Getting the "Best"

Something that has bothered me my entire life is people's desire to be like everyone else and have whatever everyone else has, regardless of how good that "whatever" is. I can understand the desire to want what is best but the term "best" seems to be getting more and more warped. Instead of being the best in terms of quality, best is now whatever product or service is best marketed.


This subject came up once again today when I went to trade in my phone and get a new one. I played with the Razor phone and the Chocolate phone and all the other new "best" products out there. They all seemed cheap and of poor quality to me. The razor phone isn't designed to fit in a hand ergonomically and it also felt like it might snap in two at any moment. The chocolate phone was just kinda big and didn't have anything special. So after looking around, I ended up with a Samsung that is REALLY skinny and light. It is awesome, but not one of the phones you would see most advertised, and therefore not coveted by the general masses.


This theme seems to be appearing more lately, and in strange places. It's one thing when it comes up with a product like a phone- that's just stupidity and it won't really hurt anyone. But I've been watching it happen in things like the medical field and how people choose doctors. A big example around the DC area is with laser eye surgery. There are a bunch of different places that do laser eye surgery, but there's no one in DC that hasn't heard of Dr. Boutros. To be clear- I'm not saying he's a bad doctor. In fact, he may indeed be the "best"; I'm not offering an opinion on his credentials. I'm just saying that people aren't checking the credentials; they're going based on the marketing ads because the ads say he's the best. That's just scary to me.


People just don't think logically. They really do "think" based on marketing. And apparently I missed the boat. With every decision I make, I like to weigh my alternatives and make the best choice for me (which I recognize is not the best choice for everyone). But I feel like the majority of people just go with whatever they've heard over the radio or seen on tv. I'm starting to question whether people are losing the ability to think for themselves.