Shop-Shaming @GameStop

I'm at GameStop on Monday to buy a new game called "Injustice: Gods Among Us."  Although, I'm not nearly the gamer than I was a decade ago, I still get games from time-to-time to play my god son.

As I get ready to cash out, the guy asked me if I was a GameSpot Rewards member.  I was a member, but mainly because the guy was so pushy the last time that I bought a game for my god son that I decided to do it.  Besides, if I can save a few bucks now and then, then I guess it's not such a bad thing.

I didn't like the fact that the guy shop-shamed me into buying it, but I figured that I would make my money back on it.  What is shop-shaming?  That's when someone tries to guilt you into buying something you don't need or they try to upgrade a purchase into something that you don't need.

I didn't think much of what he did before (basically hounding me to get the Rewards card at $14/annually), but, like I said, I figured it would pay for itself.  However, the same guy took things way too far this time with his pushiness...

Me: I would like to pre-order Injustice.

Him: Okay.  Two things you'll need with that...

Me: (looking puzzled)

Him: You'll need the strategy guide ($25), which I can give you $5 off of today, and you'll need the Season Pass ($15) which will give you access to new costumes and arenas.

Me: No, thanks.  I just want to pre-order the game.

Him: Maybe you don't understand.  The strategy guide is $5 off and you will definitely need it.

Me: I don't use strategy guides.  That's cheating, if you ask me.

Him: (obviously offended, dude scoffs) I beg to differ, sir.  But, with the Season Pass, it allows you to have access to all of the additional downloadable content thus saving you roughly $40 if you bought it on Xbox Live.

Me: No, thanks.  I don't need all of that.  I don't care about extra costumes.

Him: (rolling his eyes and sighing in disgust) You're really doing yourself a disservice, but I'll go ahead and give you what you want.  You're going to need those things though.

By this time I was clearly agitated and was on the verge of walking out, but luckily he stopped talking.  He actually seemed offended that I didn't want all of those extras that come with the game.  Dude, I'm not as into the games as you are, so why are you coming down on me for not wanting Wonder Woman's extra suit and stuff?  Really?

I know that salespeople have a rough job, but don't try and shame someone into buying something.  I was the only customer in the store at that time, but I'm sure that the conversation would have been a lot different had someone else been present.  Because if someone else would have been there, I would have been much more defensive and soon on the offensive with my responses.

Who would have thought that I would be a victim of shop-shaming at GameStop?  Geesh!

Have you ever been shop-shamed?

(Also, today would have been the 11th wedding anniversary for me and The Mrs.  Unfortunately, she passed away last year after a nine year battle with breast cancer.  I still miss you and will always love you, Bre.)

No More @SkyDigg4? Say It Ain't So!!!

I'm a huge sports fan.  I'll generally watch anything where a ball is being used, someone is being timed or there's a race.

Last night's Men's Championship was one of the best championship games I've seen in a long time, but unfortunately, my Michigan Wolverines came up short.

I really looked forward to the Women's NCAA Championship just as much as I did with the Men's NCAA Championship.  However, Skylar Diggins and the Notre Dame Lady Fighting Irish are not playing in the championship game.

All season long, I wanted to see Skylar take on Goliath (Brittney Griner) and the Baylor Lady Bears in the final game. Unfortunately, that will not happen today. Baylor was eliminated last week in a close loss to Louisville (who ironically won the men's championship as well). A few days later, UConn eliminated the Lady Irish.

No more Skylar Diggins?  Say it ain't so?  Just like Kevin Ware was the favorite son of Louisville with their "Ri5e to the Occasion" t-shirts, Sklyar would have been the same in the women's championship game.  I waited all season long to see her hoist a championship trophy and she's not even in the championship game.  What's so sad about it is that I'm a Michigan fan.  I hate Notre Dame by nature, but how can you not pull for SkyDigg?

Why am I into Skylar Diggins, you ask?  Well, because she's smoking hot on top of being a top notch basketball player.  The WNBA not only needs more skilled players to enhance their game, but it won't hurt to have someone who can be the new face of the league as well.  Skylar is that face (and body).

Good luck on the next level, Skylar! 

Ri5e to the Occasion

I'm on the fence when it comes to exploitation.  I rarely feel as if a consenting adult can be exploited.  An easy example of this is a porn star.  If he/she decides to do the horizontal mambo for cash, then how can I say that the director of the film is exploiting them if they're grown?

However, I hate to see kids exploited.  This include college kids who get the shaft every year by the NCAA and other companies.

Kevin Ware is a 20 year old basketball player for the University of Louisville.  Last week during a game, he jumped out on defense and landed awkwardly on his feet.

This resulted in his leg collapsing and him experiencing one of the most gruesome injuries I've seen in all of my years of sports viewing.  You can view it here if you have the stomach for it.

Along comes Adidas with a dollar an inspirational idea in mind: why not create a shirt with a motivational quote using Kevin Ware's number? People will feel sympathetic towards him and will buy this shirt despite the fact that Kevin won't see a dime of it.

It's nothing new.  College kids in athletics have been exploited since the first TV contract was signed.  Sure, some people say, "well, they get scholarships, so that's their payment."

That's an understandable, but ignorant statement.  The scholarship would be an even trade-off if these kids were able to lead normal college lives like other students.  However, they can't.  Football and basketball players aren't allowed to work.  So, if they can't have jobs when playing, then how can they have money to do things that college kids do?  A Criminal Justice major isn't prevented from having a job, so why should a linebacker be?

These big schools pluck these college kids from inner cities and basically imprison them inside of a weight room.  The fact that these kids can't make any money is why you hear of so many scandals of boosters paying players.  And who gets punished when these kids take the money offered to them?  The kids.  Even if the coach gets caught up in the scandal, they can easily resign and find another school to coach.  The kids are levied stiff penalties that are even inherited by incoming freshmen who had nothing to do with the incident.

And people wonder why kids leave college early to go pro.

Football and basketball bring in millions to colleges each year in ticket sales and merchandising.  They could easily place some of that money into an account and hold it until the players graduate.  That would encourage the players to get their degree and be rewarded after graduation for their service to the school.  The players who decide that they want to go pro instead and not graduate waive their right to the fund.  Besides, they won't need the allotted funds anyway since they're now able to earn their own money.

The fund would be for kids like Kevin Ware.  Kevin may not get a chance to play professionally after suffering such a tragic injury, so having a savings waiting on him after graduation could be a huge boost for him.  He would get some of the money from the shirts that Adidas wants to make.  It would be a win-win except for the fact that those old men wearing the brightly-colored suits at the bowl games want all of the money for themselves.

After the controversy started swirling around the shirts, Adidas offered to donate the money to the Louisville scholarship fund.  A nice offer that would undoubtedly benefit a needy kid, but still not Kevin.

That "fictional" player looks just like Blake Griffin when he was in college.  Hmmmm...

Former UCLA basketball player, Ed O'Bannon, is suing the NCAA and EA Sports for using his likeness in a video game.  I hope that he is granted class action status so that it opens the door for student-athletes to finally be rewarded for the sacrifices they give to their schools.  They need to stick it to the NCAA and other companies that exploit them since they all refuse to "Ri5e to the Occasion."

Do you think these kids are being exploited or you think that everything is fair as-is?