this post was submitted on 07 Sep 2023
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BMW Is Giving Up on Heated Seat Subscriptions Because People Hated Them::The blowback worked—but subscriptions for software-based new car features will continue, according to a BMW board member.

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[–] Argyle13@lemmy.world 38 points 1 year ago (1 children)

This has to end, somehow. Or pretty soon we will have shoes with soles subscription: you want a proper shoe, you will have to pay a monthly quota.

[–] 1847953620@lemmy.world 42 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Modern-day low-quality shoes are already kind of a walking subscription

[–] brygphilomena@lemmy.world 51 points 1 year ago (2 children)

The reason that the rich were so rich, Vimes reasoned, was because they managed to spend less money.

Take boots, for example. He earned thirty-eight dollars a month plus allowances. A really good pair of leather boots cost fifty dollars. But an affordable pair of boots, which were sort of OK for a season or two and then leaked like hell when the cardboard gave out, cost about ten dollars. Those were the kind of boots Vimes always bought, and wore until the soles were so thin that he could tell where he was in Ankh-Morpork on a foggy night by the feel of the cobbles.

But the thing was that good boots lasted for years and years. A man who could afford fifty dollars had a pair of boots that’d still be keeping his feet dry in ten years’ time, while the poor man who could only afford cheap boots would have spent a hundred dollars on boots in the same time and would still have wet feet.

[–] PerCarita@discuss.tchncs.de 10 points 1 year ago

boots

The Sam Vimes' Theory of Socio-Economic Unfairness! Can we be friends? XD

[–] CharlesDarwin@lemmy.world 6 points 1 year ago

I always think of Ben Stein's comment in that Frontline episode on the Secret History of the Credit Card - people that pay off their credit cards every month and pay no interest are called "deadbeats". Around the 11m 30s mark...as it goes for credit cards, it goes for so very many other things. If you can afford an upfront hit or what have you, you pay less than people that are in a worse financial situation.

https://inv.tux.pizza/watch?v=2mHsTKvAuZc

[–] OldTreePuncher@lemmy.world 11 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Terry Pratchett said it best!

“The reason that the rich were so rich, Vimes reasoned, was because they managed to spend less money,” wrote Pratchett. “Take boots, for example. He earned thirty-eight dollars a month plus allowances. A really good pair of leather boots cost fifty dollars. But an affordable pair of boots, which were sort of okay for a season or two and then leaked like hell when the cardboard gave out, cost about ten dollars. Those were the kind of boots Vimes always bought, and wore until the soles were so thin that he could tell where he was in Ankh-Morpork on a foggy night by the feel of the cobbles. But the thing was that good boots lasted for years and years. A man who could afford fifty dollars had a pair of boots that’d still be keeping his feet dry in ten years’ time, while a poor man who could only afford cheap boots would have spent a hundred dollars on boots in the same time and would still have wet feet.”

[–] JackbyDev@programming.dev 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Someone literally quoted this already lol

[–] SCB@lemmy.world 6 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Someone will quote this any time shoes or products or money is mentioned. It's damn near a second Godwin's Law by this point

[–] 1847953620@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

Hmm. This reaction has a very prescriptivist and strict attitude towards language... Hitler

...that's fine with me, actually. Hey, nice boots by the way.

[–] DarthBueller@lemmy.world 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

First time I've ever seen it.

[–] SCB@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Idk if you mean the postin of the passage or Discworld books in general, but I highly recommend Discworld books.

Main reason I don't mind this passage being everywhere is it gives me a chance to shill for Terry Pratchett

[–] DarthBueller@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

I've never seen this passage as a memetic device.