An expensive lesson about free
(Baonghean) - Today Bim went online and happily read me a funny story: "There was a barber who decided to give free haircuts to customers for a week to celebrate the opening of his shop.
The first customer was Italian, so the next day the barber received a free pizza. The second customer was French, so the next day the barber received ten loaves of delicious French bread. The third customer was Vietnamese, so the next day ten other Vietnamese people were waiting in front of the shop to get a free haircut.” After telling the story, Bim burst out laughing, I frowned and asked her:
- Why is Bim laughing?
- Because customers are stupid, only Vietnamese people are the smartest, knowing how to take advantage of the opportunity to get a free haircut. Who would refuse something that is given for free?
Her answer made me think for a moment. Is it really a sign of wisdom, or is it a selfish way of thinking, chasing after small benefits without realizing that we have lost a lot?
I remember the funny story of Hanoians competing to climb over the fence to "rush into" the West Lake water park when they heard that the entrance fee was free. Not knowing how much money they saved, they only saw crowds, jostling, a cramped swimming pool, and very unsanitary. There were even shameful things happening like groups of young men ganging up to bully and harass female students. Obviously, in that situation, there was no joy, only shock and sadness for the uncultured behavior of a group of young people. When people were not finished "crying" because of the above story, there was a statement from the park manager that made us unable to stop laughing: "There is no harassment here, the problem lies in the quality of the swimsuits". Speaking of this, we really have to bow down to this naive and...uncouth way of thinking.
Because, that is the mindset of those who turn a blind eye to bad habits and condemnable phenomena in society. When they see and hear things that cannot be denied, they use the method of distorting and blurring the truth, shifting public opinion from those who should be condemned to attacking the victims. Because they do not dare to speak out against and criticize the bad; because the source of that ugliness is related to them; or simply because the victim is weak, and attacking the weak is always easier? All of these reasons stem from the same root, which is cowardice, indifference to cruelty when having to make choices, opinions and actions when facing injustices in society.
Of course, those ugly seeds are present in each of us because the two sides of light and dark always exist in parallel. The final deciding factor in a person's good or evil direction depends on the surrounding environment. So, in this story, the victim is not necessarily innocent. Because, if people did not flock to the park, how could there be chaos, loss of control, creating opportunities for people with bad tendencies to act?
Speaking of free, in essence, this is a form of communication, product introduction or attracting public attention. But from here, many variations are born, the most dangerous of which is "spoiled" consumers. Because the effectiveness of a free campaign is based on the curiosity, interest or, more negatively, the "greed" of consumers. Gradually, consumers will be stereotyped into liking free things, leading to a distorted mindset about consumer habits, causing disorder and social imbalance.
Remember that nothing is truly free. Everything is an equivalent exchange, perhaps we have not immediately seen the price of what we receive. We must practice the habit of being willing to pay (or exchange in other forms) in exchange for something of real value. Only then will we know how to appreciate the value and improve the quality of life, so that there is no room for the ugly seeds in us to germinate.
Hai Trieu