[TenFour]

Of course we are all influenced by advertising, just like we are influenced by reading the newspaper, going to church, or visiting a park. That doesn't mean that all advertising is a nefarious plot to get you to purchase something you don't want or need. Many nonprofit organizations that do good work use advertising. My local transit company advertises its schedule changes and its new routes. Local shops and restaurants advertise special offers and menus. Our state and local governments advertising things like vaccine clinics and govenment programs. If I need a new phone I'll read the ads, but in between phone purchases I won't. In fact, most of the time I see very few ads because I utilize ad blockers, and also I skim right past the ads I do see--I couldn't tell you for sure what they are advertising. However, don't we have some will and discernment? For example, I might read the phone ads to see what they say, but then I will follow up by viewing and reading many more review and test sites, I might visit a store and actually look at the phone and try it out. Once in awhile I focus on the ads just to see what I am being served and I am almost always perplexed why I am being served up ads that are of no interest or use to me. For example, I am of a certain age where judging from the advertising I should be taking many different pills, searching the Internet for adult diapers, and talking to a financial advisor about how they would like to take a percentage of my retirement money in exchange for me being secure in the knowledge they are ripping me off. Instead I am going for a motorcycle ride, which for some strange reason I see almost no advertising for even though I have owned one for many years, subscribe to various things, and do a lot of Internet reading about. I'm not convinced this all-seeing Internet ad machine is actually very effective at doing what many think it is doing.