that broadcaster is simply *bleep!*,all in all the government is tryin to ruin the lives of south african 4 a quick buck 4rm yes baas

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