Shopping With Orwell

For those of you who have not read the book 1984, let me tell you straight up—it is scary.  A world where your every move is being watched and recorded, every face is known to the government.  Your every move recorded in a book that could be used against you at any time.  You have no privacy what-so-ever, your life is known to all.

Hey, wait a freaking minute—we live in that world!  It has been expanded to our phones, televisions and even our cars!  Satellites have taken better photos of you than your friends and relatives have, in fact, they have a family album.  You don’t have to write a book about your life story the government already has it, in words and pictures.  If you forget where you went yesterday just give the government a call and they can bring you up to speed.

Where I am going with this?  The next time you go to your favorite shopping facility take a good look around you, chances are every 6 feet there is a camera following your every move.  Whatever you do don’t pick your nose or fix that wedgie in your ass because it will be footage on social media site or shown at the next company Christmas party.  If you try to sneak a look at a smoking-hot woman while your wife is distracted by all the bargains, they will have documented evidence of it.

Recently, while at my favorite corporate behemoth discount store (you know—the one with “everyday cheap prices), I noticed all the cameras watching my every move.  I get the reason for all of this video action, theft in stores is ever-increasing because people are without jobs or working very low pay jobs.  The video of shoplifting or other types of theft are often used as evidence to convict a perp and with the technology today they can clearly see you.  Some of these dingbats look right at the cameras and seal their fate.

Meanwhile, back to my shopping trip.  Have you ever noticed that you can never find a store associate around to ask questions regarding where something is in the store?  In order to find help, you often have to walk around the store until you find someone.  Here is the part that really chokes my chicken, with all of these cameras around doesn’t someone notice that you can’t find something or that you are searching high and low with no luck.  In the past, when store associates were friendly and available, they would notice that you were looking for something based on facial expressions and actions.

I am being watched by the store security folks through these cameras from the moment that I enter their parking to the moment that I check out.  My every movement is being documented like an episode of cops.  These cameras are touted as being high-definition and able to spot a pimple on the ass of a fly, but they can’t see that you are painstakingly looking for something with no success?  At one point in my search for a particular product in the meat department, I literally shrugged my shoulders and put my hands in the air.  Believing that any moment I would hear the store intercom system ask for someone to head to the department that I was in and offer me assistance, I stood there with a puzzled expression.  No luck, no announcement, no one came to offer assistance.

Now, just try putting one item in your pocket as if you going to purloin it while those cameras are watching you and security folks will be on your arse like bees out of an angry hive.  Maybe as they are putting the cuffs on you, you can ask “hey, by the way, do you know where the Braunschweiger is?  It just seems a little aggravating to me that lower pay, work hours and lack of decent treatment has reduced the associates available to help customers.  You would think that stores could have a customer service associate monitor the cameras for shopper confusion or inconvenience since they already have security people watching them.

It is just a never-ending thing with the death of customer service.  Robots, cameras and automated service will soon replace the human experience.  If you have not seen the movie Idiocracy, I highly recommend that you do.

Talk to Ya Later

The Grumpy Old Fart Customer @2019 All Rights Reserved