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This old post from Moxie Marlinspike in 2012 about having the worst material possessions made a huge impact on me for some unclear reason. Fun read. https://mox

This old post from Moxie Marlinspike in 2012 about having the worst material possessions made a huge impact on me for some unclear reason. Fun read. https://moxie.org/2012/11/27/the-worst.html https://moxie.org/2012/11/27/the-worst.html

yetihehe 6y ago
Ahh, I'm from the camp of "the worst". My girlfriend is from that "the best" camp, but doesn't have too much money. So we can't use that little more expensive aluminum foil, because it's for "special occasions". She got upset because I've slightly damaged cheapest workshop vacuum (it's cheapest, but happened to be rather good quality) using it for heavy duty tasks (and saved 50x it's price by doing those tasks myself). Is this the live one should live? To be slave of your possesions? Do you really need the best tools from the start? I've started with cheapest possible ones and if they break too soon, I'll get better ones. But for now, the almost cheapest ones fully earned their worth.
- BTCOG 6y ago
  No, you should make more money, and act accordingly.
- Zak 6y ago
  I don't find these ideas really contrast as much as they initially appear. Curtis advocates optimizing for some absolute best when shopping for stuff (which as a hobbyist product reviewer I find a bit absurd; few products are one-dimensional enough for that). Marlinspike talks about the value of unplanned life experiences. There's a middle way for a lot of product categories: find an enthusiast community and get their recommendation for a low-cost and beginner-friendly product. It's often listed in their FAQ. The gap between enthusiast-grade and mass-market products in some categories is huge, while the gap in price may not be.
nickthemagicman 6y ago
He's a great writer, his post on privacy and privacy abuse was eye opening for me https://moxie.org/2013/06/12/we-should-all-have-something-to-hide.html https://moxie.org/2013/06/12/we-should-all-have-something-to...
m463 6y ago
I think after reading that... Do the right thing poorly instead of the wrong thing correctly.
ljm 6y ago
I get real 'Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance' vibes from reading that. An excellent post that resonates a lot.
nswest23 6y ago
This was an entertaining read. I'm probably more of an adherent of the worst than then best. The ideal is probably somewhere in the middle as it usually is. I bought my kid a cheap bike and it fell apart while he was riding it. So then I bought him a more expensive bike. I've bought a lot of junk and I've spent more time trying to fix the junk or replace it than I'd like to admit and I'd rather spend the upfront time finding the stuff that's not junk in the future so I can spend more time with my family and less time running to the store for a new toaster after mine blows up. just my 2 cents.
- emilecantin 6y ago
  There is something liberating in having cheap stuff: I wasn't scared to park my old beat-up Jetta in sketchy parts of town; who's dumb enough to steal that POS? But there is also an enjoyment to be had with nice stuff. Just be aware that that enjoyment often comes with a "duty" to care for it. The trade-off might be worth it, might not. That care might even be part of the enjoyment: my dad _really_ enjoys cleaning, waxing and polishing his Mini Cooper S (a special edition John Cooper Works model).
srtjstjsj 6y ago
Ah, HN's Dustin Curtis phase, like snap bracelets and pogs.
forgotmypw17 6y ago
Thank you for sharing this link. I have not read it before, but I've been inspired by Moxie in my life. In 2013, I started gradually unsubscribing from things which were not absolutely essential to my existence.
Cpoll 6y ago
I do like the sentiment, and there's a lot to agree with in the post, but I think he strawmanned Dustin a bit: I don't think Curtis was saying that possessions should be "things we live in service to." I think most people can appreciate what Dustin is saying about owning a high-quality object that won't break on you when you need it (even if the cutlery might be a bit extreme). It's great that you're learning a bunch by buying the worst motorcycle or boat, but you probably don't want to buy the worst lifejacket or helmet. > The best means waiting, planning, researching, and saving until one can acquire the perfect equipment for a given task. Partisans of the best will probably never end up accidentally riding a freight train 1000 miles in the wrong direction... Also, and I'm being a bit tongue-in-cheek here: with people trusting Moxie with their privacy, I hope he's past his phase of (metaphorically) riding freight trains without checking maps, and is spending some time waiting, planning, researching and saving.

yetihehe 6y ago

Ahh, I'm from the camp of "the worst". My girlfriend is from that "the best" camp, but doesn't have too much money. So we can't use that little more expensive aluminum foil, because it's for "special occasions". She got upset because I've slightly damaged cheapest workshop vacuum (it's cheapest, but happened to be rather good quality) using it for heavy duty tasks (and saved 50x it's price by doing those tasks myself). Is this the live one should live? To be slave of your possesions? Do you really need the best tools from the start? I've started with cheapest possible ones and if they break too soon, I'll get better ones. But for now, the almost cheapest ones fully earned their worth.

BTCOG 6y ago
No, you should make more money, and act accordingly.
Zak 6y ago
I don't find these ideas really contrast as much as they initially appear. Curtis advocates optimizing for some absolute best when shopping for stuff (which as a hobbyist product reviewer I find a bit absurd; few products are one-dimensional enough for that). Marlinspike talks about the value of unplanned life experiences. There's a middle way for a lot of product categories: find an enthusiast community and get their recommendation for a low-cost and beginner-friendly product. It's often listed in their FAQ. The gap between enthusiast-grade and mass-market products in some categories is huge, while the gap in price may not be.

nickthemagicman 6y ago

He's a great writer, his post on privacy and privacy abuse was eye opening for me https://moxie.org/2013/06/12/we-should-all-have-something-to-hide.html https://moxie.org/2013/06/12/we-should-all-have-something-to...

m463 6y ago

I think after reading that... Do the right thing poorly instead of the wrong thing correctly.

ljm 6y ago

I get real 'Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance' vibes from reading that. An excellent post that resonates a lot.

nswest23 6y ago

This was an entertaining read. I'm probably more of an adherent of the worst than then best. The ideal is probably somewhere in the middle as it usually is. I bought my kid a cheap bike and it fell apart while he was riding it. So then I bought him a more expensive bike. I've bought a lot of junk and I've spent more time trying to fix the junk or replace it than I'd like to admit and I'd rather spend the upfront time finding the stuff that's not junk in the future so I can spend more time with my family and less time running to the store for a new toaster after mine blows up. just my 2 cents.

emilecantin 6y ago
There is something liberating in having cheap stuff: I wasn't scared to park my old beat-up Jetta in sketchy parts of town; who's dumb enough to steal that POS? But there is also an enjoyment to be had with nice stuff. Just be aware that that enjoyment often comes with a "duty" to care for it. The trade-off might be worth it, might not. That care might even be part of the enjoyment: my dad _really_ enjoys cleaning, waxing and polishing his Mini Cooper S (a special edition John Cooper Works model).

srtjstjsj 6y ago

Ah, HN's Dustin Curtis phase, like snap bracelets and pogs.

forgotmypw17 6y ago

Thank you for sharing this link. I have not read it before, but I've been inspired by Moxie in my life. In 2013, I started gradually unsubscribing from things which were not absolutely essential to my existence.

Cpoll 6y ago

I do like the sentiment, and there's a lot to agree with in the post, but I think he strawmanned Dustin a bit: I don't think Curtis was saying that possessions should be "things we live in service to." I think most people can appreciate what Dustin is saying about owning a high-quality object that won't break on you when you need it (even if the cutlery might be a bit extreme). It's great that you're learning a bunch by buying the worst motorcycle or boat, but you probably don't want to buy the worst lifejacket or helmet. > The best means waiting, planning, researching, and saving until one can acquire the perfect equipment for a given task. Partisans of the best will probably never end up accidentally riding a freight train 1000 miles in the wrong direction... Also, and I'm being a bit tongue-in-cheek here: with people trusting Moxie with their privacy, I hope he's past his phase of (metaphorically) riding freight trains without checking maps, and is spending some time waiting, planning, researching and saving.