10 ms·

It's a free market. Someone has to teach this stuff, why not these guys. If their advice is useful - great, if it's a scam - they'll get sued or go out of busin

It's a free market. Someone has to teach this stuff, why not these guys. If their advice is useful - great, if it's a scam - they'll get sued or go out of business. Maybe we're talking about different people though, but Alex Becker and Jeff Walker, for example, were extremely helpful to me personally. I have nothing to say about the author of the article though, personally I didn't learn much from it. But as long as I can use my own brain and judge advice on it's own merit, I'd rather have a bunch of people trying to teach this stuff than not.

TheOtherHobbes 8y ago
No one is going to sue anyone for selling scammy so-called self-help techniques. Which is a shame, because this stuff is actually another example of something that should be a serious crime - knowingly misleading the public. There's no actual teaching involved. A lot of marketing is manipulative, but when your primary product is manipulation, you're over the ethical line.
- alan_wade 8y ago
  Lol, if you'll make "knowingly misleading the public" a crime you will have to outlaw all of the religions, most of the politicians, celebrities, commercials, news companies, blogs, businesses, people with social media accounts... And "teaching" is in the eye of the beholder isn't it. If I think I've learned something interesting/useful - there's no problem, otherwise I can just return the product I've bought.
  - TeMPOraL 8y ago
    > Lol, if you'll make "knowingly misleading the public" a crime you will have to outlaw all of the religions, most of the politicians, celebrities, commercials Yes please, to all! Particularly advertising, as these days it grew to be a cancer on human society. > news companies, blogs, businesses, people with social media accounts... Those could be run without lying to people. Now I realize that regulating this is impossible (who watches the watchers, and all that) and trying would invite horrible consequences, but I wish we could at least change the social perception of lying to people. At individual level misleading others isn't going to earn you many friends, but when scaled up, it suddenly becomes a respectable occupation. This is one of the weirdest things about humans that I know.
- Regardsyjc 8y ago
  There are a number of lawsuits. This is one. https://www.cnet.com/news/amazon-scam-lawsuit-bowser-washington/ https://www.cnet.com/news/amazon-scam-lawsuit-bowser-washing...

TheOtherHobbes 8y ago

No one is going to sue anyone for selling scammy so-called self-help techniques. Which is a shame, because this stuff is actually another example of something that should be a serious crime - knowingly misleading the public. There's no actual teaching involved. A lot of marketing is manipulative, but when your primary product is manipulation, you're over the ethical line.

alan_wade 8y ago
Lol, if you'll make "knowingly misleading the public" a crime you will have to outlaw all of the religions, most of the politicians, celebrities, commercials, news companies, blogs, businesses, people with social media accounts... And "teaching" is in the eye of the beholder isn't it. If I think I've learned something interesting/useful - there's no problem, otherwise I can just return the product I've bought.
- TeMPOraL 8y ago
  > Lol, if you'll make "knowingly misleading the public" a crime you will have to outlaw all of the religions, most of the politicians, celebrities, commercials Yes please, to all! Particularly advertising, as these days it grew to be a cancer on human society. > news companies, blogs, businesses, people with social media accounts... Those could be run without lying to people. Now I realize that regulating this is impossible (who watches the watchers, and all that) and trying would invite horrible consequences, but I wish we could at least change the social perception of lying to people. At individual level misleading others isn't going to earn you many friends, but when scaled up, it suddenly becomes a respectable occupation. This is one of the weirdest things about humans that I know.
Regardsyjc 8y ago
There are a number of lawsuits. This is one. https://www.cnet.com/news/amazon-scam-lawsuit-bowser-washington/ https://www.cnet.com/news/amazon-scam-lawsuit-bowser-washing...