Discussion»Statements»Rosie's Corner» You pay more and more for goods/services as you get less and less in return. Quality or customer service. Will they ever return?
Three causes. Built-in obsolescence. Profit; the faster it wears out, the sooner the customer returns for repairs or replacement. Inflation. In real terms, wages are much lower than in the '60's and 70's, there is less full-time work available, and fewer jobs for a larger population. Automation. Robots and computers are replacing people at work. Because all these are in the control of forces far larger than ourselves, it is highly unlikely that many of the services and much of the quality available in the past will ever return.
Alvin Toffler correctly predicted it in his book, "Future Shock."
To get quality and service one must now know how to find it and be prepared to pay much more. For many people it's simply not possible within their means.
Ari and I can afford something of real quality about once a year as a treat. We have adjusted in various ways, cooking our own food, rarely buying new clothes, and making do with what we have. For some things, spending more to buy something of good quality is much cheaper because the thing will last a lifetime.
This post was edited by Benedict Arnold at January 1, 2018 2:43 AM MST
When you find a repair/service person whom you can trust it is like finding a pot of gold. Mostly we are viewed as cash cows to be taken advantage of whenever possible and not as human beings. When you find a place where they see YOU and treat you with courtesy you keep going back. The old gas stations compared to the new...no comparison. Old grocery stores where the folks took care of you to now...no comparison. A few years ago I went into a local store and I couldn't find a human being therein. It was a Fresh & Easy store. They had check-out stations where you ran the code of the item past an " eye" and it rang it up. You bagged your purchases. When you were all done an amount came up and you put money into the machine. I tried it ONCE. The food was all prepackaged. You couldn't select the specific produce you wanted individually. They were packaged in various sizes. It was a nightmare. They lasted a few years and then folded. Geez I wonder why? Jim reminded of the days when watermelon was 3 cents a pound. I was a little girl then. I remember those days. SIGH. Where will it all end? The income inequality grows ever greater. Eventually there will only be billionaires and the very poor. Nothing in-between. I wonder if donjohn has started a new movement wherein all future presidents will be like him? Talk about a nightmare future! Thank you for your reply Hartfire! :)
Many food stores and the big box stores like Costco and BJ's are leaning towards self-checkout. I have been shopping at a Walmart supermarket for a couple of years now and half the lines are self-service but there are only two or possibly three lines with cashiers. I have yet to go on a self-checkout line that I didn't have a problem and had to wait for a manger to assist, so I usually wait on a cashiered line, even though it takes a bit longer. Walmart is planning to do all self-checkout and, if that happens, I will be shopping elsewhere.
Oh geez Spunky please be wrong about that! " all self-checkout". We shop Walmart every week and Winco too. Now Jim does bag the groceries with the bags we bring but there are cashiers there and I write checks still! All self-checkout will drive me away so I hope it doesn't happen for decades after I'm gone. Thank you for your reply m'dear! :)
I sigh with the same feelings you do, Rosie. I too avoid the automated checkouts at supermarkets like Coles and Woolworths. Fortunately, we still have a few aspects of old fashioned service in our rural area, the Tweed Valley in NSW, Australia. Because it's rural, people are only, at most, two degrees from knowing one another in a population of 80,000 in the Tweed Shire: people know who gives the best service, and being friendly and polite is normal. Those who give the best service get the most work, and so most people try their best. But in the cities and suburbs in Australia, things are becoming more like the USA. Thank you for chatting with me, Rosie. It's lovely to be back in contact with you. :) Manna
Ditto Manna. Apologies for missing this one. I see that you wrote your reply on January! Well I'm glad you still have some semblance of "civilization" where you live. The more automated you are the more civilized or the exact opposite? I"m gonna ask that question! :)
Benedict Arnold 