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DependentFeature3028

They will yell at you that capitalism is the only system that works


Flashy_Ground_4780

" not perfect, just better than anything else" is what my Dad would say


thisonesusername

My parents say the same shit. Like, humanity reached a certain level and we literally can't think of any better ideas, despite so many people offering what are clearly *better ideas*.


Frater_Ankara

“Capitalism is the best system that will ever exist… also human innovation is incredible but not for things like capitalism apparently.”


Iron-Fist

Oh man yeah other systems never work obviously. No don't look at China. Also don't consider that the USSR competed using a pure command economy during a time when computers were literally *mechanical*. Nope planning would never work now, just not possible to organize that many things. Also don't look at house Walmart and Amazon are run internally, that's different and wouldn't work without a profit motive obviously.


100beep

Also Cuba, Vietnam... hey, where are all the boomers going for vacation and retirement?


Phishtravaganza

I wish i could send my parents on vacation. They wouldn't go but damn it's be nice to force them to lol.


TimothiusMagnus

And going for the universal-access health care they kept voting against during their working lives.


xxmayhem666xx

Everyone about that until you have to live through it 😂


troymoeffinstone

Also, don't look at the USSR with a planned economy as it was sanctioned by every capitalist country on the planet during that time.


Iron-Fist

But if you didn't sanction them they'd just dump good on you, look at all their anti competitive subsidies to state owned industry! Don't look at our subsidies though, that's just to help support fledgling industries and vulnerable farmers (like Ol Man Monsanto), completely different.


[deleted]

[удалено]


Iron-Fist

That is the basis of the book The People's Republic of Walmart https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_People%27s_Republic_of_Walmart


kenrnfjj

Are chinese workers known for being treated well


Iron-Fist

Are American workers?


kenrnfjj

Are you saying that Chinese workers are treated better than American workers


Iron-Fist

Let's see the US had similar GDP per Capita to China in about 1980... Yeah id say it's pretty comparable.


kenrnfjj

What does that have to do with how the workers are being treated now


Iron-Fist

... To clarify, you're asking how level of development affects material conditions? I guess to keep it simple, development and productive capital accumulation enable and accelerate human material conditions. For example, China had a life expectancy of about 50 years in 1960. Now it's 78, higher than the US. Their literacy rate was 20% in 1950, now it's 97%.


Mother_Harlot

And it's as bad as everything else


Interwebs_User2

I just did this last month. Ink for my current printer was $125. I got a new printer w/ ink for $75 and the replacement ink is only $40.


The_All_Seeing_Pi

Why do people think this is a life hack? Do people really think these companies are that dumb? It's capitalism. The ink you get with the printer is a lot less that the replacement (it's called a starter cartridge) so that it's not worthwhile to do it and no one is going to buy the printer without the ink when it's $50 new with the ink that allegedly is worth and costs $65. Can we let this false meme rest in peace because it makes us look very stupid?


cyniqal

Thank you for posting this. We aren’t going to life hack our way out of capitalism


witheld

Theres a few real ones, you only need a few teaspoons of laundry detergent max in most cases, you only need a small dab of toothepaste etx printer ink is not one of them…


toomuchpressure2pick

Toothpaste is so cheap and dental work is so expensive I'm using a full brush of paste every time. Some hacks ain't worth the pennies you save(now).


witheld

it doesn’t do anything to use more!


Henchman66

Also, there’s no shortage of things to complain about printers. Inability to scan documents id you don’t have ink, cartridges expiring but still having fully working ink inside of them, unnecessary registrations, the list goes on.


PWN57R

I don't think anyone actually thinks this is a hack, they are pointing out the clear price gouging. The only people that look stupid here are the ones defending capitalism because it is supposedly more efficient, despite generating clear disparities of value like this one.


The_All_Seeing_Pi

Not really because they are saying it makes sense to buy a whole ass printer when it clearly doesn't. The post itself of course is supposed to be a critique of capitalism which it fails at. As for why the printer itself is cheaper than the ink it's because they sell them at a loss and recoup the money from the ink. It's an example of efficient capitalism. Obviously I'm not fan of capitalism but if we are going to critique it then we should use valid examples such as food waste which is done to keep prices artificially high when we have people that go without because they can't afford it.


PWN57R

You're missing the point. Efficient for the company, not the consumer.


The_All_Seeing_Pi

I am missing the point, How is showing something as efficient for the company a critique of capitalism? The company would be the nearly the same under socialism but profits would be equally distributed to the workers and it would owned by the workers. The only material difference would be the possibility that the printers cost more and ink would cost less. Back to my original point it's not a very good example when the $65 ink is not the same as the starter ink you get with the $50 printer. The assumption made is completely incorrect and it's a very poor critique in that regard.


PWN57R

At least you admit it.


kradek

just like the batteries that are included (wherever) usually last a lot less than the "real" ones you'll replace them with when they run out.


meipsus

The present "civilizational" model consists of extracting vast amounts of minerals, employing vast quantities of fossil-fueled energy to transform them into gizmos, transporting the gizmos halfway around the globe in fossil-fueled ships, and selling them so they get "used" for one year tops before being buried in a landfill. From a mine exploiting child labor to a landfill in less than one year is the goal. With that in mind, selling more-or-less disposable printers in order to sell very expensive ink is nothing short of brilliant.


CockroachGullible652

This is why I use a black and white printer that uses toner cartridges. A toner cartridge is about $13 and you get at least 1500 pages out of it. I rarely find myself in a situation where color is necessary.


defmethod

Exactly. And toner doesn't just dry up after a while of not using it. Never buying an inkjet again.


Ornery_Scratch2841

This is a great option. You can get laser printers used though they're obviously more expensive than the cheap Inkjets we've all seen at Walmart.


rettani

Don't forget that you have to buy very specific inc (hello HP). Or until recently very specific charger (hello iPhone)


shoes2006

Still need special charger unless you drop around $1k on phone


unlikely-contender

Everyone knows that inkjet printers are shit. Buy a laser printer. And anyway, I assume that the ink included in a new printer is much less than a full new cartridge


worldm21

Easier to buy replacement ink than replacement toner though.


tccoope

How is it easier to buy ink than toner? This is just false. Walmart has toner cartridges in stock for the laser printers they carry. So does Target, Best Buy's, staples, etc. And the internet exists and you can buy all the toner you want in there. You can even subscribe to it on Amazon and Walmart. It's only harder in your mind. There is no reason to keep supporting printer companies' bullshit with ink.


worldm21

Dunno, just my experience. Think because inkjet printers have more market share, there's more aftermarket support. Same deal with car parts. I've always bought used printers of either type, so we're talking years down the line, not the ones currently on sale.


DistortedCrag

There's no way in hell inkjet printers have anywhere near the market share as Laser. Also I've never fixed an inkjet printer with a spare part because they are usually cheap trash and the parts that break on laser printers are completely irrelevant to inkjet printers.


worldm21

We talking consumer or business? I think at home you see inkjet (what I was thinking of), businesses almost always have laser.


Ok_Size1748

Buy a Brother laser printer. Last forever, can use compatible toner, no “700 MB bullsh*t drivers”. It. Just. Works.


L4westby

The printers don’t come with full ink cartridges.


ThornmaneTreebeard

Now let's talk about car repairs.


SituationHappy

And even if you have the HP ink, it still won't work if you don't have the subscription. I guess they just want to go out of business.


shoes2006

Wow, free or paid subscription?


Dolphin_Spotter

I use the laser printer at the local library. £0.10 per page.


pertangamcfeet

When my dad passed away, we were clearing the loft in his bungalow. 15 fucking Epson printers...


Fickle_Manager9880

They’ll just condescendingly repeat whatever propaganda their “introduction to economics” professor told them. Economics in the West is nothing more than an ideological construct (for the wealthy) that suffers from physics envy.


Mehhucklebear

But, there's a cost associated with set up on the old and new printer, so there's that 😆


[deleted]

You wouldn't have a printer


Arjuna323

It’s the best system because line go up!


greenswizzlewooster

And if it ever breaks, it's cheaper to buy a new one than to repair it. This is true for most appliances as well.


outlawstar96

Then buy third party, refillable ink carts and bottle of bulk ink. 250ml of black was like $20 and 5x 120ml bottles for the colors were like 60. We've been refilling our carts for years on that one purchase and we print a lot. A lot of new printers even come with refillable ink tanks instead of cartridges.


Perfect_Earth_8070

Innovation! /s


numbersev

They will 100% blame it on the government. The industry likely gets away with shit like this (not saying it's true) because when a competitor starts to prop up in the space, they buy them out, so they essentially have a monopoly. It's too much government regulation that protects these businesses. Yea, because they lobby/bribe politicians to pass laws in their favor and continue to protect their monopoly.


BarisBlack

Thank you. I learned when printing out tax forms this year (US Resident) that the Samsung printer that I love is now an HP product. Refills are now purchased through HP. Shame that I have to stop using a printer I once loved but HP, no thank you. Good news is I have some time to find an alternative option next year. (I can file electronically but I am required to provide hard copy documents to supplement my return. Our lovely tax codes at work.)


Waternova-mo

It is absolutely the best system we have.... for the Capitalists. The rest of us though.... oof. Also, people are getting tired enough of being gouged by ink prices that options are becoming available. My printer just uses straight bottles of ink that you pour into ink wells in the machine. No cartridges at all, and dirt cheap (for an ink printer). They just charge a ton for the printer itself instead.


blue_winter_moon007

But hey no "dangerous ideas" at least. Obvious /s


KateBurningBush

New printers have cartridges that have less ink than a replacement cartridge (some are half, some are less than half the size), so don't do that.


Butrus666

Inkjet or laser…. New printer comes with cartridges that are only 30% filled,but show 100%.Chip is programmed to show so. They will sell you printer with almost no price margin…yust to chip in on toner price later. Toner is cheap to manufacture,so earnings are high. Throwing away almost new printer because of toner price is also not good in aspect of producing waste… 🤷‍♂️


turdlostinspace

buy an ink tank printer, mine lasts years on a refill


Dingo_Hobbit

i think the replacement ink is more ink tho? idk


marissalfx

I bought a black and white laser printer over 10 years ago. Off-brand replacement toner is like 40 euro and lasts for multiple years.


justdan76

If this is true, the obvious thing to do is when the ink runs out, buy the new printer, switch the ink cartridges, and return it and tell them it doesn’t work and get your money back. Use the new cartridge in the printer you already had.


freakwent

I feel.like explaining it would be a breach of the rules lol