The Evils of Marketing and the common cold

I might sometimes regret the decisions I made regarding my education, but hotdamn am I glad I was never tempted to go into marketing. I have to read various marketing journals as part of my job description, and if I wasn't already quite cynical I certainly would be by now.

If you ever wondered why society is seemingly going to hell in a handbasket, studying marketing will at least provide some clarity. Example: obesity. Numerous initiatives have been initiated to fight obesity as a growing health problem, such as banning advertising of sweets etc to children, and promoting nutrition labling on food products. How very delightful it then is to read about the cake industry bemoaning the fact that sales are down, and how they're thus planning strategies to 'combat the growing perception that cakes are an occasional treat rather than part of a balanced diet'. Gaaaah!!

It just seems so daft, apparently there's no point trying to get rid of anything that someone can lobby for in order to make money... Isn't that a cheerful thought (and yes, I do realize the knock-on effect a collapse of capitalism would have on the whole world, and that the whole thing is probably just an effect, not a cause... I'm just saying... it's so silly!).

Other than that, I'm getting a cold and a cough, but remain in high spirits (packing! party! home!).