And let's face it, governments both national and local have for decades employed exactly the same deceits.It's not just companies that exaggerate their prices.
We all use similar selling techniques in a way.
When someone sells their car, they advertise it at a slighty inflated price, knowing a potential buyer will haggle them down.
The seller knows that he isn't going to get asking price for it.
The buyer thinks he's got a bargain when he gets 500 quid knocked off.
The seller is happy coz he gets what he expected to get for it in the first place.
Everyone's happy
When the local authority wants to increase the rates/council tax etc., they release to the local press a scare story of an increase well beyond what they really intend. That creates an uproar, but when the actual increase is announced all concerned are relieved that it's more moderate than at first thought and it's accepted.
Our coalition government has been engaged in exactly this currently with horror stories of just how terrible the cutbacks will be, for example 25 % reduction in many government department budgets including defence. But already we now know that the defence budget cut will be very much smaller.
Commerce has long practiced the same when wanting to increase prices to valued customers who have alternative sources they can go to. The customer is approached with a proposition that a price is to rise by 20% say, then allowed to negotiate it down to the 10% that was intended all along. And I know this only too well since I practiced it myself for many years.
Therefore these deceits are such an integral part of the whole modern world that it's pointless to pick on just one commercial example.
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