The Rape of the eBay Seller: Human Nature Violated

Once upon a time, the Land of eBay was a great nation, a free country, whose citizens enjoyed the benefits of very little government (the best kind). But things changed. Greedy corporate wolves, ever anxious to devour what ever they can, eventually found themselves in charge. They began to gorge on their nation, handing themselves fat salaries, monstrous bonuses, and rollicking in power far beyond their wildest dreams. Certainly, these greedy beasts were ill-equipped to to manage a great nation, let alone guide it into the future. As a result, the once great eBay, was reduced to a very sad state of affairs.

Today, the Beast at the Top (aka John Donahoe), continues to feast upon the soon-to-be carcass. Ebay languishes, alive, but just barely, by any noble standards. It is said that Donahoe's inhuman and brutal treatment of his customers (the Sellers) is only a dim foreshadowing of what the Beast plans for the Simpleton Stockholder. Certainly, his belly may be full, but other ignoble ideas begin to cross his twisted and depraved mind as he observes his Simpleton Shareholders bending over to pick up the proverbial soap.

At this juncture, there's no use asking "if" he's about to screw the Shareholder, historically, he's been doing it right along! But we can still ask "when". When will the Beast ram it all the way Home? Or perhaps more poignantly, will the bastard at least use some Vaseline as he tears them a new one?

SOME GOOD NEWS. A consensus seems to be developing that Dumbahoe has indeed been identified as the (obvious) problem (finally!). Of course, top-level corporate retention plans, and the high cost of paying these sociopaths off, does tend to slow down the process. His days are likely numbered, and a new CEO may be around the corner. Maybe Meg Whitman has told the son-0f-a-bitch that he can be Mr#2 if she's becomes the latest governator of the Socialist Republic of California. "John, you can do SO much more damage as my lap-dog! And it is SO You, too! Plus, since I'm camera-shy, maybe you can do most of the media stuff for me!" Well, in spite of the fact that John Dumbahoe was hand-picked by Meg to run eBay when she left, the piece-of-shit has spared no opportunity to blame any and all problems on HER. Yes, she was no saint, but compared to him, well, there is no comparison, except maybe to Bush Jr., who has earned his place in history as the worst president of the USSA, ever! So no, it may not be realistic to think he will migrate from the corrupt corporate world, into the even more corrupt political one. What may be more likely, he will worm his way over into PayPal, since shareholders there are over-due for a good horse-fucking. And what better guy to do the deed, than the sick poster-child for bestiality and beastliness, John Fucking Donawhore.

Apologies to the gentle reader for the remarks above, and no worries, no more of that will follow. Back to the title. Human Nature. This is the crux of many issues plaguing our society today. From the fascist Right, we have the never-ending appeals to Patriotism (so-called), the appeals to "decency" (what would they know about that?), and the call to the (ig)noble sacrifice of our sons and daughters, in whatever the latest war-for-profit scheme has been sold to the sheeple. From the Left, the never-ending PC drivel, the insulting labeling of everything that fails to conform (Racist! You didn't vote for Obama because...), the stupid calls to their oh-so-noble Global causes (Global Warning anyone? It's an inconvenient TRUTH, whether you like it or not!).

But the Right and the Left have a lot in common. Both enjoy taking advantage of the lower parts of human nature, and have little trouble exploiting the hapless sheeple, who crave mainly bread, and circuses after all. And certainly, neither of them care for the use of reason anymore, both being far too cynical for anything so out-dated anyway. Together, both the Left hand and the Right, are doing their best to herd the Sheeple along, apparently following what might be seen as a coordinated agenda. But where are the Sheeple being herded off to, or in to? What is at the end of the damnable rainbow?

George Orwell's 1984 continues to shed light on the subject. In the book, a nightmarishly distopian world of the future made life utterly miserable. While the people had food to eat, and roofs over their heads, the fact was that the food was hardly eatable, and life was largely unbearable, most especially for those who realized that their world was not how it was "supposed" to be. Perhaps they had even been born into that ugly world, and shouldn't have known anything different, but because human nature does not change, all efforts to exterminate any essential part of it will ultimately fail. And since freedom is so central to healthy human nature, no government, no matter how "all-powerful" it may become, can completely eradicate it. But, all this being said, this fact will not stop the Right and Left from pushing all into some future "utopia", and the reason for this insanity is, again, that same human nature.

Because those who acquire wealth, and power usually are never satisfied, a perpetual dynamic is set in motion that must eventually result in a kind of Law of the Jungle, that continually tends toward the preservation (at a minimum), and expansion of the wealth and power of the most ruthless. Their goal is actually quite simple: To control EVERYTHING.

Today, a small handful of families, with massive multi-generational wealth at their disposal, carry out continuous warfare, primarily against each other, with their ultimate goal of absolute control of all, serving as the impetus. But along the way, many alliances are made, and broken, as they each vie for eventual supremacy. And above and beyond this more or less naturalistic expose, of the forces shaping all our lives, are other explanations that look to a supernatural level, and might even assert there is literally a Devil at the very top, with his own evil agenda, as he manipulates his mostly oblivious minions.

So, that my friends may be cast as something of a Big Picture, with room still left for those given to supernatural scapegoats. As we examine the various things in our own lives, it seems that this should be left in the background, and not forgotten, since it may be exactly what helps us to better understand the many seemingly enigmatic experiences that batter our lives.

And for those of you still waiting for the eBay connection, well here it is finally. Ebay, like many large innovative enterprises that have in recent times emerged, occupies not just an interesting place in today's world, but it is also pregnant with it's own unique power. As such, the predatory forces-that-be, must not only recognize it, but they must also seek to harness it for their own purposes. Far fetched? eBay somehow on the radar of the richest and most powerful? Well, the first step is to realize that such a thing is not just possible, but at this stage, quite likely.

Why is this? Because eBay directly tapped into one of the greatest powers for good (and evil) that the world has ever known. And that power is that of, the entrepreneur. Such power, previously much more diffuse amongst the masses, now had a central place where the many small, even tiny seeds, could begin to grow. Some of these seeds might indeed become mighty oaks! But surely, even such "oaks" could pose no serious threat to the powerful elite, could they? Well, fear may play some part, but that may not be the main reason the elite took an interest in eBay. Perhaps it is something like this: Here was a place that they could gather information on real-world behavior, of people essentially like THEM! Yes, because another way to look at the wealthy and powerful, is to recognize them (or at least their progenitors), as highly successful "entrepreneurs." Sure, their ancestors probably didn't fool around trying to sell widgets to the masses, most of their august families probably had great-grand-fathers who were simply ruthless thugs, or drug pushing royals, or a bit further back, maybe crafty regicides, who only looked like bootlickers, but all along were excellent at misusing any trust foolishly placed in them. Ah yes, these are their forefathers! But now, to have a ready-made "laboratory" that they could play with, while at the same time suppressing a potentially troublesome group (all empowered peoples are troublesome!)? Certainly, this was something they must get their filthy hands into!

And so today, we have a New EBay, a New Amerika, even a whole New World Order! ALL of it is unfolding the way it is, because it makes the most sense for THEIR agenda. But more on that next time!

Comments anyone?

Ebay and the New Economy: Closing Off the Exits

It's 2010, and there's a New World Order breaking out, and it's being ushered in at break-neck speed by the New Economy, or in other words, the Greatest Depression ever. Amidst the turmoil, the jobless, the increasingly hopeless, the broken lives of regular folks, who used to count themselves as "normal" middle-class...is there not still "opportunity" in this great nation of the United States of America?

Ten years ago, the answer would have been a very confident YES! But today, few people feel this way. For the jobless, they can never recall a time when so much rejection has come their way. Perhaps they have experienced unemployment in the past, but for those going on two or more years of a serious job quest, there can be no doubt things have drastically changed. Hope is fading fast, especially for those over the age of 40, or worse, for those who might still hope for half their former salary. And even the humble those who have resigned themselves to minimal wages, they too are still met with utter disappointment.

For those of us who are self-employed, we have had a rough road as well, but many of us can relate to having friends and acquaintances who knew of our previous success, and now wonder if they can get on that same bandwagon. "Hey, you do eBay, right? I've been thinking of doing something like that!" Of course, the only reason they're thinking about it is because of this damn economy, but we must answer something. "Well, things are not the way they used to be!"

Ebay has changed drastically, and mostly for the worse. What made it great has been abandoned, thanks mostly to the tragic blunder of putting a sociopath like John Donahoe in charge of a company that can only really prosper respecting it's entrepreneurial roots. But it's short-sightedness, and self-destructive mania, which will eventually result in company failure, could not have been timed any worse. Because the incredible power of what ebay "was", is desperately needed TODAY.

This Greatest Depression, which has prematurely put out to pasture millions, has destroyed the hopes of the young, ended marriages, and made decent families destitute, would have far less power if there was today a way to "escape", as in days gone by. But things have changed. No, it's not the Old West, it's not the Reagan Era...and it's not that special time only a decade ago where ANY decent entrepreneur could get on to eBay, and write their own ticket. Today, that route of escape has been sealed off, since eBay has become a place for only the very large corporatist sellers (with some casual sellers and former hangers-on for transitional window dressing). No, the recently unemployed single mother today can't really go to eBay and expect much at all. This exit has been sealed off, and just when we needed it most!

Perhaps it is merely a coincidence of timing, but there are those who might wonder if there's more to the story. Surely it's not a "conspiracy"...Pahleese do NOT mention that damnable New World Order! You conspiracy nuts never stop!" Fine. We will believe what we will, as it ever has been. But for those of us who remember what eBay was, what it represented, what it did for the true entrepreneur, it's huge power...we dare not dismiss the possibility that others noticed this too. If eBay continued to be an empowering force for the masses, if it retained the potential to help virtually anyone who had minimal motivation and resources, then this situation might have ot change, if there was a "higher agenda" if you will, by those who had the power to foment exactly what we are experiencing now, the Greatest Depression.

WHY would anyone do anything like this on purpose? Pay attention: Because they can, and because they must break down the entire world, in order to rebuild it again, to their own liking. Fabian Socialism. It's come to eBay. It's alive and well in the USS frigin' A. It's here to stay...or is it? What shall WE do?

I'd enjoy your comments!