Some things are so normal in our society that we don’t even think about it, just accept it the way it is. But the minute you start thinking about it, you realize how questionable it is. And that if people wouldn’t have normalized such a thing, we definitely would understand it to be a scam. 

Today, let’s take a look at some money-related things that would be considered scams if society hadn’t normalized them. 

More info: Reddit 

#1

Insurance. You give them money month after month, year after year, and then when it comes time where you need to use it they will try their absolute hardest to give you as little as possible

Image credits: esquegee

#2

Healthcare not including dental and vision

Image credits: JeleeighBa

#3

inflation since covid

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Bored Panda reached out to sociologist Deborah Lupton. Check out her blog! 

We asked her what factors contribute to social acceptance of morally questionable things. She answered that it is all due to social norms and their changeability. “Behaviors once considered normal became socially repugnant and people were expected to adhere to these new norms to be considered socially acceptable. It is often the wealthy and powerful who influence others (for good or for worse).” 

So, we can guess that it’s only a matter of time before we start to question certain financial and social norms of today. And then they will change into something else. 

#4

Subscription services in vehicles. Pay monthly/yearly for heated seats or to unlock performance mode. I don’t get how people support this business practice.

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#5

I have to pay a 3% convenience fee to pay my rent online… I literally have to pay to pay my rent, it’s disgraceful.

Image credits: JiveTurkey2727

#6

Landlords buy up property they don’t need so they can sell it back at an extreme markup as rent to people who actually do need it. With almost any other commodity it would be called scalping, and be regarded as the scam that it is, but with a commodity so material we literally call it “real estate”, we just act like this is how things are supposed to be.

Image credits: Aralith1

We also asked how socially accepted morally questionable things reflect the cultural values and society itself. The sociologist replied that “What is considered socially acceptable and ‘normal’ in any society at any historical period is reflective of broader social issues and expectations, as well as those who are in power as leaders of moral standards at the time.”

She added that in societies where religious values are no longer as strong, it usually takes over. “It means that the wealthy and those who control the reins of power in government are the moral authorities.” And well, talking about wealth really does match our topic today. 

#7

Ink cartridges

Image credits: NorEaster_23

#8

Charging subscription fees to access software on hardware you already own.

“*Our customers pay for our over priced goods, but they appear to still have money. How can we make them buy the product every month without us having to pay to make or ship any new materials*!?”

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#9

Apple.

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#10

buying schoolbooks. publishers know you have literally no choice but to buy it and jack up the price in many cases. And some teachers get a cut on those sales which is insanely scummy but somehow tolerated in many schools.

I’ve had classes where you had to pay 150$ for a book we didn’t even use once during the class, but you literally couldn’t do any of the online evaluations unless you bought it. It’s just a way for some company to make an easy 500-600 dollars or more off the back of students.

Image credits: NxOKAG03

#11

Baby formula. There is NO reason it should cost that much.

Image credits: TheLandofPears

#12

Tipping

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#13

Temu, TikTok, Wish

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#14

Paying the same price for digital games as physical.

Digital should be muuuuuch cheaper.

Image credits: rickytrevorlayhey

#15

Campaign finances

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#16

Hospitals taking additional fees on so you have to constantly ask them to itemize it so they remove the bogus add one

Image credits: Ok-Possession-1120

#17

Extended warranties

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#18

Organized religion

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#19

Overdraft fees. Tax on being broke.

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#20

Capitalism . Working hard for peanuts so the people upstairs can get wealthy.

Image credits: Artistic-Monitor4566

#21

Political Parties.

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#22

Every type of monthly bill going up year-on-year above inflation unless you change providers every year.

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#23

The whole system of Credit scores

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#24

Interest rates in banking, or just banking in general. They literally use your money to lend other people money so they can charge then interest, making them money with your money.

What’s worse is that in times of crisis they can just declare bankruptcy and that’s it, they don’t owe you anything and you’re s**t outta luck, even if they lost literally all your life savings.

Also they force you to get a credit card if you want to apply for a loan, banking is just scams on top of scams.

Image credits: TheatreCunt

#25

The lottery

Almost all other forms of gambling at least give you a reasonable chance of winning something. The lottery is straight up robbing the stupid

Image credits: MrMojoFomo

#26

Very rich people having a “family trust” to evade inheritance tax

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#27

Voting. We don’t pick them they pick us. They draw the lines to better the chances for they’re demographic. Gerrymandering it’s a thing

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#28

The supplement industry

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#29

Light bulbs. Apparently when first invented they lasted too long and so manufacturers had to reduce their longevity to make them commercially viable. Scam.

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#30

>I’ll start: paying for water

You’re not paying for water, per se. You’re paying for *treated* water. Tap water is filtered, purified, and tested. Bottled water is … bottled. Either way, some work has been done to it, and that is the value-added portion of the water which you’re paying for.

You are welcome to go down to the lake and drink out of it for free. Good luck with that, by the way.

Image credits: Bizarre_Protuberance

#31

Pyramid schemes (you’d think by now people would easily recognize them)

There’s some that do actually make you money but you’d have to have a cold heart for it.

I had these 2 high school friends who were a couple. Totally normal people. After high school we kept in touch and would get together often on weekends.

One day though they started sending us these invitations on fb or text to go to some meeting about some new energy drinks or protein idk. We wouldn’t answer as we just didn’t feel right about it.

On Facebook we would see they posted a lot, but I mean dozens of posts a day about joining thir team and how they would be selling a lot and the awards they were given for being top sellers etc.

Turns out that they never sold any drinks. They would just go around recruiting people to sell them while charging them to join the team because they would help them with advertising and with distribution.

They did make money apparently but over getting people to join knowing it was a bs product and it would probably not sell at all. They made money off those people joining. Not sales of the product. But they spent time and effort on that gig.

It went on for a while but like expected, they aren’t doing it anymore. But we don’t talk to them as much because their insisting emails and dms sort of became annoying and we started to ignore them.

Image credits: Affectionate_Fly1413

#32

Things being $19.99 instead of $20

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#33

Democracy in its current form

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#34

Property tax when you supposedly “own” your house

I suppose the house is owned, the land definitely isn’t.

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#35

Wall Street.

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#36

Retirement plans. Wall Street unloads all their s****y bets on pensions leaving the average American as the bag holder.

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#37

Prescription medications – medicine that is literally lifesaving and required for people to live should be affordable for everyone but big pharma does not care.

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