A Cinergy health insurance ad pushed me over the edge. It urged
"Get the health insurance you deserve.”
Since when is health insurance something we deserve? Get the Mercedes Benz you deserve! Get the I Phone you deserve! Get the Mediterranean vacation you deserve! What manipulative garbage.
What does “deserve” mean, anyway?
“To be entitled, merit, or be worthy of something.”
Ahh, the entitlement generation. I imagine there have been innumerable ad agency-sponsored focus groups that test word usage to determine which words manipulate human emotion and action best. And they apply these exploitive words liberally, political innuendo intended.
I think I’ve figured out why “deserve” is so effective. It reminds the lazy, ignorant, gullible consumer (or voter) of the word “dessert.” Both “deserve” and “dessert” produce the same visceral emotional urge to consume.
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