The Stupid, it Burns!
I am well aware that I probably should be using ad blocking software on all my devices, so I guess I'll hang my head in shame and admit that I don't.
It's probably just laziness... definitely associated with the fact that I wouldn't want to put ad blocking software on my devices without first thoroughly researching all the different options for effectiveness as well as assessing said software's invasiveness. Oh, and any hidden fees that aren't mentioned in the "introductory offer."
The preceding paragraph is pretty representative of how I approach and shop for almost everything in my life, and it stands in stark contrast to the assumptions inherent within much of the online advertising I come across. Or that is forced upon me.
For example, I see an ad with a phrase like "Everybody in Port Townsend (where I live) is talking about this amazing Home Warranty!"
How disconnected from reality do you have to be in order to not realize that that is (A) a blatant manipulation and (B) patently untrue. Not "everybody in Port Townsend" is talking about anything whatsoever other than perhaps our eternally rising property taxes! And I can guarantee you those aren't being advertised online!
Because I was recently researching the most effective ways to get moss off our roof, I now get served endless advertising for a new roof. Some of them are obviously absurd scams such as a heading that reads "Washington seniors can now qualify for a free roof replacement through this state endorsed program!"
I don't see how anybody on the planet couldn't be aware that that is just an outright lie and that nobody is giving away free roofs! And that especially applies to the state! There's not even a roof at the other end of that link, just a data broker, harvesting and selling your personal information.
I don't even know if there is a tiny kernel of truth hidden somewhere in that advertising headline that gave inspiration to somebody creating it, in the first place. There may be certain county-by-county subsidy programs available for low income seniors, but they're almost impossible to get and they only work as a partial rebate if you go ahead and actually get a new roof... following very specific conditions.
Of course there are lots of other equally stupid examples of idiotic advertising out there. Ultimately, that idiocy was what led me to sitting down and wondering what exactly feeds the algorithm that serves me these particular results which I wouldn't touch with a 10-ft pole.
Conversely, I can't remember the last time I was served an ad that bore even the slightest resemblance to something I might actually be interested in. Which begs the next question: is most online advertising purely made up of scams and sketchy products? Or is there something about my online usage pattern that inadvertently misinforms the algorithm about what I might be interested in?
I'm not joking here... the advertising industry is a trillion dollar business, and it didn't get that way by missing the mark!
Let me throw a simple — and perhaps relatable — possibility out there. Does the fact that I am an active participant and blogger on Hive — which is a site that offers micro payments to participants, in tiny tiny amounts that are not enough to make a living from — an indicator that I "must be" a broke loser, living in a van, down by the river? And, therefore I'm being served advertising for broke losers living down by the river?
It would certainly go a long way towards explaining the proliferation of scams I see, and the vast quantity of TEMU-like cheap crap that's advertised to me.
What does the algorithm assume from somewhere else; from other sources? For example, I know that I live in the county in the state with the oldest median age, and it is also the fifth oldest county in the entire United States, and I know that I live in the county with the third highest median property value in the state.
That doesn't really seem to figure into anything. I've never seen any advertising related to any of my hobbies, I've never seen any advertising related to gardening, I've barely seen any advertising related to cooking, and I — perhaps surprisingly, given my demographic — virtually never see any advertising related to healthcare or health insurance.
I don't know what it says that it feels like the frequency of the ads is almost inversely proportional to the uselessness of what is being offered.
Which brings me back to why I titled the post the way it is... "the stupid it burns"... because pretty much everything I see so utterly stupid that I can't imagine anybody on the planet would come close to clicking on it!
Maybe I should actually do the reasearch on that ad blocker...
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2026.07.21 00:14 PDT
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