3 ms·

We already do that - social security and medicare in the US, for example, go in part to providing help to people with disabilities. I'd rather the author have

We already do that - social security and medicare in the US, for example, go in part to providing help to people with disabilities. I'd rather the author have the option of getting a small amount of help rather than having to spend more money buying pre-cut or pre-made. In his case, it might be enough for someone to come by twice a week and do the cutting and peeling for him. - It would provide him the assistance he needs while not trivializing everything he can do on his own. Obviously that might have to be scaled somewhat based on the number of people who need assistance in a certain area - maybe in large cities it makes more sense for a person to be able to order what they need so that for some people they'd be getting pre-cut fruits and veggies, others might be getting meals ready to be stuck in the oven, and some might need hot meals delivered. The key to me is to provide everyone the ability to be as independent as possible, and not have it be more expensive for them than it is for someone who isn't disabled.

Nutmog 11y ago
Surely the logical conclusion of that line of reasoning is to peel the oranges and chop the veges in a centralized factory somewhere else and distribute them using a supermarket's existing efficient supply chain. Which is exactly what they did. [EDIT. Reading the label, they were were made in the same shop they're sold in.] Hiring someone to come to your house and perform the job of a factory worker makes no economic sense at all if the same job can be done in an actual factory.
- AnkhMorporkian 11y ago
  It's a matter of numbers. If there were only 10 people in the whole country who had problems chopping/peeling veggies and fruits, obviously it'd be far more wasteful to do it in a centralized fashion. If there were 100 million, obviously it's be far more wasteful to do it via individual helpers. The question is, where is that sweet spot, and how do we weigh the environmental consequences into that equation?
  - Nutmog 11y ago
    Yeah. The sweet spot moves closer to factory-made if the product can also appeal to regular people, like these oranges. Environmental consequences? What environmental consequences come from using a plastic container? That's a whole other argument, but as long as it's being landfilled not burnt, it's not doing any harm for climate change. Landfills are pretty safe places to store unwanted plastic without it affecting the environment. Making plastic consumes finite oil, but the more we turn into plastic, the less we have to burn, so that's good for climate change.

Nutmog 11y ago

Surely the logical conclusion of that line of reasoning is to peel the oranges and chop the veges in a centralized factory somewhere else and distribute them using a supermarket's existing efficient supply chain. Which is exactly what they did. [EDIT. Reading the label, they were were made in the same shop they're sold in.] Hiring someone to come to your house and perform the job of a factory worker makes no economic sense at all if the same job can be done in an actual factory.

AnkhMorporkian 11y ago
It's a matter of numbers. If there were only 10 people in the whole country who had problems chopping/peeling veggies and fruits, obviously it'd be far more wasteful to do it in a centralized fashion. If there were 100 million, obviously it's be far more wasteful to do it via individual helpers. The question is, where is that sweet spot, and how do we weigh the environmental consequences into that equation?
- Nutmog 11y ago
  Yeah. The sweet spot moves closer to factory-made if the product can also appeal to regular people, like these oranges. Environmental consequences? What environmental consequences come from using a plastic container? That's a whole other argument, but as long as it's being landfilled not burnt, it's not doing any harm for climate change. Landfills are pretty safe places to store unwanted plastic without it affecting the environment. Making plastic consumes finite oil, but the more we turn into plastic, the less we have to burn, so that's good for climate change.