That seems a bit self-serving, doesn't it? Very convenient for the company if they can convince the average worker that they are better off financially receiving less money. Orwellian, one might say.
I don't agree with "Orwellian." (Also, Orwell wrote a lot, so I assume you're directly referencing 1984?) This isn't the government rewriting history, it's just a company trying to pay less money. Are they spying on you? Torturing you? Monitoring your thoughts?
Also, Hanlon's Razor might suggest that they're just stupid, not actively malicious.
So he spent $1,350 on iPhones within a month!
Yayyyyy
Yesterday somebody asked him about his sunglasses and he kept going off how they were $400 and all of his sunglasses cost more than $350 and that he won't buy cheap sunglasses ever.
$400 sunglasses sound like a "buy it for life" kind of thing. I went through quite a few pairs of $5-15 ones (sat on, dropped, sat on, broken, sat on... girls) and for my last road trip went all out and paid $50. Totally worth it, now I can drive from sunup to sundown without getting uncomfortable. (I haven't tried this in an area with a polar never-ending day, though!)
But multiple? What do you need more than one pair for?