Consumer. What a useless fucking word.
Companies call you a consumer. Your own president calls you a consumer. To these people, you are a destroyer. You consume things. That is your entire purpose.
Fuck that.
If a company insists on calling you, its customer, a consumer – fuck it. If a government official insists on calling you, the person who elected him1, a consumer – fuck him.
What is a consumer?
When I hear the word consumer, a very distinct picture forms in my head. Specifically, I picture a 400 pound man in his underwear, sitting on the couch. One hand is stuffing Doritos into his mouth by the fistful, and the other is reaching deep into a greasy bucket of fried chicken. This is a consumer. I am not this. Therefore, I am not a consumer.
What is consumption?
For their there to be consumption something must be consumed. In other words, something that existed before the consumption must no longer exist after the consumption. You can consume a slice of pizza. You cannot, however, consume a book.2 You also cannot consume a movie. Or an article on a website. Do you see the difference?
This isn't rocket science, folks. Large companies and the government insult you, and they insult your intelligent when they label you as a consumer. Once upon a time, companies referred to us as customers. Once upon a time, our government referred to us as citizens. Perhaps it's time we grow a pair and demand those times back.
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Yes, him. I know it's more politically correct to say "them" instead of "him." However, it's also gramatically incorrect. "Him" is the singular form that is most appropriate. "Them" is plural. The creators of English, as brilliant as they must have been, didn't see fit to make a gender-neutral singular pronoun. Take it up with them. ↩
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In a very literal sense, you can consume a book. Indeed, there is likely a large amount of fiber in the average paperback. However, I don't recommend it. Try a sandwich instead. ↩