Non-Americans Share American Scams
By: Ryan Schocket (BuzzFeed)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Wait a minute...
On Tuesday, Reddit user u/tycooperaowasked people "What is clearly a scam, but Americans have been conditioned to believe that it is 'normal'?"
It led to people sharing things in America that so many Americans think are normal, but really aren't. It's pretty eye-opening! Here's what people said:
Cellphone plans:
"Your cellphone plans. In my country, I pay €20 for unlimited calls, SMS, and data. I work in phone sales, and whenever I speak to an American, they cannot believe how cheap our plans are compared to what they pay." —u/deccytag
Unpaid internships:
"They're literally wage theft." —u/WaYaADisi1
This add-on:
"Charging $1 to add cheese." —u/imnotyourbrahhh
Alexander Spatari / Getty Images
"College is for everyone" mentality:
"The push that 'college is for everyone!' Also, you aren't able to default on your student loans, so banks will give them to anyone. Coincidentally, society started telling people that they should all go to college, no matter their situation, right after passing the bill that made student loans impossible to hide from." —u/jude802
Medical costs:
"Americans thinking that medical procedures are actually that expensive. Fun fact: In a normal country, you don't pay tens of thousands of dollars." —u/punsexual_disaster
Car dealerships:
"Car dealerships. They're literally just middle-man functions that do nothing more than raise the cost of the 'good' and produce taxation for the government on multiple levels of the transactions involved in purchasing a car through the third party." —u/AdultReasoning
Monty Rakusen / Getty Images
Megachurches:
"Megachurches are literal scams. They make a lot of money, saying it's for the church, then they buy 12 mansions." —u/SteelWarrior-
Time off:
"Getting limited days worth of annual leave per year and then being encouraged not to use it." —u/vietcong420
Tipping because of low wages:
"Tipping restaurant servers so the owners of the restaurant don't have to pay them a living wage." —u/Mean_Increase_
Expensive cards:
"Greeting cards cost like $5!" —u/ItsPronouncedTribe
Jamie Grill / Getty Images
Overdraft protection:
"'Overdraft protection,' which actually allows the bank to charge you when you use a debit card, instead of just declining the transaction." —u/rainbowcadillac
Social media ads:
"90% of ads you see in social media. Hair fruit gummies do not help your hair." —u/ThatGirlNo1Knows
The pledge of allegiance:
"The pledge of allegiance was actually an advertisement to sell flags." —u/Gremlin0011
Did they miss any? Let me know in the comments below!
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I definitely agree with the time off. A lot of European countries have a lot more designated time off. Imo it leads to better production and slows burnout.
The last one...an add to sell flags? I never heard that one.
I never heard that one, either.
But are we really getting ripped off on cell phone plans? I bet internet/phone bundles are a scam, too
I have a friend that winters in mexico. verizon wanted some ungodly amount so that he could make calls from there to the US. he went and got a mexican cell phone instead. he pays less than $20 per month for unlimited use here, mexico, and canada. he's had it for 2 years now as his primary number. everybody in the world has cell phones. they aren't coughing up $100 per month for service and $$$ for phones.
In China you pay cash for a phone, and buy minutes. There's no such thing as a "plan". I rarely use a phone so I bought a very simple one, not a smartphone or iPhone, 4 years ago for the equivalent of US$40 and then paid 200 yuan (less than US$30) for so many minutes use I can't even remember how many, and since I rarely use my phone (maybe once a week at most on average) I still have about 1/5th of the time left - i.e. I have a phone used rarely so I haven't paid a cent since my purchase 4 years ago. An American or Canadian on a simple government pension can live in upscale comfort in China - and that's no scam.
As well, "tipping" is unheard of in China.
How about all the hassle you have to go throw to opt out from companies selling your personal information?
don't get me started ...
through
Sheesh....
Or...when you try to "unsubscribe" from something....you still get the frickin' annoying emails
Medical Costs? LOL In Canada there are no medical costs save for voluntary vanity surgery (nose jobs, facelift, etc) and a minimal lab cost for blood/urine test results. Nobody goes bankrupt because they can't afford medical care, even the most expensive. Oh, sorry, you do have to pay a little extra if your want your hospital stay to be in a PRIVATE room, unless you have insurance for that which is not too expensive, or else you are in a two-bed room. Canada also pays for necessary medical care when travelling. I remember that many years ago I had to go to a doctor in Florida because I caught the flu, and the bill was paid by Canada. I actually felt really secure with that doctor, because he had graduated from University of Toronto Medical School.
I was going to get a boob job after my divorce 17 years ago when I realized that's all I really missed of her, but I blew the cash on a lexus and grew some moobs instead. the lexus proved to be more fun to drive and handled better too.
LOL
I would have gotten the Lexus, too. Probably more like a Mercedes SUV, tho
When I broke my ankle 3 years ago (in 2 places), TriCare paid for almost everything. The few out of pocket expenses I had didn't add to much over a hundred dollars. They even paid for plastic surgery on my ankle because it was a wound caused by the break, it was still an elective surgery but they paid for it. Ankle still looks like a shark took a bite out of it
Is TriCare an insurance that you pay premiums on?
We do pay a quarterly premium but it's the insurance Mr Giggles got from his military retirement
I don't buy greeting cards and haven't for many years. I create my own on my computer. I like my greeting cards to be personal, and those I create are well liked by the receivers. In fact, most of the cards I send are kept. Some of those who receive them anxiously open them to see what the new card is about.
It does take some time to create the cards, but, those I make them for are very special to me, and I want them to know how special to me they are, so it is well worth the time and effort to create their cards. And for me it is fun to do, and the surprised and happy look on their face is my reward.
I always use the free greeting card web site 123Greetings to email out cards for any occasion - birthdays, anniversaries, condolences, congratulatory, Christian or Jewish or Chinese or non-denominational holidays - they have everything. You can accompany the cards with relevant music, and there are many choices.
I have seen that webs site, Buzz. And as you say, they have just about everything. It's really quite nice.