Don't Talk Out of Both Sides of Your Mouth

Is It Just Me, or are do some people, as my dear late mother used to say, talk out of "both sides of their mouths?"

Case in point: a recent issue of a magazine that targets business executives in my neck of the woods. An article near the front of the magazine discussed the fact that restaurant owners have come out in force against comments made on national TV by financial guru Suze Orman; to help save money, she advised, consumers should consider giving up eating in restaurants for an entire month.

That left restaurant owners, not surprisingly, with a bad taste in their mouths. The restaurant business is spiraling downward fast as it is; should consumers actually take her up on the suggestion, it could spell disaster -- a prediction underscored in the magazine article, in which the writer interviewed several individuals, from owner to server to chef, from a local restaurant, who described how their lives (and incomes) would suffer as a result.

In fact, it was a very well-written, creative article. While I cannot fault consumers for trying -- make that needing -- to save every dollar they can, Suze-Q might have saved herself some grief by suggesting that they eat out one less time each week instead of foregoing the experience altogether. And, the point the writer made was well taken. Ah, I said to myself, the magazine is doing exactly what I'd expect from a business magazine: support business.

Fast forward a few pages, though, and the story did an about-face. A different and no less well-written article offered some money-saving advice to executives. Why not, it was suggested, wear your suits three or four times before you have them dry cleaned instead of only once or twice? How about turning your back on shopping at high-priced department stores and instead head for deep discount stores like Filene's Basement? Heck, why shop at all? Most of us have lots of things in our closets with which we can make do, the writer noted -- all we need to do is look for them and we'll have a new look without spending a cent.

Say what? Somehow, I don't think the owners and employees of all those dry cleaning establishments out there would take that lying down. It's been many, many years since I've had a suit dry cleaned (or anything dry cleaned, for that matter -- if it can't go in the washing machine, I don't buy it). The last time I did it cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $10. Given the inflation that's happened to everything else since then, I'm guessing it could cost twice that much these days.

So, if only 50 of the thousands of executives who read this magazine decided to cut their suit dry cleaning by half, it's easy to do the math and see how devastating that could be to the dry cleaning industry. The department stores already are feeling the pain; most have been posting quarterly losses for quite some time now as consumers at all income levels bolt their doors to buy from their lower-priced competitors. An even greater exodus very well could lead to their demise.

Apparently, the magazine editors think it's okay if dry cleaners and department stores lose money, but it shouldn't happen to restaurants. I don't know why, but I suspect the fact that the restaurant owners' complaints are backed by the power of the National Restaurant Association, which came out full force against Orman's opinion, might have something to do with it. Or, maybe it's because more restaurants advertise in the magazine than do dry cleaners.

Bear with me: In that same issue, which focused on diversity, was a full-page ad from a well-known utility company. It was quite simple; a pair of well-worn dark brown cowboy boots were placed amid an entire line of identical white low-top shoes. "Sometimes a Little Difference Can Make All the Difference," the caption read, going on to claim that commitment to diversity is important to the company's success.

Well, the only part they got right, in my opinion, is "little" difference. One whole pair of "different" shoes among a dozen others is sufficient to demonstrate commitment to diversity? Gimme a break! If they really wanted to show they care about hiring minorities, at the very least they would have stuck a couple more pairs of oddball shoes in that line-up.

Maybe I'm overly sensitive. After all, I grew up in the day when families didn't lock their front doors, their cars didn't emit screeches loud enough to wake the dead when the neighbor kids bumped into them with their bicycles and people's word (and perhaps a handshake) was their bond. Still, it's annoying when I hear people who should know better talking out both sides of their mouths.

Or Is It Just Me?