Miakoda Feb 27, 2023
People who are pro-capitalism aren't swayed by the suffering of others. So how about a big thread on a bunch of "1st world" ways capitalism has fucked you!
Show threadMiakoda Feb 27, 2023
I was downright careless with my old Nokia, and it never failed. I kept it a long time too.
Capitalism has convinced you you need a new, thin, expensive, fragile smartphone every 2 to 4 years. You didn't break your old one, miraculously. So why is it a slow piece of shit now? Did you change what you do on your phone all that much in 2 to 4 years? Aren't you still just messaging and scrolling social media?
Show threadMiakoda Feb 27, 2023
Use your PC mostly for e-mail, documents, and social media? Maybe hanging on to digital photos? Maybe even editing them! Same shit you've done on your PC for decades, really. But... you need a new one? Is your old one broken? No. Capitalism just made your old one "unsupported" now! Explain to me why your spreadsheet needs more computing power all of a sudden.
Show threadMiakoda Feb 27, 2023
Gamer? Games used to be as finished as they could, and they tried to catch bugs, because there was no way to update your cartridge. Capitalism has convinced you to pay $70+ for half finished shit. And now they can take it away! Oh, you have the disc? Enjoy the unfinished version when they take the full one away IF the disc isnt just a downloader. You know Sonic the Hedgehog on cartridge still plays just the same on Genesis as it did in the 90s.
tbspMar 1, 2023
Show threadMiakoda 
Capitalism has convinced you RSS is antiquated. The real reason it's fading is because it doesn't have ads and tracking. You going to tell me the news article is truly better on a browser with ads than on a little program you can open any time, on or offline?
Feb 27, 2023 at 9:37pmWeb
Show threadMiakoda Feb 27, 2023
Regular TV has been playing shows a little sped up so they can cram in another ad, and capitalism convinced you to tolerate this.
Oh, streaming? Capitalism has convinced you to tolerate splitting the libraries up all over the place. $10 here, $15 there... might as well have that $80 cable package.
Show threadMiakoda Feb 27, 2023
Capitalism convinced you you want your car's HVAC controls in the expensive AF infotainment system. Sure, you can cope with no music on your drive when the radio breaks, but now you get no AC and no heat! Did you really have more quality of life changing a knob to a little slider on a glass panel?
Show threadMiakoda Feb 27, 2023
Like to look pretty? Capitalism has somehow convinced you one clear rock is vastly superior to another, identical looking, cheaper clear rock. I challenge you to find me someone who can tell the difference at the distance anyone seeing you wear them would see it.
Show threadMiakoda Feb 27, 2023
Capitalism, as well as racism - throw that in for good measure here, has convinced you to add a little fee to your meal so the restaurant can pay the staff even less than poverty wages!
Yes, tipping started with making sure black people got paid less since they couldn't legally have slaves now. Well, at least not blatant obvious slaves.
Show threadMiakoda Feb 27, 2023
Have you noticed appliances and cars fall apart far quicker than antiques? Capitalism convinced you to be cool with that. There is no reason, besides getting you to pay again, a washing machine can't last your whole life and beyond.
Show threadMiakoda Feb 27, 2023
Capitalism has convinced you your healthcare will somehow be worse than being unable to afford it at all if we just "give it away" to everyone. It has also convinced you it's somehow better to pay more for insurance that won't always cover you, and often won't cover the full cost of care, than it is to pay a smaller amount in taxes. The math says you're a gullible idiot who's easily controlled by simply saying "increased taxes".
Show threadMiakoda Feb 27, 2023

Capitalism has convinced you that $199 is a good sale compared to $219. Better buy now! If you wait to think if you really want that thing, the sale will end!
They also have you convinced $199 is appreciably less than $200. They really milk that 9 thing, you gullible ape.

Don't believe me? Take an ad of something you want. Edit it to add that penny. Now look at it again in a few days. Gullible ass ape!

Show threadMiakoda Feb 27, 2023
They convince you nobody will work if there is no profit motive. The only people who spout that shit are people who wouldn't help others, and the gullible apes they aren't helping.
Besides, do you really think piles of garbage, lack of food, and no entertainment wouldn't motivate most non-disabled people to chip in and get it done?
Show threadMiakoda Feb 27, 2023
Ecco minded? Capitalism convinced you getting rid of plastic straws is the solution while you just kinda ignore the pollution the corps are dumping in to the environment.
Show threadMiakoda Feb 27, 2023
Capitalism has convinced you that if you don't buy shit for your loved ones every holiday, you might as well spit in their faces.
Yeah, getting something I want is nice, but I'm not going to love my friends less if he got me nothing. Besides, what to do with things I don't have a use or space for? I'd rather have my friends' presence.
Show threadMiakoda Feb 27, 2023
Capitalism has convinced you that surveiling your every move is not only ok, but somehow good for you! Google reads your Gmail, and follows you where you bring your phone, and listens to what you say!
Oh, but you got nothing to hide? Yeah, alone time in my bed, if you catch my drift, isnt something I need to be ashamed of but I do not need a fucking audience. Google doesn't need to hear about some growth you called your doctor about. How does privacy mean nothing to you?!
Show threadMiakoda Feb 27, 2023
Gay? Capitalism loves to wave the rainbow around to get you to buy shit, and then fuck over their trans employee when she wants her surgery on company health insurance. Hey, it saves money and if she kills herself, they can just stuff another employee in her place. Maybe that one won't whine about surgery!
Oh, gay employees make the homophobes uncomfy, and can't miss that dollar. They'll find something to fire the queer for!
Show threadMiakoda Feb 27, 2023
Capitalism will lie to you for a buck!
Fox airs lies 24/7 because it makes them money. Tic Tacs are almost entirely sugar, but they're labeled sugar free.
Tobacco convinced people for decades that smoking is fine, hell it even helps asthma! Your doctor picks Camels, it must be the best!
That steak is fine, ignore the covered over date!
Show threadMiakoda Feb 27, 2023
Capitalism fucks with your head!
"You deserve the car you want"
"Buying this scam saves you $x a year!"
Let's not forget the colors and scents they use to trick you in to wanting shit you don't need, and didn't want a minute ago!
Show threadMiakoda Feb 27, 2023
Capitalism tricks you in to working for free!
Be it the few minutes outside your shift to take 1 call, answer 1 email, to getting you to scan and bag your own groceries!
You think self check out was for your convenience? Hahahaha!
Show threadDaniel ダニエル Feb 28, 2023
@hellomiakoda the self checkout is so that I can ✨forget✨ to scan stuff
Show threadMiakoda Feb 28, 2023
@tamagotchipapi
Oh, yes, of course!
Show threadYoni DenFeb 28, 2023

@hellomiakoda You should always see if there are items that weigh the same but cost less, scan those and leave them behind.
example: 100grams of walnuts is 1/3 the price of 100grams of cashews, 1 can of kidney beans is 1/2 the price of adzuki beans
Buy both if you feel, but scan only the cheaper items.

If they won't "train" you or compensate you for your time, you cannot be blamed for "making mistakes" when scanning. You are working for them. It is their fault if "mistakes" are made.

Show threadRiedlerFeb 28, 2023
@yoniden @hellomiakoda I would, but there's a very scary looking guy with a broken nose standing there, intimitatingly, to make sure nobody steals anything. It's certainly working for me…
Show threadmpmaddogFeb 28, 2023
@hellomiakoda I have come to the conclusion they eff with your mind.. make the weak minds think they owe the MAN.. therapy people.. not even work in your own self interest sadly..
Show threadRiedlerFeb 28, 2023

@hellomiakoda ok but to be fair, it *is* more convenient for smaller purchases. And the throughput is much higher, so you won't get stuck at peak hours.

That's actually very important for me, because near our school there's a supermarket selling good Leberkäs in Kaiser rolls for cheap and a lot of peeps go get those for lunch. Some others get other stuff there too.

Getting close to 250 hungry IT students through within the same 10 minutes would be very hard without the self-checkout machines.

Show threadAntiracistHippieMar 12, 2023
@hellomiakoda #Capitalism is the root of all #evil. #CapitalismKills
Show threadColin FryMar 1, 2023
@hellomiakoda Disabled friend got a job at a disability employment service. He was tested in the first week and was 65% of the productivity of the most experienced worker there, so they paid him 65% of the wage. Later, when insurance premiums were rising dramatically, he was deemed a greater risk in a fire and was sacked.
Show threadMiakoda Mar 1, 2023
@colinfry666
Wooooooow
Show threadColin FryMar 1, 2023
@hellomiakoda Great thread, BTW. A few fist pumps as I was reading through.
Show threadMiakoda Mar 1, 2023
@colinfry666
Show threadcelebdaeMar 1, 2023
@hellomiakoda because it is a concept and not a thing in itself. One can live a happy life and not once think about privacy, if one chooses to eliminate that concept.
Show threadcelebdaeMar 1, 2023
@hellomiakoda Google is not a person and they are shaping the world without me being able to change a thing about it all because I'm neither rich nor a politician which in your country is the same so I simply say goodbye to that concept and I will revisited this decision when the fascists have completely taken over and using all that information to selectively kill people.
Show threadMiakoda Mar 1, 2023
@celebdae
it will be too late then
Show threadjeancfMar 1, 2023
@hellomiakoda
At Christmas I suggest that people give the money that they planned on spending for my present to a good cause and just give me a card saying that they did so. Bonus: it makes people feel good and provides conversation topics.
Show threadbetalars  @homeMar 5, 2023
@hellomiakoda this one hit especially hard, as a mandated profit motive is really doing but prevent me from getting any work done right now.
Show threadBlitzen 🇺🇦Mar 2, 2023
@hellomiakoda So I don't have the programming knowledge to make this a reality, but I really think someone should make a free browser extension that rounds 0.99 to the dollar or 99 dollars to the hundred. I wonder what kind of effect, if any, that would have on our collective spending?
Show threadmpmaddogFeb 28, 2023
@hellomiakoda FYI Insurance was setup as part of DRGs to control cost not profit.. called project creep for profit.. never worked then still not work NOW..and you get less care for the MONEY>. frankly .. in Healthcare sixty years.. its a shit show.. frankly..blow it up.. the model does not work for anyone.
Show threadJoeStewartFeb 28, 2023
@mpmaddog @hellomiakoda
We pay the most (by far the most expensive system the world has ever known)
For less (we don’t cover everyone, and lots are impoverished)
At a lower quality (by every public health measure we suck).
Blow it up!
#Truth #MaybeMedicare4All
Show threadBill OrcuttFeb 28, 2023

@hellomiakoda

Right on!

IMHO when it comes to the #ClimateEmergency - It is not hopeless & we, the people are not helpless!

It’s up to us – WE,THE PEOPLE to save planet Earth by becoming #ClimateConsumers who actively mitigate global warming by our daily choices of who we donate to, vote for, invest/divest/bank in; what we buy, eat, drive/pedal; to degasifying & electrifying everything; reduce, reuse, recycle; & limit our overconsumption. https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2018/12/27/35-ways-reduce-carbon-footprint/

Greta Thunberg: “Politicians are not coming to the rescue of planet Earth” https://www.newstatesman.com/environment/2022/10/greta-thunberg-guest-edit-politicians-rescue-planet & “Saving the world is voluntary…we need billions of #climate activists” https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/oct/08/greta-thunberg-climate-delusion-greenwashed-out-of-our-senses

William Stanley Jevons : “Value is created by the consumer, not the producer… the consumer is the ‘ultimate regulator of demand’” https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2016/11/how-humans-became-consumers/508700/

The 35 Easiest Ways to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint

With these simple changes, you can make a difference without making much of an effort or financial investment.

State of the Planet
Show threadDoug DelamatterFeb 28, 2023
@hellomiakoda Capitalism also tries to convince us that the fastest and easiest way up the mountain is to pull others down and use their bodies as stepping stones. But when we get to the top, we are alone. Democratic Socialism points out that when people help each other to climb the mountain, it's easier for everyone and we get to the top as a group, happy to share the experience.
Show threadMarek GluzaMar 1, 2023

@hellomiakoda as a European expat, it is maddening to me to fathom that I don't have insurance but merely a limited coverage agreement with a party which holds power over whether a reimbursement would be granted. It is absolutely maddening.

My insurance card has 'dental cover' written on it in red. Magnificent divination of capitalism. I tried to be civil when I called the hotline and have educated their representative about the difference between coverage and coverage capped at a BS amount.

Show threadnomoretrumpFeb 28, 2023
@hellomiakoda Well, all those shitty appliances are made in China with crappy parts. What does last a life time, is washing clothes on a rock by the river, but no one wants to do that these days. I have done it. it works and is awesome, Get off your ass, wash the stains out of your underoos, and stop complaining.
Show threadcottonmanifestoFeb 28, 2023
@tiredoftrumpstuff @hellomiakoda the River is pretty frozen rn
Show threadMiakoda Feb 28, 2023
@tiredoftrumpstuff
And this is why the minimun wage is still $7.25. "Stop complaining"
Well, you'll own nothing and enjoy it.
Meanwhile, the Nazis are back, but you won't complain.
I don't like your type. You'll be complacent through all sorts of terrible.
Show threadDavid StirrupFeb 28, 2023
@hellomiakoda
Here is an article I wrote about the subject of the failure of modern day appliances, forcing you to renew them on a regular basis.
#consumerism #capitalism https://creatingsocialism.org/the-fridge-that-would-not-die/
The fridge that would not die - Critical Mass

Governments need to agree standards and put into place legislation for more sustainable goods to be produced.

Critical Mass
Show threadloriFeb 28, 2023
@hellomiakoda this one lost me a bit, while I do think a lot of both appliances and cars are deliberately designed now to not last as long, survivorship bias is getting you here. We've always had cars and refrigerators and whatnot that weren't built to last. They've long been scrapped. The ones that ARE still around were the good ones, but that doesn't mean there weren't plenty of pieces of shit that are long sent to a landfill. People fall into this trap of thinking antiques are inherently always better all the time. The shitty antiques didn't last long enough to still be here.
Show threadwiredogFeb 28, 2023

@hellomiakoda

Cars? I’m old enough to remember when a car hitting 100,000 miles was an event, and time to replace it before something major like the engine failed. These days, with regular maintenance, a car can be expected to last 250k miles without a catastrophic failure. With better gas mileage and handling too.

Show threadwiredogFeb 28, 2023

@hellomiakoda Take a look at this crash test video.

https://youtu.be/fPF4fBGNK0U

2009 Chevy Malibu vs 1959 Bel Air Crash Test | Consumer Reports

YouTube
Show threadMirenFeb 28, 2023
@hellomiakoda yes to all of those! 🙌
Show threadcslinuxboyFeb 28, 2023

@hellomiakoda Welcome to #ExtremeCapitalism. It all started with the #lightbulb cartel at its invention.

#Capitalism

Show threadD's lack of faith in humanityFeb 28, 2023
@hellomiakoda oh, and "fix it yourself?" Nah, those days are gone. Every product is sealed, every part is too expensive to replace independently vs. just replacing the entire unit.
Show threadBench MarkMar 1, 2023
@hellomiakoda My washing machine is 50 (!) years old and still working well. Eudora 38, made in #Austria. Many of those ancient models are still in operation.
Show threadunmellowFeb 28, 2023
@hellomiakoda have a source for this? It makes sense but I have never even considered that tipping is just another dumb policy created for bigotry.
Show threadPolychrome Feb 28, 2023
@hellomiakoda huh, I thought tipping started in the US during the Prohibition era as a way to pay for alcohol under the table and the practice stuck and became the stupid that it is today long after Prohibition ended.
Show threadBetsy. (a muffin).Feb 28, 2023

@hellomiakoda To be fair, diamonds are favored for wedding rings/etc in part because of their DURABILITY -- less durable rocks might not hold up well under decades of daily wear.

That said, agree with this argument if applied to lab vs mined versions of the same mineral.

Show threadelle mundyFeb 28, 2023
@hellomiakoda life is worse with little sliders on glass panels because you have to *look* at them instead of feeling them from muscle memory while keeping your eyes on the dang road where they belong
Show threadD's lack of faith in humanityFeb 28, 2023
@hellomiakoda and the future is for them to rent you your features. You want seat heaters? Pay a monthly fee for them and we'll turn them off when you don't want to pay the fee anymore. Everyone is moving to the monthly payment model.
Show threadAccordionBruceFeb 28, 2023

@hellomiakoda
No climate-control interface beats the red and blue slider with a fan slider underneath

That you don’t have to look at to change 💨

Show threadKavana RamaswamyMar 1, 2023

@hellomiakoda
Capitalism has also convinced you that you that cars are better than accessible and functional public transport.

It has also convinced you that public transport is best when it is privatised for profit, but it's always bad, because you need to spend money on personal transport.

Show threadKalleKaitalaMar 10, 2023
@hellomiakoda
In the newest electric Porsche they've taken this a step further: You can't even manually control the air outlets, but have navigate to the proper screen in the infotainment system to drag your finger around the screen instead.
Show threadMiakoda Mar 10, 2023
@KalleKaitala And there are people who think this is better.
Show threadAdolfo Jayme BarrientosApr 11, 2023
@hellomiakoda Not mentioning virtual controls are more dangerous to operate while driving than physical buttons
Show threadLacuna Doloris (compbiobryan)Feb 28, 2023
@hellomiakoda I will never tolerate that. It's unwatchable.