Punishment Part II: Swindling and Greed

Just came back from a marketing preview. And I had to rush to pack things up and do a little house tidying. I will be going to Ipoh throughout this weekend, which is a monthly habit for me. And this week marks the 100th day and the end of mourning for my granny's death end of last year.

My old man just recovered from an eye surgery two weeks ago following a detection of an early stage of cataract, which is common among the elderly. He was fine and resting back at home. My friend from Singapore, Simon is coming up either next weekend or the week after, so I felt that it would be the best time to go.

In the recent few days, I have encountered things where charges imposed on people are much higher, I mean at a very unfair level, where the actual cost is very low? And people don't enjoy the services rendered with a high cost? Yes, I've seen some cases. Yesterday's lunch was a bomb. A bowl of claypot noodles at a shop within my office block cost $8.00 whereas you can get it at $3.50? That's way out of your mind and mine! What do you benefit from the additional $4.50?

Some fat pigs and punks who run this kind of business don't even pause for a moment, give themselves a thought and look at the soulful eyes of their customers. Were you in the customers shoes, would you feel the same? I would. But charging a little high AND giving customers something unexpected and more that attracts their attention is worth the buck that they paid. But if it's high and you give them a lousy service? You lose your customers, and I mean it.

The last two nights I was in the gym, making myself to exercise at least three times a week. The shopping mall where the gym was located will start charging $1 for the first three hours and another $1 for the subsequent hour for weekdays. But on weekends, it's three times the amount. Can you imagine this? Why would they charge this kind of amount? For them it's only two reasons: one, some people park there the whole day paying $3, making other people coming in unfair, two....make more money I think to compensate for the parking lot extension project.

Okay...that's an acceptable excuse but I think 1 Utama's $1 for 6 hours is a bang for the buck. But here's one thing that I felt it's double practice: The gym that I went to did offer members a free personal training session where you will be trained by a personal trainer. After that, they will bring you in front and start TALKING price. I was told by other people that other franchise gyms say Fitness First offer free personal training sessions and a lower rate. They talk about that and said it 's $1080 for 12 sessions.

How I felt was that it was double standards. I appreciated a trainer's intention to help me improve my body shape - he approached me and asked me about my previous self-approach of exercise. I did on my own and lost 9 kilos in 6 months. But the amount that they charge was way out of my reach as I still have about 5 months of membership fees to be paid off. They want to help me but showed their two-sided face by charging this amount?

The hell with it! I told them that I would consider that ONLY if they give $700 for the 14 lessons. I warned them, that if you don't agree to the offer, they lose a potential customer. Look, Fitness First offers a better training approach to help people. But you charge your people memberships consisting of facilities and services that they enjoy a lot and you STILL charge them for personal training?!

I had a slight pay adjustment in January and I felt that it is time to have a credit limit increase for my credit card that I've applied last year. Unfortunately, I was turned down twice, despite showing enough proof that I am entitled to do so? Is it not enough? Are they looking for more than sufficient? They have incurred my displeasure and I have made sure that those credit card guys get a grilling from me, after a credit card situation where they did not bring the card despite being called to come and collect.

Swindlers.

Tales of greedy people attempting to swindle (a bad) other people's money for their own satisfaction beyond what it should be stopped when it is enough is documented in various fiction stories. Michael Moore would be very proud. In Welcome Back Frank, the first maxi-novel of The Punisher by Garth Ennis, a subplot featuring Mr. Payback a copycat vigilante who champions the middle-class people claims that the corporate and rich people swindle other people's fortunes and their blood by organizing mass strikes, purchasing and manufacturing defective equipment and cheating them by refusing to pay the salaries of the workers. He claims that whereas the others suffered, people on the senior management of those companies allegedly to be involved were the swines, the ones who reaped their loot.


If that is not enough, you should read The Punisher: Barracuda. The premise has Frank Castle going to Miami to stop the Wall Street menace known as Dynaco (modeled after Enron) who has a get-rich quick scheme by withholding parts of electricity generation. By doing this, they hope that the company's premium would go up and they reaped the rewards should the next hurricane hits Florida and in the process, leaving many people homeless, poor and dead.


You might want to the fact when the oil prices hit $78 last July, oil barons / companies of the U.S are the ones who would prosper the most while the other nations had to pay more to buy their supplies of crude oil to power their vehicles! See the point?

Now don't tell me I am starting to become a leftist like Oliver Queen! No, this is what I noticed. Being a man in the Third World nation shows that I have the balanced view between two sides. In the end, we are the ones to suffer.

Matt Murdock thinks that those swindlers to be brought to the court for the appropriate justice to be dished out at them, Frank Castle may think otherwise, but Anniyan's measure is more cruel than ever. A punishment known as Kumbhi Bhagam - sinners fried in a pit of boiling fire alive - exists in the Garuda Purana. It is a punishment where people swindle others. In the film, he kills the railway caterer for serving food worth $5 at the price of $25.

I watched Anniyan sometime ago, with subtitles and caught some part of the scene of the second execution. Here's a snippet:

A: Chicken for the 65 for the minister. What is your name?
C: Chockalingam.
A: Chocka 65 for me. Why didn't you serve good food to customers? You served filthy food after taking 25 rupees. You like mint money don't you?
C: Business is for taking profits! Other people do that!
A: Don't you escape under a pretension of a simple mistake.

Were if Anniyan is out there, everyone is virtually finished. He shapes a place similar to hell, and boils sinners alive. Imagine, if there were 5 million sinners, how would he reach his quota? Ha!

Then again, maybe people who do feel this kind of thing might best to work to get rich and get out of the suffering cycle. After all, with plenty of money comes the freedom. Isn't that rich but wise people would feel? Stephen Pierce, Robert Kiyosaki and even Donald Trump would agree. Maybe we should adapt to their approach.