Apparently, it is not enough to be peddlered to while you’re pumping gas.
No doubt you have experienced this – because it is nigh impossible to not experience it. You pull up to the pump, insert your card to pay for the gas and – almost as soon as you insert the nozzle into the filler neck – the peddlering begins. Loud, obnoxious peddlering urging you to “learn more” about some service or product you’re not interested in (which is why they have to peddle it to you, constantly).
Now the peddlering happens within “your” car.
I use the air fingers quote marks to mock the fact that it obviously isn’t, because if it were there wouldn’t be ay peddling within it, without your having asked to be peddled to. BMW owners recently got peddled ads for the latest Spider Man movie, through the Telescreens in “their” vehicles. Telescreen is a good word to use to accurately describe what the LCD screens that are now unavoidable in new vehicles actually are. A Telescreen is more than just a screen you watch; it is a screen that watches you – and peddles to you, too.
According to a news story about the peddlering of Spider Man, “BMW describes the clip as a festive Spider-Man animation delivered through its Festive App and part of a wider Sony and Marvel tie in, and it insists this does not count as advertising.” Really? Are the peddlers not trying to sell Spider Man? What is the point, if it is not to sell Spider Man? The insolence of the denials about the peddlering is almost as insolent as the peddlering itself.
Spider-Man has officially made his way into your BMW. Check out the special Spider-Man promotional clip available right from your BMW and experience a fun collaboration that brings the excitement of the big screen into the driver’s seat. Take a look next time you’re behind the wheel and see it for yourself.
It gets worse. Back in 2023, BMW executive Stephan Durach “publicly described the cabin and its screens as a private space and said BMW had no plans to sell advertising there, and critics now point to that quote as they watch a third party movie promotion arrive on the Control Display two years later.”
A captive audience is the best audience, you see. It is why they peddle to you for at least half an hour before the movie starts – because they know you’re not going to leave the theater, because you paid to watch the movie. This of course begs a question: If you paid to see a movie, then why is it that you’re peddled-to for half an hour before the movie starts? The answer is self-evident. It is because most people tolerate this. They willing pay $20 to see a movie and then see 30 minutes of peddlering first.
Bluntly, they pay to be peddled-to.
BMW owners have paid a lot more than $20 to be peddled-to. The question now is: Will they abide it? More broadly, will we? This peddlering is just the obvious next step given that vehicles have been peddlering us for several years already. That the peddlering isn’t as literally in-our-faces as Spider Man ads erupting on the Telescreen doesn’t change the fact that these Telescreens have been peddlering us – our “data” – to peddlers (and worse) to uber-peddlers, who use the “data” to enhance their peddlering. As far as the worse, I refer to the insurance mafia, which uses the “data” to skip the peddlering altogether and just forces us to pay more for the “coverage” the government forces us to buy, based on “data” about our driving.
BMW is merely at the cutting-edge of the peddlering. Stellantis is apparently also using its Telescreens to peddle to the captive audience within what aren’t their vehicles anymore than any of us will ever own our homes, as long as we are compelled to pay rent (they call it “property taxes”) to avoid eviction. 
All of this sort of just creeped up on us. I italicize the word because it is just the right word. Creeps are the ones behind this. Worse creeps than peddlers such as Glenn “Relief Factor” Beck and Sean “Hennsler Financial” Hannity because you have to turn on their shows to get peddled-to. What happened was that the car companies saw a new revenue stream – you – and that’s why new vehicles peddle you (your “data”) and now peddle to you, too.
We do have the option to not be peddled to (or peddled, by a car). That option can be exercised by not buying a Telescreen-equipped car or one that is “connected” in any way to the peddlering Hive Mind. The more of us who exercise this option, the sooner the peddlering will end – just the same as “masking” would have ended before the end of 2020 if enough of us had just refused to wear the god-damned things.
. . .
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Thanks for the Lewis Black video, he reflects my worldview exactly! I love the title ‘rantcasts’, definitely going to look them up and add to my daily viewing.
This is what I am not really a “capitalist.” Sure, I am for free enterprise and for economic freedom. But “capitalism” is about squeezing every last shekel out of everything and monetizing every conceivable space, from blaring gas-pump ads to every whore in the country selling videos of her butthole on Jewish-controlled Only Fans.
Like communism, pure capitalism is an ideal and an abstraction. We live in something quite less than that ideal, a corporate-government bastardization of economic freedom controlled by the oligarchy and the coin-shavers.
Fascism rejected both communism and capitalism, and believed that some things should not be bought, sold, and monetized — like the health of the people, the territory and security of the nation, cultural values, and aesthetic beauty.
That is why communism and capitalism teamed up to defeat fascism.
Dear X,
You’re on the right track but boy, oh boy, you’re going in the wrong direction. From a Hegelian perspective, fascism is the synthesis of communism and capitalism. It’s the economic system that modern-day China finally decided on after they tried, and failed, their long experiment with Soviet-style communism under Mao.
Since communism is economically unsustainable (as it doesn’t appeal to the profit motive latent in all humans), it requires an economic motive force — an engine if you will. That engine is capitalism. Fascism is the result of combining State control over the means of production with neo-mercantilism to allow capitalists a certain degree of latitude in their decision-making process, but while also allowing the State to maintain ultimate control.
Like pure communism and pure capitalism, fascism is also undesirable and certainly antithetical to the spirit of personal economic liberty that you claim to value.
Well, I wouldn’t say fascism is a “synthesis” of communism and capitalism, but a rejection of both. Yes, the State retains ultimate control over the means of production and allows a degree of latitude. But isn’t that what we have now under our so-called “free market”? EVERYTHING is ultimately regulated, incentivized, or disincentivized by the government. GM, for example, is basically a de facto adjunct of Fedgov at this point — between sexual harassment laws, affirmative action mandates, CAFE and NHTSA/FMVSS mandates, EV subsidies and outright bailouts.
But Fedgov controls it — and practically every other corporation as well — in the interests of left-wing lobbies, Zionists, defense contractors, and the interests of the big banks on “Wall $htreet.” Not in the interests of the American people. Fedgov doesn’t give a shit if a factory closes and a thousand workers are thrown out of a job that was offshored to China. But it sure does care if the Dow Jones loses 50% of its value. Or if Israel is attacked by ragheads with with HANG GLIDERS.
Oh, and the obligatory Bill Hicks
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9h9wStdPkQY
Good news: There is one way to avoid the gas pump ads.
Bad News: You have to move to New Jersey.
I remember the first time I filled up in New Jersey. Guy comes running out of the store screaming at me to stop! STOP! STOOOOOOOOP!
Apparently I wasn’t qualified to operate the gasoline dispensing device.
Wow now I count my blessings! The local Farm co-op 24 hr pumps via credit card, NO ads, CLEAN so you don’t step out into a diesel spill, window wash stations with actual detergent in the wash mix, new scrub/squeegees, lots of paper towels. Prices within a nickel of the s**thole third worlder owned discount place. Also ethanol free available in 87 and 92 (that’s spendy though).
The Paki owned s**thole near the interstate, yep you’ll save 3 cents a gallon but enjoy the oil/gas/diesel soaked pump islands, several pumps out of order, filthy pump handles, sludge bottom window wash (if it even has any water), busted up squeegees, no paper towels. Not that modern America pays any mind that place is always packed.
The Chevron stations here Central WA have disabled the mute button enjoy that ear blasting ad America!
Ok Ill bite. Why in Gods name do we need to swipe thru commercial fn one on Joe Rogan?
How much goddamn money do ya need bitch?
Hi Rain,
You have just expressed one of my pet peeves. Beck and Hannity (and the rest of those guys) are multi-millionaires whose grandchildren will never have to worry about money. Same as regards Rogan. If I ever got to where they are, I’d be done peddlering. I’d do the work for the sake of doing it, as I do now. I’m just not capable of being a peddler. That’s why I’m sweating the cost of my bills!
Eric, did you see where Diesel hit $7.00 a gallon in California? I shudder at what our heating fuel bills will be this Winter. In the “old days”, one would pay a bit less for underground heating fuel, which did not need the extra additive that above-ground fuel needed. Now, we all get to pay the higher price. Whoopeee! This area topped out at $5.99 a gallon (with the delivery fee) at the end of our Winter. At this point, people will go back to wood stove burning, and tell the borough where to stuff it where the bad air quality days are concerned if prices keep rising. For I see no reason why they will ever go down.
Morning, Shadow!
Yes, I did see it – and I hope there isn’t worse to come. Especially as regards (diesel dependent) food prices. At least with heating oil you can wear a coat. But we all have to eat.
The downside to living in these parts, is that SHTF, only our military bases will get anything (if anything). The rest of us are SOL. It would not take long for TPTB to shut the borders down to Canada, and starve us into submission. Seeing how folks reacted in 2020, racing for the toilet paper, I surmise these same people will really lose it when the food runs out.
The one good thing about not having self serve here in NJ is that we don’t have these screens on pumps.
I carry a pocket knife. I know many people who do. The gas-pump ads inspire me to shove that knife through the speaker. I don’t do it, that would be vandalism. I’m merely inspired to do so.
Thankfully, I also wear earplugs on the road because driving a truck is loud. That helps cut the pain of the ads down somewhat.
I buy plugs by the gallon and wear them constantly unless wearing AT 50 phones or rural. I have zero use for any urban sounds of any kind. My guardian angel is Spiderman.
While watching my beloved Chicago White Sox I noticed there are now ads BETWEEN PITCHES! It is definitely over the top too much. I always press mute on the gas pumps.
“We aren’t killing you, we’re only sticking a knife in you.”
I am sure the knife twisting is for your saaaafety, John. You just do not realize it (ha ha)!
Today’s tip: Most pumps (Veeder-Root maybe? I’m hardly an expert) will allow you to mute the audio by pushing any of the white soft keys surrounding the screen. At least until they decide that doesn’t generate enough revenue and that “feature” is removed with the next firmware update.
The purple haired bitch at walmart had me removed from the store for repeatedly pushing the Primo water machine button to silence the fn ad.
I notice the machines have since been changed so when you push the button the unwanted ads STAY silenced.
That mute feature disabled here in Central WA Chevron stations.