Does capitalism have some sort of random price-generating machine at its heart? | OPINION by rgloveroz
I understand, of course, they have to pay someone to come up with all the names. “Desert Sand” doesn’t write itself. Nor does “Nordic Fury”, which I personally always use as a synonym for “white”. And whoever came up with “Hog Bristle” has a right to demand $4 a can, with an extra $1 for the required Eastern Suburbs addendum: “quarter-strength, thanks”. All the same, it would be cheaper to cover the walls with beaten silk.
For those of us with a middling level of self-esteem, this is a problem. We know our hands, which are pliable and elegant, are worth more than 40 cents, but have our doubts about the larger figure. At $44.90, we remember the old L’Oréal commercial and mumble to ourselves: “You know what, I’m just not worth it.
A spare part for my dishwasher, a tiny plastic thingamajig which must cost 20 cents to manufacture, is on offer for $84.61 - the precision of the price designed, presumably, to baffle the consumer into believing it’s a sum that’s been arrived at a method other than: “So, what price do you reckon the mugs will pay?”Most ridiculous of all is bottled water. It’s identical – or worse – than the stuff that comes out the tap, and yet people queue to buy it.
Australians, perhaps, are not so extravagant. We make do with bottled water which may have touched the ground.
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