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Thread: Creepy Canadian App Gives Citizens Points for Making Government-Approved Choices

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    Adelaide's Avatar tPF Moderator
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    Out of interest, I looked up the company and the app and they partnered with another technology company to add financial literacy to the platform. So, users can take short tests and do exercises to increase their knowledge on personal finance and get rewarded for it. For example, they can learn about the RESP (registered education savings plan) or RRSPs (registered retirement savings plan) and so on. A lot of people my age only contribute to CPP - the national pension plan - and don't start contributing to private retirement programs until it becomes a bit late in the game.

    We are not taught about this sort of thing in school, so I think this will be a very useful part of the app.

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    stjames1_53's Avatar Senior Member
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    Quote Originally Posted by Adelaide View Post
    If you eat healthy, exercise regularly, avoid smoking and drinking, and have good sleeping habits, you will live a longer life than the obese guy who smokes a pack a day, drinks a pack of beer a day and never gets off the sofa. Common sense, but also scientifically proven. There will be exceptions that get lucky - probably related to their genetics.
    you cannot force what you consider to be good habits if you're buying pre-prepared packaged foods approved by the government and eating out at fast foods. That frickin' polar pop will kill you. The chemicals in pre-packaged foods will kill you. Preservatives allowed by government will slow bodily decay after death.
    Did you know that many breakfast cereals contain trisodium phosphates?
    For waltky: http://quakes.globalincidentmap.com/
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    Common Sense's Avatar Senior Member
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    OMG...encouraging healthy eating!!! Is there no depth of depravity these commie $#@!s wont sink to?

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    Chris's Avatar Senior Member
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    Quote Originally Posted by Adelaide View Post
    Recieving funding from the government does not make it government run.

    The App is similar to other apps that come with smartphones and encourages a lot of positive behaviors, such as eating healthy, spending smart/being frugal, taking x amount of steps per day, quitting smoking, so forth. This type of initiative is growing in popularity because it then promotes the user to spend money on things like going to the movies, retail shopping, and so on. For example, say I walk 5,000 steps every day for a month. I might get 500 Scene points, which is a point system that goes towards movie theatres. I use those 500 Scene points to pay for half a movie ticket and pay the other half. Not only am I taking literal steps to better health, but I am then spending those points as a consumer. There are many other point systems for everything imaginable - books, gas, air miles, certain retail chains, online stores, and whatever.

    The government puts money into this program because healthier Canadians who make better lifestyles choices will, hopefully in the long run, result in reduced spending for things like lung cancer, COPD, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and other problems. Healthy/frugal spending promotion may mean less Canadians owe significant amounts of credit card debt.
    True, not government run, but certainly government sponsored and supported.

    I get free movies if I rent more than some number from Redbox per month. I get that sort of reward system.

    But others aren't so obvious especially when it comes to lifestyle choices. Today experts say salt is bad for you, tomorrow no wrong. In short, the experts don't know.

    I guess the problem I have is it's not a reward for using the app, like Redbox, but for specific answers, that may or may not be truly right.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Common Sense View Post
    OMG...encouraging healthy eating!!! Is there no depth of depravity these commie $#@!s wont sink to?
    But you're assuming the answers you're rewarded for selecting are correct.

    It's not communist but might be Pavlovian.

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    donttread's Avatar Senior Member
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    Quote Originally Posted by Chris View Post
    I didn't pick the title of the article, though perhaps it's the name of the app?

    Nor is Canada alone in this.

    Years ago the notion of paternalism was presented to libertarians at the Cato Institute to initially a warm reception but ultimately rejected.

    Paternalism is where you're given a choice in such a way as to push for a certain answer. An obvious example is when you get an email from some company, they're supposed to include at the bottom a way to opt out. It's paternalistic because while you're given a choice, many don't see it and even those who do will likely do nothing. The choice is never to you want to opt in.

    Canada in the article below is going one step further in incentivizing you to answer the way the government experts think you should by rewarding you for the right answers.

    Creepy Canadian App Gives Citizens Points for Making Government-Approved Choices
    Governments are simply not trustworthy! Period.

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    Quote Originally Posted by stjames1_53 View Post
    you cannot force what you consider to be good habits if you're buying pre-prepared packaged foods approved by the government and eating out at fast foods. That frickin' polar pop will kill you. The chemicals in pre-packaged foods will kill you. Preservatives allowed by government will slow bodily decay after death.
    Did you know that many breakfast cereals contain trisodium phosphates?
    Lets not forget sodium nitrite in pretty much all packaged meats. Sodium nitrite is used in poison bait feeders to kill feral hogs.
    There is no God but Resister and Refugee is his messenger’.

    Book of Democrat Things, Chapter 1:1






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    If I were a Canadian, the only concern I'd have is the government subsidizing this nanny-state nonsense. Of course, since the citizens of Canada have decided to give up the ownership of their own bodies via government healthcare, it's inevitable that the government will do things like this on its path to outlawing unhealthy freedoms.
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    Quote Originally Posted by Adelaide View Post
    If you eat healthy, exercise regularly, avoid smoking and drinking, and have good sleeping habits, you will live a longer life than the obese guy who smokes a pack a day, drinks a pack of beer a day and never gets off the sofa. Common sense, but also scientifically proven. There will be exceptions that get lucky - probably related to their genetics.
    Jim Fixx, the fitness enthusiast who died of a heart attack in 1984 at the age of 52, is a good example. Comedians like Denis Leary still have a good time about the fact that he died while running, but the truth is that Fixx's father died of the same serious genetic heart condition that Jim had - also while running - at the age of 43. Had he sat around smoking instead of exercising, he might not have made it out of his twenties.
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    Quote Originally Posted by Standing Wolf View Post
    Jim Fixx, the fitness enthusiast who died of a heart attack in 1984 at the age of 52, is a good example. Comedians like Denis Leary still have a good time about the fact that he died while running, but the truth is that Fixx's father died of the same serious genetic heart condition that Jim had - also while running - at the age of 43. Had he sat around smoking instead of exercising, he might not have made it out of his twenties.
    Or if he had been home smoking on the couch, he would been to busy to be out running, that fatefull day!
    There is no God but Resister and Refugee is his messenger’.

    Book of Democrat Things, Chapter 1:1






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