Thursday, August 25, 2005

Places Where the Spirit Dies

I've been meaning to devote a post to these blood sucking scum for some time. I always thought that they were an exclusively British franchise; one of those enterprises set up when Thatcher was in power and things were tough oop north.
Imagine my horror in discovering that the tentacles of this satan extend worldwide.
There must me more Cash Converters outlets in Glasgow than in the rest of the world combined. It seems that every time you turn a corner you are confronted by their vile, primary coloured signage. 'Come hither all ye numpties, chavs and neds', they seem to call, 'sell us your crap and cash your cheques for a 15% fee'.
There is something deeply dispiriting about these places. They're just dressed up second hand
electronic goods junkshops. The people rummaging around and peering at elderly toasters are some of the most desperate looking drongos in society. Even the vagrants on the street have a greater glimmer of intelligence in their eyes than these mongs.
We're supposed to be a wealthy, developed economy for fuck's sake. What the French and Germans must think God only knows. Welcome to Scotlands answer to Barcelona, style capital of Northern Europe. My arse: the lepers stain of these excrescences of exploitation makes the place resemble a rainy downtown Bogota.
DO I WANT TO BUY A CRAP STEREO FOR £50 THAT SOME POOR BASTARD HAS SOLD FOR £15 SO THAT HE CAN BUY A BAG OF SMACK? NO I FUCKING WELL DON'T!
Couldn't someone do us all a favour and start a fire bombing campaign. I'll pay for the petrol.

11 comments:

pissoff said...

The pawn shop. Can't stand em.

garfer said...

Cash Converters are worse than pawn shops. All they so is buy and sell crap. Bomb the lot of 'em.

Faltanus said...

but April's basically right, isn't she? it's an attempt to put a bright, happy exterior on what is basically a pawn shop. they're trying to make something ugly and desperate look flashy and exciting. But you're right garf, i'll take the pawn shop any day. at least the seedy exterior is honest and lets you know exactly what the nature of the business is.

Sniffy said...

Can we firebomb Asda as well please? And Dr & Herbs while we're at it?

Good post Garfer. You look down UK highstreets and you see signs of the polarised society in which we live: Pound Land, cash converters, crappy fast food outlets and injury compensation, no win-no fee solicitors on one side; turn a corner and you've got high-class boutiques selling suits for a minimum of £2000 a go, the customers not batting an eyelid or asking the price.

Rowan said...

well done! Beautifully spoken, this is EXACTLY why I too Hate cash converters...you're helping some kids support their drug habit more likely than not, there is no guarantees, and you aren't saving enough in most cases that it isn't worth it to just buy the new deal. The point is, this is here in NorthAmerica too.

Aginoth said...

You see them in there, shuffling from foot to foot, with a bag of cd's and a VCR, and you just know they burgled them, do the shop staff care...do they {bleep}

garfer said...

The pound shops are dreadful too. A set of csewdrivers for £1. Top quality steel. Balls.
It's when you see a street consisting of a Cash Converters, three charity shops and a pound shop, that you know the neighbourhoods going down the tubes.

garfer said...

screwdrivers...tsk

M said...

I can't tell you how many times my sister pawned my inheritance just so she could score some crack. I hate those places, but at least when she used the pawn shop my mom was able to get the ring back. If she'd have fenced it to another junkie or pusher I wouldn't have the ring my mom promissed me years ago.

Gordon said...

But didn't pawn shops of old (olde?) provide a service? Were they not an accepted part of society? What has changed that today's versions are so reviled (and rightly so).

Is it JUST the approach?

P.S. "excrescences of exploitation" is my new fav phrase.

garfer said...

Pawn shops were an accepted feature of life years ago. It was a case of pawning your best suit on Thursday and redeeming it on Saturday in time for church on Sunday.
These days most people pawn stuff to pay for booze and drugs. They don't redeem and most of the goods are stolen.