You make an interesting point about the temporal inefficiency caused by the time spent dealing with…
"First, while the time spent on dealing with these fees and tips may seem large in aggregate, it's important to remember that it's spread out over a large number of people and transactions. In the grand scheme of things, the time each individual person spends dealing with these issues is relatively small. This time might be considered a minor inconvenience, but I question whether it really has a significant impact on overall productivity."
I am not concerned with "productivity" as an abstract concept. I am specifically interested in the production of happiness. This is the goal of life by my rough estimation. So no, the small amount of time each individual spends on tips and hidden fees may not result in any great macroeconomic loss from a numbers-oriented perspective (other than maybe a few thousand tourists who don't want to come back since they see us as penny pinching scammers). However, the production of 1,706 American lifespans worth of mild annoyance per year is concerning regardless of its numerical economic impact. Imagine taking 1,706 newborns every year and condemning them to a life of mild annoyance. That's pretty rough. I'm just trying to quantify the human suffering caused by tipping and hidden fees in a tangible way, not justify that we are losing 1,706 lifetimes of economic "productivity," which is completely irrelevant in the grand scheme of things other than as a means for producing some tangible benefit for humanity.
"Second, it's not clear that the time saved would necessarily be redirected towards more productive activities. After all, people spend their free time in various ways, not all of which contribute to economic productivity. They might just as well spend the extra few minutes per day watching TV, for example."
I personally would rather condemn 1,706 newborns per year to a lifetime of watching TV than a lifetime of calculating tips and re-considering purchases solely on the grounds that it would be a significant imp… Read more
Be the first to reply to this comment.