Pricing everything at $19.99 or $149.95 or $1,999.99 is just one of many blaring markers that our cynical cultural illness is late-stage, but for some reason, it’s particularly egregious in its obvious contempt for human beings.

It’s one thing to use a marketing tactic shown to convince XX% more people to purchase your product. It’s another to put a tactic that exploits one of our dumbest vulnerabilities right in front of our faces.

Pricing a condo at $299,000 is saying exactly this: “We both know this condo costs $300k but studies have shown that you are a pitifully dumb animal, and that even with this lie right in front of your face, you’ll still think this is a better price.”

I’m not judging anyone. This tendency is built in to me too. Every time I’m pricing a proposal, I want to round just below the nearest Big Number. But calling someone a dumb animal to their face isn’t the basis for a respectful relationship.

I’d love it if deceptive pricing and other cynical tactics could be seen for what they are: very uncool, contemptuous, abusive, and not worth the marginal gains that come from their use.