You really want a brain-melter, get in on the flip-side of the TV ratings and into the (what used to be called) Nielsen Homescan Consumer Shopping Survey – now re-branded and National Consumer Panel. 17 years I’ve been in this rabbit hole – and the one thing it’s made me realize is that in the case of TV ratings and commercials and consumerism, the tail – that is the consumers – wags the dog. Oh, if the American public only knew how much power – as consumers – we have, and flexed it, it would make the politics in Washington seem like kindergarden in comparison.