5 ms·

I too, want a simple minimalistic car with minimum fancy technogizmodoodats. However that is not what the general market wants.

Frost1x 3y ago
>However that is not what the general market wants. Not sure that's the case. You're seeing enshitification here. We keep pretending demand has a lot to blame but when you see voters opinions like this, it seems a lot more like supply side market manipulation. Now one might argue Maine is an exception to the market and blah blah but frankly I've grown tired of the invisible hand of the market argument. If truly a lot of privatized policy and practice comes to fruition because it's what the market demands then I'm not entirely sure market economics is a great model for humans. There so much consumer hostility and exploitation anymore that I for one am not a fan.
- qwytw 3y ago
  > We keep pretending demand has a lot to blame but when you see voters opinions like this, it seems a lot more like supply side market manipulation Want incentives do car manufacturers have in doing that if it's not something that most consumers want? I doubt "collecting/selling user data" is the reason if you could charge a $1k+ premium for a "enshitified" car.
- decafninja 3y ago
  I disagree in that while I myself don’t like all these technogizmodoodats, I can certainly see how many more people can and do want these features. They do make life a lot easier. Heck, a lot of them I would love too, but not at the cost of over complicating my car. Also remember this is HN. What people often want here is not what the average person wants, whether it be cars, phones, laptops, or many other items.
  - yunwal 3y ago
    The article is referencing the entire state of Maine, and their preferences, not HN.
    - decafninja 3y ago
      I’m referring to the original comment in this thread, not the article.
      - yunwal 3y ago
        But the point is that this article shows that this is real people’s preferences, not just some wacky hackers with an axe to grind.
        brewtide 3y ago
        Having grown up and lived in Maine for over 40 years has awakened me to an interesting thought semi-recently: The "Maine mindset" of solve the task at hand, oftentimes even if it does not look pretty or seem an 'official' fix is basically the hacker mindset. Having not many people in a rather large rural area that gets "all the seasons", combined with generally far lower incomes than many areas tends to put "survival" on the table quite frequently. Making things work, modifying things to work in the use case you need something to work in, kludges and contraptions is seen across every aspect of living in this state. Reuse and re-purposing of items (and saving everything under the sun just in case it may be needed -- you should see our yards!) Seems to be THE core mindset. The weather is... Often less than ideal, but the people and this mindset make living here a pretty unique experience it feels like. It's not surprising at all that over 85% of the voting population aligned with "yeah, people should be able to fix their own shit" -- because for so many of us "mariners" (edit: Mainers), it's how we make the ends meet and survive until the next Spring. Also of note, basically the entire state is 100% dependent on car travels. We travel distances for.. everything. In weather. If your car breaks, etc, you immediately are in a position that needs to be rectified real quickly...

Frost1x 3y ago

>However that is not what the general market wants. Not sure that's the case. You're seeing enshitification here. We keep pretending demand has a lot to blame but when you see voters opinions like this, it seems a lot more like supply side market manipulation. Now one might argue Maine is an exception to the market and blah blah but frankly I've grown tired of the invisible hand of the market argument. If truly a lot of privatized policy and practice comes to fruition because it's what the market demands then I'm not entirely sure market economics is a great model for humans. There so much consumer hostility and exploitation anymore that I for one am not a fan.

qwytw 3y ago
> We keep pretending demand has a lot to blame but when you see voters opinions like this, it seems a lot more like supply side market manipulation Want incentives do car manufacturers have in doing that if it's not something that most consumers want? I doubt "collecting/selling user data" is the reason if you could charge a $1k+ premium for a "enshitified" car.
decafninja 3y ago
I disagree in that while I myself don’t like all these technogizmodoodats, I can certainly see how many more people can and do want these features. They do make life a lot easier. Heck, a lot of them I would love too, but not at the cost of over complicating my car. Also remember this is HN. What people often want here is not what the average person wants, whether it be cars, phones, laptops, or many other items.
- yunwal 3y ago
  The article is referencing the entire state of Maine, and their preferences, not HN.
  - decafninja 3y ago
    I’m referring to the original comment in this thread, not the article.
    - yunwal 3y ago
      But the point is that this article shows that this is real people’s preferences, not just some wacky hackers with an axe to grind.
      - brewtide 3y ago
        Having grown up and lived in Maine for over 40 years has awakened me to an interesting thought semi-recently: The "Maine mindset" of solve the task at hand, oftentimes even if it does not look pretty or seem an 'official' fix is basically the hacker mindset. Having not many people in a rather large rural area that gets "all the seasons", combined with generally far lower incomes than many areas tends to put "survival" on the table quite frequently. Making things work, modifying things to work in the use case you need something to work in, kludges and contraptions is seen across every aspect of living in this state. Reuse and re-purposing of items (and saving everything under the sun just in case it may be needed -- you should see our yards!) Seems to be THE core mindset. The weather is... Often less than ideal, but the people and this mindset make living here a pretty unique experience it feels like. It's not surprising at all that over 85% of the voting population aligned with "yeah, people should be able to fix their own shit" -- because for so many of us "mariners" (edit: Mainers), it's how we make the ends meet and survive until the next Spring. Also of note, basically the entire state is 100% dependent on car travels. We travel distances for.. everything. In weather. If your car breaks, etc, you immediately are in a position that needs to be rectified real quickly...