I am frustrated because with all of the technological advances at our disposal we cannot achieve one simple solitary example of great customer service. I am a Verizon customer, I can get to a Verizon operator relatively painlessly if I dial *66 from my Verizon phone. My Verizon phone is broken, I cannot dial anyone, so I go onto the website where they do NOT publish phone numbers and where they want me to talk with an Avatar who does not answer my question but references miles and miles of data in hopes that I will read for four hours and answer my own question. This is the service I get for thousands of dollars a year and I still don’t own any stock and so will not get any benefit from my investment.
I am frustrated because I am constantly amazed by corporate America’s newest greatest way to rip off the American consumer. I bought new flatware on the internet only to find that they have shaved an inch off of the spoon. Really? What, hands suddenly got shorter, or stainless steel got more expensive? I tried to get a service call from my home Wi-Fi provider only to be led through a two month long battle with workmen who do not talk with each other and a system that ‘qualifies’ you for a home visit. I ended up having to change providers, which cost another $350.00… I work in downtown Tampa and intermittently I must make a deposit into my bank account. The bank that I visit; has 60 foot ceilings, marble floors and at least a dozen people on full time salaries whose job it is to stand around and look official. I can’t believe that anyone speaks of government waste when the private sector, literally burns money for entertainment. I am so disgusted with the American banking system, after actually raping American home-owners; they give themselves lavish parties at resorts close to the equator.
Contrast this with my wish for a modest vacation that lasts for 10 days. We will save for a year, or conversely charge it and pay for a year for a 10 day visit to a resort.
Trust me; I do not need trite advice about being grateful. I am aware that I am one of the luckiest women alive. I totally know that. My kids are alive and healthy; my husband is loving and caring. I have a warm home and I can grocery shop every single week. These are all things that I am grateful for.
Being grateful does not stop me from feeling hurt and angry that greed is creating such inequity in our world. It doesn’t stop me from feeling personally ripped off by corporate America – that nameless, faceless place where all of our money is going.