5 ms·

> I don't want to have a stand-up argument with someone about money, thanks. Why not? It's not so bad. I prefer to negotiate my own contracts. To rely on so

> I don't want to have a stand-up argument with someone about money, thanks. Why not? It's not so bad. I prefer to negotiate my own contracts. To rely on some third party to do so is infantilizing. If I got into the habit of avoiding stuff like that, I wouldn't be able to travel and live like a local. You know when I travel it's sans apps. I use paper maps road signs and no GPS, I take local cabs, even collective cabs. It's never been a problem, and asking people for help has led to much better travel experiences. I guess you could say I prefer full contact travel. > Good? That was a great system when I was a child. It was safe, friendly and didn't involve any cash. If we can replicate the same great system for independent adults that's fantastic. Except that now the 'parent' isn't a benevolent person with your best interests at heart, it's uber. Why hand all that power over to an unelected, unethical company? And like i said above, such a system is inherently paternalistic, and infantilizes everyone. (I'm not attacking you personally of course, it's just that your post perfectly exemplifies an attitude that I have a passionate counterargument for.)

chrisseaton 8y ago
It sounds like you want to enjoy talking to people, experiencing a culture of negotiation, taking part in local services, handle local money. I just want to get from A to B with as little hassle as possible so I can concentrate on things I think actually matter.
- gerbilly 8y ago
  I do a bit of both, as I'm sure you do. I'm just advocating for the full contact approach to living which I think is being subtly eroded by disney, cruises, resorts, cashless restaurants and uber and so on. I don't know if you read travel writing, but imagine trying to read a good travel writer like Paul Theroux, except by first transposing everything into the mediated realm. Instead of taking a cab and then staying at a small local hotel and eating at a market stall what if the writer took an uber then stayed in a resort and ate at the buffet?
  - mprev 8y ago
    But most people aren't travel writers. I travel on business. I want to get safely from one place to another, with as little drama as possible. Fine, Uber isn't for you but other people's preference for that style of transaction has nothing to do with infantilisation.
  - chrisseaton 8y ago
    I understand your point of view, but an argument about a taxi fare, and paying a restaurant bill with cash instead of a card just don't seem like high quality life experiences worth cherishing to me.
    - gerbilly 8y ago
      Yeah, but I think removing the possibility of those experiences introduces too much intermediation into daily life for everyone else. I cherish those possibilities, like I cherish freedom. I may not exercise my full freedom every day, but I do cherish it.
      - icebraining 8y ago
        Cash itself is intermediation.
Bartweiss 8y ago
> I take local cabs, even collective cabs. It's never been a problem This may be a significant part of why other people are disagreeing with you. Pre-Uber, I had bad experiences with cabs perhaps 20% of the time. Mostly it was just unreasonable fare demands made after promising something else, but it did escalate to some light stalking and threats of physical violence. (And for whatever it matters, I'm a largish guy and still had that experience.) The vast majority of those experiences were with licensed taxis (or in the worst case, a fake licensed taxi) in America. I'm not at all upset by bartering, asking for help, or struggling with language gaps. I actually agree with you that we've lost something due to Yelp reviews, online bookings, and the larger move to impersonal and intermediated travel. I've had friends be genuinely surprised when I suggested that we skip Yelp while traveling and just wander until someplace looks interesting. But taxis? At best, the mechanical experience is arriving where I'm going. At worst it's a conflict far worse than I can even imagine having in a restaurant or shop. The only personal touch is talking to the driver (or a fellow passenger), and ironically I've actually had more engaging conversations with Uber drivers than with drivers in traditional taxis.

chrisseaton 8y ago

It sounds like you want to enjoy talking to people, experiencing a culture of negotiation, taking part in local services, handle local money. I just want to get from A to B with as little hassle as possible so I can concentrate on things I think actually matter.

gerbilly 8y ago
I do a bit of both, as I'm sure you do. I'm just advocating for the full contact approach to living which I think is being subtly eroded by disney, cruises, resorts, cashless restaurants and uber and so on. I don't know if you read travel writing, but imagine trying to read a good travel writer like Paul Theroux, except by first transposing everything into the mediated realm. Instead of taking a cab and then staying at a small local hotel and eating at a market stall what if the writer took an uber then stayed in a resort and ate at the buffet?
- mprev 8y ago
  But most people aren't travel writers. I travel on business. I want to get safely from one place to another, with as little drama as possible. Fine, Uber isn't for you but other people's preference for that style of transaction has nothing to do with infantilisation.
- chrisseaton 8y ago
  I understand your point of view, but an argument about a taxi fare, and paying a restaurant bill with cash instead of a card just don't seem like high quality life experiences worth cherishing to me.
  - gerbilly 8y ago
    Yeah, but I think removing the possibility of those experiences introduces too much intermediation into daily life for everyone else. I cherish those possibilities, like I cherish freedom. I may not exercise my full freedom every day, but I do cherish it.
    - icebraining 8y ago
      Cash itself is intermediation.

Bartweiss 8y ago

> I take local cabs, even collective cabs. It's never been a problem This may be a significant part of why other people are disagreeing with you. Pre-Uber, I had bad experiences with cabs perhaps 20% of the time. Mostly it was just unreasonable fare demands made after promising something else, but it did escalate to some light stalking and threats of physical violence. (And for whatever it matters, I'm a largish guy and still had that experience.) The vast majority of those experiences were with licensed taxis (or in the worst case, a fake licensed taxi) in America. I'm not at all upset by bartering, asking for help, or struggling with language gaps. I actually agree with you that we've lost something due to Yelp reviews, online bookings, and the larger move to impersonal and intermediated travel. I've had friends be genuinely surprised when I suggested that we skip Yelp while traveling and just wander until someplace looks interesting. But taxis? At best, the mechanical experience is arriving where I'm going. At worst it's a conflict far worse than I can even imagine having in a restaurant or shop. The only personal touch is talking to the driver (or a fellow passenger), and ironically I've actually had more engaging conversations with Uber drivers than with drivers in traditional taxis.