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I agree with the sentiment of this article. The end-game of convenience and optimization is a soulless life with limited randomness and limited serendipity. The

I agree with the sentiment of this article. The end-game of convenience and optimization is a soulless life with limited randomness and limited serendipity. There's also an element of limited choice or freedom, as the consolidation and centralization needed to make a profit will squeeze out smaller players. The path to get there requires that enormous amounts of capital and talent get expended on what ultimately amounts to decadence. I also worry about the broader impacts. For example, many of these services will remain low-profit businesses at best, and an economy built on vaporware valuations and convenience industries feels like a house of cards. And since all this convenience comes at the expense of getting outside and mingling with other humans, is that really a healthy lifestyle from a mental standpoint? Personally my motivation to push back on all this is less about the impact on workers - the long-term impact on the customers themselves is bad enough. For a funnier version of what I am feeling, see Ronny Chieng's take on Amazon Prime: https://youtu.be/BGEAiUeiaKs https://youtu.be/BGEAiUeiaKs

lotsofpulp 5y ago
> And since all this convenience comes at the expense of getting outside and mingling with other humans, is that really a healthy lifestyle from a mental standpoint? What are people doing with the time that they would have spent traveling to procure the item that is being delivered? If anything, more convenient procurement services that require people to spend less time procuring their goods should result in more time to “get outside and mingle”. I do not think services that reduce time required for people to procure things are to blame for not getting outside and mingling. It is probably more to do with broader cultural changes that lead people to prefer staying inside, possibly consuming more entertainment on their own or with existing peer groups. Maybe people are not able to spend the amount of money they want to spend on getting outside and mingling.
- throwanem 5y ago
  > What are people doing with the time that they would have spent traveling to procure the item that is being delivered? Scrolling Instagram and watching Netflix.
  - deleted 5y ago
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lotsofpulp 5y ago

> And since all this convenience comes at the expense of getting outside and mingling with other humans, is that really a healthy lifestyle from a mental standpoint? What are people doing with the time that they would have spent traveling to procure the item that is being delivered? If anything, more convenient procurement services that require people to spend less time procuring their goods should result in more time to “get outside and mingle”. I do not think services that reduce time required for people to procure things are to blame for not getting outside and mingling. It is probably more to do with broader cultural changes that lead people to prefer staying inside, possibly consuming more entertainment on their own or with existing peer groups. Maybe people are not able to spend the amount of money they want to spend on getting outside and mingling.

throwanem 5y ago
> What are people doing with the time that they would have spent traveling to procure the item that is being delivered? Scrolling Instagram and watching Netflix.
- deleted 5y ago
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