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If the restaurant provides free bread (and a large portion of them do), I think it's entirely permissible to combine them. The coffee shops make the their condi

by ruswick 14y ago

If the restaurant provides free bread (and a large portion of them do), I think it's entirely permissible to combine them. The coffee shops make the their condiments available so that people can use them. Why does the milk exist if not to be put in one's coffee?

pifflesnort 14y ago
> If the restaurant provides free bread (and a large portion of them do), I think it's entirely permissible to combine them. They provide bread under what most people understand to be the social contract: that you will order more than a side of bacon. Some restaurants -- especially those that serve students -- even require a per-person minimum order to ensure that they're not losing money on cheapskates. You, sir, are a cheapskate, in that you're willing to break the social contract as to further your own interests, while transferring the cost of your benefit to your host.
jamesbritt 14y ago
Perhaps I'm misreading you, but you seem terribly focused on the letter, not the spirit, of not quite laws but presumed social rules of behavior. That someone can scheme up a rationalization for some behavior does not make it right, desirable, or honorable. It's OK to put milk into a coffee you buy. It's not OK to buy one coffee and then drink several glasses of milk. The same goes for seating. Seats and tables are there so people have a place to sit while they consume their purchases. There may be no set rule on how long it should take to you drink a coffee, but this is where people have to be honest with themselves and consider if they are really still finishing up that coffee or if they are now, so to speak, just drinking free milk.
wpietri 14y ago
That works right up until somebody says, "God, that cheap jerk makes me crazy," and puts up a sign. Or moves the cream behind the counter, slowing down everybody who needs it. Or switches from the pitcher to the single-serving thingies, increasing cost and waste, so they can more easily refuse to give you one. Or just says, "Man, I've had enough of those cheap-ass internet guys. Let's turn off the wireless and remove the power outlets." If you want a cappuccino, buy a cappuccino. If you want a sandwich, buy a sandwich. Commerce is a collaboration between buyer and seller. Both sides are responsible for making sure that the value exchange is sustainable.

by ruswick 14y ago

pifflesnort 14y ago

> If the restaurant provides free bread (and a large portion of them do), I think it's entirely permissible to combine them. They provide bread under what most people understand to be the social contract: that you will order more than a side of bacon. Some restaurants -- especially those that serve students -- even require a per-person minimum order to ensure that they're not losing money on cheapskates. You, sir, are a cheapskate, in that you're willing to break the social contract as to further your own interests, while transferring the cost of your benefit to your host.

jamesbritt 14y ago

Perhaps I'm misreading you, but you seem terribly focused on the letter, not the spirit, of not quite laws but presumed social rules of behavior. That someone can scheme up a rationalization for some behavior does not make it right, desirable, or honorable. It's OK to put milk into a coffee you buy. It's not OK to buy one coffee and then drink several glasses of milk. The same goes for seating. Seats and tables are there so people have a place to sit while they consume their purchases. There may be no set rule on how long it should take to you drink a coffee, but this is where people have to be honest with themselves and consider if they are really still finishing up that coffee or if they are now, so to speak, just drinking free milk.

wpietri 14y ago

That works right up until somebody says, "God, that cheap jerk makes me crazy," and puts up a sign. Or moves the cream behind the counter, slowing down everybody who needs it. Or switches from the pitcher to the single-serving thingies, increasing cost and waste, so they can more easily refuse to give you one. Or just says, "Man, I've had enough of those cheap-ass internet guys. Let's turn off the wireless and remove the power outlets." If you want a cappuccino, buy a cappuccino. If you want a sandwich, buy a sandwich. Commerce is a collaboration between buyer and seller. Both sides are responsible for making sure that the value exchange is sustainable.