Freedom of 'choice'

This story from The Guardian interests me, because I'm always intrigued -- and often outraged -- by the way companies manipulate public perception. The latest propaganda from companies that shill disproportionately large or pretentious products is that they are merely providing the consumer with a choice. Because that's what America's all about, right? It would be un-American for the public not to have the choice of whether to commit suicide by ingesting their daily intake of fat in each and every meal, or to contribute to the melting of the planet's ice caps by driving a gigantic SUV that gets 8 miles per gallon. Personally, I find that attitude to be very selfish: Wouldn't one want to do what he or she could to be around to play with his or her grandkids? Or leave said grandkids with some natural wonders to marvel at?

The fact of the matter is that people are gullible and impressionable. They will, in general, consider whatever is presented to them to be appropriate, as the story points out. Or, in the case of the "Stack it high, tough guy" campaign, even the appropriate way to think: "Don't let those self-righteous critics rain on your parade again and tell you what's good for you. You can show them where to go by buying this." Companies are acutely aware of the portion-size bias. They have a well-compensated army of psychologists and sociologists at their disposal to tell them how the public thinks. They know what you want to buy before you buy it. Just don't buy into the "size it your way" mantra.