Not really. This is a myth that marketing schysters try to peddle. A lot of naive people like this view though. These people would have you believe that nothing survives without marketing. When's the last time you saw a commercial for heroin or cocaine? It seems sales are pretty good for those products.

And yet, again, all the marketing in the world couldn't build one bridge. It just inherently cannot. Sorry.

Drugs are sooo marketed.

Celebrities use drugs. Drugs are used in "cool" movies. You are even informed of the euphoric feeling drugs give you in elementary school.

The fact that "cool" kids in high school end up experimenting with drugs first is a form of marketing (even if it is organic.)

I have three words for your stupid "bridge" argument:

BRIDGE TO NOWHERE (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravina_Island_Bridge)

Your argument is that celebrities use drugs? Really? Celebrities also eat food, breath air, and sleep. Maybe you should spend more time evaluating your arguments and less time on OK Magazine. Homeless people, business people, house wives, blue collar workers, people of every walk of life use drugs. Big deal.And the products are all sold without marketing propaganda. How many crack dealers do you really think read Seth Godin? Or "How to Win Friends and Influece?"

What is stupid exactly about my "bridge" argument? What does the "bridge to nowhere" have to do with anything? That is just a Red Herring. All the marketing in the world will never produce any non-trivial feat of engineering. Sorry. Part of the issue is that you and people of your view want to point to marketing for the success of any idea; you have no demarcation criterion.

?