There are moments when the dystopian visions of movies and television seem to come to life. And for one gym-goer, such a moment came when they used the bathroom at their gym.
"Can't even take a s*** without being bombarded with advertisement," they wrote on the subreddit r/Anticonsumption.
In their photo, the bathroom sink sits beneath a screen, which is mounted where a mirror normally would be; on the screen, digital advertisements are playing.
"My gym has these electric mirrors that play ads in the freaking restroom," OP vented. "Like the screens they have in the actual work out area, showing commercials all the time, aren't bad enough."
Commenters were similarly disgusted, expressing outrage at the intrusion. One person described it as "comically tragic."
Another agreed, calling it "my idea of a personal h***."
"Jeesh, it's like that episode of Black Mirror," another vented, referencing the dystopian TV series. "Is nothing sacred?"
Lately, it seems that nothing is. Advertisements have been cropping up in the most unlikely, and unwanted, of places. From LED screens flashing on the sides of semitrucks to commercials playing at public water fountains, people have been frustrated that seemingly no place in society is free of the omnipresence of ads.
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One commenter took an innovative perspective. "All it would advertise to me is companies to avoid," they pointed out. "If they will not let me use the toilet in peace then I would refuse to buy from them."
It's no coincidence that many of the most aggressive advertisers are companies in fast fashion and similarly polluting industries, whose business models promote excessive and unnecessary consumption to feed their profits. Buying poorly made items, using them a handful of times, and throwing them away has led to a massive buildup of waste, which is polluting our landfills and our oceans.
Instead, in the spirit of the commenter above, many people are now shopping secondhand. Thrift shops and online secondhand marketplaces are great resources for sourcing high-quality items at much lower prices, from furniture to clothes to cookware.
And some companies are taking it one step further, incentivizing their customers to trade in and recycle their old clothes, electronics, shoes, and more to receive cash back and store credit. It's one step toward promoting a circular, rather than a consumptive, approach to shopping — and it's key for alleviating pollution.
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