The idea of "personal responsibility" and willpower

[Amy SF]

I saw this article on Buzzfeed Group Rails Against Candy At Bed Bath & Beyond Checkouts and read a whole bunch of comments. Not one comment that I read was sympathetic to the idea of removing the candy from the checkouts. Instead everyone was hostile to the idea and suggested that customers simply show control and willpower and take "personal responsibility", as if saying it was as easy as doing it. I didn't post a comment, but in my view, if it was that easy for everyone to exercise personal control around something like candy, there would be no need for Overeaters Anonymous or Jenny Craig. Besides, some customers shop at these stores with their kids, and it can be difficult to ignore a kid's pleas for candy.

What do you think? Is "personal responsibility" just another way of saying "I got mine, I don't care about you"? Do you think Bed, Bath and Beyond should remove or reduce their candy displays or are the commenters right in saying customers should just exercise control at the checkout?

 

[Blobbenstein]

A checkout should just be a checkout, I think...just the place where you go to pay for your shopping, no need to tempt people.

 

[Amy SF]

A checkout should just be a checkout, I think...just the place where you go to pay for your shopping, no need to tempt people.

Every store with checkouts has impulse items. I don't know the statistics, but they supposedly make decent money this way. But should stores that normally don't sell food have tons of candy at the checkout? I've also seen candy at the checkout in Staples, an office supply store, plus at the checkout in Old Navy, so let's say someone who has lost some weight is buying new clothes for their new figure and is confronted with the kind of thing that can make them backslide.

What I'm saying is that when people suggest that others demonstrate self-control at the checkout, they may not understand that it's not easy for everyone. Going to a store to buy sheets or towels shouldn't be a nightmare for people who struggle with eating and weight problems, but they get no sympathy from those who simply say "personal responsibility" as if they were magic words.

 

[Blobbenstein]

but they get no sympathy from others who simply say "personal responsibility" as if they were magic words.

well, I dare say if one were to examine these people's lives that you would probably discover something that they weren't taking responsibility for.
Some people love to hate on people who are overweight...I suppose it makes them feel like they are wonderful human beings with such strength of character, in comparison.

 

[AeryFairy]

I think it's fairly unethical of stores who otherwise don't sell food to put sweets and chocolate right by the tills anyway. Nobody in that store is going to get to the checkout, see it, and go "ah, great, I almost forgot I needed to buy that!". Nobody was in a bath store or an underwear store specifically looking for a snack. They're making money off of people based pretty much entirely on the idea that people can't control their impulses.

It's great that some people can control themselves, but assuming that everyone can if they just want to badly enough is fairly ignorant of the way things actually work. And people who are making a genuine effort to avoid products like that for any reason (including avoiding your favourite dairy-laden treats in an attempt to go vegan, for example) shouldn't have them thrust into their line of sight or offered to them by cashiers inside every single store. Particularly if they were just trying to buy toothpaste and deodorant, or a measuring cup.

 

[Freesia]

I think that they shouldnt do it because it is annoying for parents waiting in queues with kids.

You see it all the time at supermarkets- having all those treats at the checkout sure makes the wait stressful as the parent often ends up embroiled in an argument with the kids about why they cant have X chocolate bar.... - and who is it being done for, it doesnt benefit anyone...

I dont see it as a problem for adults as such though. And if you are an overeater you are going to overeat anyway so it makes little difference to have snacks like that around.

 

[KLS52]

I can see both sides but I'm leaning more toward personal responsibility. While it is a sneaky marketing trick to take advantage of our buying impulse, I don't think the stores should have to change their strategy...would it be nice and considerate, sure. But they shouldn't be obligated to remove the temptation. And trust me, this is coming from someone who has little self control.

 

[Freesia]

The interesting thing about this is that there are Bed, Bath and Beyonds here in NZ- they are just little shops though, full of sheets and towels. I got my sheets there (they smelt weird though and I had to wash them 3 times).

But no candy at the counter. Just flannels and soaps. No candy in the stores at all.

 

[Calliegirl]

I like having snacks handy at the front of the store, especially non-food stores. There have been times when I wasn't able to eat before leaving the house and ended up very nauseous and lightheaded/dizzy when out shopping. It wasn't safe for me to drive around looking for a market or convenience store to grab something, and one time I was able to run inside a home improvement and get something quickly. It wasn't the healthiest thing to eat, but it made it safe for me to finish shopping and be able to drive home.

Those spots near the register go for a premium, and is a big chunk of money for the store. If they weren't receiving that money, it would probably be reflected in an increase in price of the merchandise in the store.

As for children misbehaving at the register and throwing temper tantrums over not getting what they want, it's a parent's responsibility to teach their children how to behave in public. My daughter may have asked for things in the store, but there weren't any temper tantrums or fits if I said no. She knew better than to do that.

eta: My daughter had a fit in the store once when she was really young and was bored and wanted to leave. So we stood outside until she was done crying and then went back inside to wait in line all over again. She knew better than to do that again.

 

[Freesia]

In fact, none of the bedwear or interior stores have candy at all here.
One of the bookstores sells some fancy chocolates, and the other has a small amount of chocolate bars slotted in near the register .

Apart from that, only supermarkets, petrol stations and movie theatres have candy counters. Also those big shed Warehouse type stores have them too.

But no other stores.

Drugstores dont have any candy though they might have sort of "lozenges" for colds and some diabetic sweets there.

I dont really see why it is necessary to just have these big displays everywhere. Candy is sold in its own aisle at the supermarket, for instance.. I dont see why it needs to be at the counter too...

It is not like they put things like toilet paper, or pickles, or baking soda or flour at the counter in case you "forgot" them, it is a deliberate attempt to add on a sale with an impulse item.

I dont really like that sort of thing, and i have worked in sales before... I still did not like the way area managers would come in and try and convince us to manipulate the customer.

 

[Second Summer]

If it's OK for non-food stores to have candy at the checkout aisles, then surely it should be OK to have alcohol as well? If a customer doesn't want it, all they have to do is not buy it, right?

I feel like I have decent impulse control myself, but I know that so many others struggle with this, so out of compassion for my fellow humans I would support a ban on this sort of sales strategy. Over- eating and unhealthy eating have reached epidemic levels and are ruining people's lives, so businesses have a social responsibility to not contribute to this development.

 

[Blobbenstein]

some kids may have really crappy lives, and a chocolate bar may brighten their day, and make it worth living....sure is a life's lesson in how to cheer one's self up.

 

[Blobbenstein]

 

[Freesia]

I guess it also depends on how towns are set up. Here there are shops clustered together, rather than just standalone... such as shopping centres... but I know in some cases there might be a giant drugstore by itself miles away from everything, or a giant towel and sheet store and nothing for miles, so I can understand in these sorts of cases why they might stock candy, I just think it is overkill when there is more candy nearby.

 

[KLS52]

Perhaps I'm just so used to seeing it everywhere I go...plus the fact that almost none of it is vegan so I don't eat it anyway. I totally understand the distraction but I'm still leaning toward personal responsibility...let's see if I crack, lol.

 

[Amy SF]

I guess it also depends on how towns are set up. Here there are shops clustered together, rather than just standalone... such as shopping centres... but I know in some cases there might be a giant drugstore by itself miles away from everything, or a giant towel and sheet store and nothing for miles, so I can understand in these sorts of cases why they might stock candy, I just think it is overkill when there is more candy nearby.

Here in America there is candy and junk food for sale everywhere. EVERYWHERE. You can't escape it. In the shopping center where I shop at Target, which sells a lot of candy and junk food, right next door is a BB&B. If customers didn't get what they wanted at Target, they go to BB&B to shop, where they're confronted with more candy. As if shoppers didn't fill up their shopping carts enough at Target, now they're encouraged to buy more right next door. That easy access to crap is partly what drives the health problems in this country.

 

[Second Summer]

That easy access to crap is partly what drives the health problems in this country.

I suspect the easy access to alcohol is partly what drives the drink-related problems in the UK.

Access to both junk and alcohol should be restricted in the interest of public health.

 

[Dedalus]

Access to both junk and alcohol should be restricted in the interest of public health.

Well, if we're going to go that far - let's restrict meat and cheese too, in the interests of the animal's health.

 

[Dedalus]

In response to the OP: I don't give a hoot about what is in the check out line. If I have an impulse to buy something, I'm going to buy it one way or another - putting it right in front of me isn't going to matter. It may make it easier, but it ultimately doesn't matter. Do I want to be presented with a bunch of garbage options on my way out the door of the store? No, not really, but I can't tailor the world to my whims, otherwise things would be much, much different.

 

[Freesia]

Yeah, in NZ we dont have quite as much junk food on offer as it sounds in America, but i have got to say that alcohol is EVERYWHERE... liquor stores, 2 alcohol aisles at the supermarket selling everything... lots of billboards advertising alcohol. I dont see it as a good thing either.

I think that a lot of it is the way society is set up to be inherently stressful, so people end up needing crutches to get through the day.

There is often much hand wringing about health and morality, but never any moves to make life and society less stressful, more accessible, cheap, better services....

better in general. This is because these large companies like to make money off us in whichever way they can.