By treating everyone like shoplifters, most try to over emphasize they are not shoplifters. It puts the customer on the defensive and the store immediately rises above as the authority figure.

The doctors have been doing this for years. It's not Mr. Public , they now call you by your 1st name.

"John, the doctor will see you now."

The doctors offices have been doing this for years. It's a psychological tool to make them superior - the authority figure - while you are the school child being called by your first name.

You would be surprised at how much these little psychological gimmicks are used to generate revenue and keep people cowed down.

The government does the same trick as they falsely repeat that government is needed to oversee and control all the various activities humans might do. The government is always the authority you must appeal to. You are 'nothing' and the government is everything. And yet the government is just a group of 'nothings' who figure out how easy it is to ride the free ride while exploiting the rest and they have consciously used psychology as a weapon and tool for the past sixty years or so now.

This is the state of the world. This is human psychology at work. Make the other guy feel little and exploit him and have him do your bidding.

I always call my doctor by their first name if they address me by mine. I do the same with the receptionist if they presume to do the same. A quick look at the name badge and there you go.

"Thanks Debbie."

Once they know you understand the gimmick, they are wary. The facade is gone and suddenly they know this is someone to look out for. Someone who has taken the red pill and no longer is a passive sucker of the system.

Wal-mart, Fry's and all the rest use the gimmick not to actually catch thieves walking out the door, but to psychologically beat them down before they even attempt to steal something. If their customers see the business as an authority figure - hey, all the better.