CONSUMERS BEWARE OF FLEECERS TRICKS OF THE TRADE

July 5, 2009

Dear Members and Visitors,

There are many little deviant and deceptive tricks that manufacturers employ to deceive us into purchasing their products. Some of these deceptions are very subtle, while others not so. It all begins with the packaging… Often colorful and overexaggerated in size to give us the illusion of more product that it actually contains. We refer to these dirty little tricks as “More Fluff Than Stuff” and “Billboard Package Marketing”.

Perhaps these folks have eluded themselves into believing their own deception, thinking we are too ignorant to notice, that we don’t care, or that we have grown accustomed to what they are doing... thus feeling powerless to their thievery and accepting their lust for our hard earned money in resignation. We at www.stopthefleecing.com promise you we will be just as vigilant in exposing these “Wolves in Sheep's Clothing” as they are about their mission to fleece us.

Here are some indicators for you to look out for: Take a moment to look more carefully at that plastic container or can. Turn it upside down… does the bottom have a pronounced indentation? Depending upon the product, this little tactic can rob you and your family of anywhere between half an ounce to several ounces of actual product. This is one of the little “Houdini” tricks of the trade. They can rob you from the bottom all without even changing the overall size of the container!

Another trick in their arsenal is packaging change… don’t be fooled... 9 times out of 10 this is not being done to make you feel warm and fuzzy about the new face on the bottle, can, or container nor its dazzling new color. This is often a tactic to reduce the product content by either changing the size of the bottle or its shape, (such as making the bottle or container taller… yet thinner, possibly even adding a more extended and / or slimmer neck to a bottle for example).

The fleecer may also use this opportunity to add fillers such as air, water, or a cheap filler ingredient to provide the illusion of either more product or a maintenance of the same amount of product. So you see package change is not likely to be for your benefit… it is more than likely a clever smoke screen to take your attention from what they are really doing.

This is also a clever opportunity to raise the price while simultaneously giving you less product for your money. In other words… reducing the product size and giving themselves a raise at the same time… a double raise at that! If we did that to our Grounds Maintenance customers… we would effectively be fired! Why do they get away with this dishonesty… how are they allowed to perpetuate these deceptions… because we let them… because we feel powerless to do anything about it!

We buy their product and effectively swallow our insulted intelligence, and we stuff our sense of right and wrong in the recesses of our subconscious mind… only to be reminded another day the next time we purchase their product. Have we become enablers to these greedy giants? We don’t have to settle for this, at the very least we can expose them for the frauds they really are. And one day they will be called to task for their deviant ways.

PLEASE WON’T YOU JOIN US IN THIS WORTHY CAUSE? Become a Member, Make a Generous Donation, Advertise Your “QUALITY” product or services today and help us work for a better tomorrow. YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

WHAT’S UP WITH THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING FOOD??

July 17, 2009

Dear Members and guests,

Anyone with a pulse and half a brain who purchases food today has likely experienced the sting of being fleeced at the grocery store. Is it simply a survival instinct or an opportunistic ploy on the part of the producer to squeeze us further to derive unfair profits? You bet it is! These tactics became most apparent to me during the first oil embargo that I can recall in my lifetime. I remember the long lines at the gas stations and panic that I and others experienced, it was certainly an instinctive survival mode.

It was during this period in history where I first noticed the “Incredible Shrinking Food”. Not that this manipulative ploy had not to some degree been in place prior to this period mind you, it was simply most evident to me during this period in our lives. It personally infuriated me how a manufacturer of a candy bar for example could get away with shrinking the candy bar while simultaneously increasing the price of such. I DO NOT recall any point in my lifetime where anyone gave me a double raise… can you?

Now that I think back I suppose I found this to be an insult to my intelligence. Not to mention the fact that years later I recognized that certain foods are engineered to addict us to the food itself by way of the carefully selected ingredients. Yes, you read it right! Certain “Unnatural” Engineered Foods Are Intentionally Manufactured In Such A Way To Cause Us To Become Dependent On That Food!

I suppose it is a pretty cozy place for such a food manufacturer to be in when an entire society can become addicted to their engineered food! It certainly is job security when they can play any funny little game they wish involving price, quality, and content… and of course misleading packaging and advertising. When one becomes addicted to food products containing refined sugars and wheat products for example… the manufacturer can just about name their price. Do you believe these statements are off the wall lunacy? Ask anyone who is diabetic or suffering with hypo or hyperglycemia what certain foods have done to their lives. Ask them what it is like when they get shaky and believe they are about to lose their mind or pass out if they don't get that candy bar!

Ask anyone at all with any degree of common sense self awareness, and consciousness why they eat in secret because they DO NOT believe anyone would understand why they eat what they eat… and in what quantity. I personally DO NOT donate my hard earned money to fund diabetes research, cancer research or any other related research. The answers are all around us but we are too blind to see! Want to perform some great research and prove this to yourself? Your body instinctively knows the truth it is right there in the packaging… Packaging that only a loving God can create. We have been hoodwinked into a societal lie… a collective insanity of sorts. I learned some time ago what the true meaning of insanity is. It is “doing the same thing in the same way time after time and expecting a different result”. Research those who live a simple uncomplicated life with minimal unnecessary stress... research those who grow their own food and eat naturally… research those who do not get wrapped up in keeping up with the Joneses nor get hooked on materialism… and the trappings of this society… Research those who live in the mountains where the air is crisp and clean Research those who have an experiential connection with Jesus Christ…. That’s Right… Jesus Christ… and the key word is experiential! Now compare the rate of cancer, diabetes, and any other degenerative disease and bodily decay using just some of the above comparisons and criteria… what do you find?

We live in a Great Country… but we have barely tapped our true potential simply because greed and corruption of mind, body, and spirit has infiltrated our society and has taken a foothold. It doesn’t have to be this way. We need to wake up to the truth and squelch the lie before it is too late.

SAD DAY FOR A “ONCE GREAT” COMPANY...

July 22, 2009

Dear Members and guests,

It is truly a sad day when a company that used to stand tall and earned much respect has declined in the arena of public opinion based on actual customer experience. Our Lawn & Grounds Maintenance business purchased product from this company in the early years and I don’t recall customer service ever being this incompetent.

I clearly recall that when management changed hands the company’s customer service took a severe nose dive. At the time I attributed this poor management to a new team getting acclimated to their environment and trusted that all will fall into place over a reasonable time period. Well it has now been numerous years since the new team took over the reigns. Based on our personal experience and that of numerous others it appears as though the horse has been ridden into the mud and cannot, or is unwilling to pull itself back out.

It appears as though management has got a public relations mess on their hands. A mess that was obviously created due to mismanagement and questionable practices that do not exactly build consumer confidence. It is our opinion that if this is the way in which they choose to conduct business that the respectable thing to do would be to change their name. While it is quite obvious that they have continued to prod along conducting business as usual and making some customers happy. There is quite obviously a growing discontent that no amount of impersonal form letters (clearly designed to pacify and buy time) will resolve.

We can only hope that management at Gurney’s will become enlightened regarding the storm that is now on their doorstep. The time for impersonal form letters is over, personal customer service will need to return. Skilled key personnel will need to be put in place to “specifically” handle problems quickly and as they arise. This is not an irreversible problem but one that requires clear and proactive steps and a resolve for change. As we have stated before… Gurney’s was a great company once and it is up to management to get their heads out of the sand and make the changes necessary to effect an enduring and lasting outcome. Rerouting calls to India is truly an out of touch hands off the pulse approach if ever there was one. This is one of just many complaints brewing against this mismanaged company. We currently would not endorse this company as one who operates in the best interest of the consumer.