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On April 03 2018 05:01 Mohdoo wrote:
Doesn't USPS benefit tremendously from Amazon? I would say a significant majority of all of my purchases are through Amazon and are delivered to my door. It is extreeeeemely rare that I buy anything besides clothes and food in person. It is likely in excess, but I would say that I contribute to hundreds of dollars of USPS services every year that I had otherwise never used. Even if Amazon got cut a good deal, the sheer quantity of shipping must have skyrocketed as a result of Amazon.
yeah. USPS even says so themselves.
I'd say it's just another appeal to "good old times when everything was better". People used to go to the store next door, talk with the old lady behind the counter and buy their things over there. It's the same as with coal, isn't it? The idea that you can magically turn back time to a time when everything was "easier".
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On April 03 2018 02:48 iamthedave wrote:Show nested quote +On April 02 2018 19:48 zlefin wrote:
Ok, that's clear. personally, I don' find it surprising that some people dislike snowden, as there's some reasonable basis for doing so. I'm not sure why you'd find ti baffling, as it's extremely common that some people support and some people oppose. it's not like snowden is a paragon of integrity. decent integrity, maybe; but not a paragon. Not a paragon, but he did an unquestioned service to the American people. Left and right, he revealed abuses of power by the government that are of concern to both sides - or should be - and yet he's pilloried for having done so. If he hadn't spoken out, we'd be none the wiser. Sure, have a conversation about the rights and wrongs of his methods, but it strikes me as indeed baffling for people to call him a traitor to the American people when he's revealing that the government is literally spying on said American people. Calling for integrity on one hand and punishing people for showing it on the other is pointless.
he didn' tact with amazing integrity; only passable integrity, if that, and there's a reasonable argument (aka a passable case) that he did not act with any integrity at all.
furthermore, what punishment? he fled the jurisdiction, so any conclusion on what his punishment would have been is based on conjecture.
whether it was a service to the american people could certainly be questioned; there were some good points, and some bad points, that have been raised in thread, I do'n tsee how that makes it "unquestioned".
also, it's not like the american people wnat integrity anyways; they pretty clearly don't actually care about integrity.
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On April 03 2018 05:10 Toadesstern wrote:Show nested quote +On April 03 2018 05:01 Mohdoo wrote:
Doesn't USPS benefit tremendously from Amazon? I would say a significant majority of all of my purchases are through Amazon and are delivered to my door. It is extreeeeemely rare that I buy anything besides clothes and food in person. It is likely in excess, but I would say that I contribute to hundreds of dollars of USPS services every year that I had otherwise never used. Even if Amazon got cut a good deal, the sheer quantity of shipping must have skyrocketed as a result of Amazon. yeah. USPS even says so themselves. I'd say it's just another appeal to "good old times when everything was better". People used to go to the store next door, talk with the old lady behind the counter and buy their things over there. It's the same as with coal, isn't it? The idea that you can magically turn back time to a time when everything was "easier".
The funny part is that long before department stores there was a robust mail order business in the US. Sears got was a mail order catalogue long before it was a department store. I don’t think the country would be any worse if we had five versions of Amazon. But I don’t think we are very healthy with one company being as dominate as Amazon is.
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On April 03 2018 06:25 Plansix wrote:Show nested quote +On April 03 2018 05:10 Toadesstern wrote:On April 03 2018 05:01 Mohdoo wrote:
Doesn't USPS benefit tremendously from Amazon? I would say a significant majority of all of my purchases are through Amazon and are delivered to my door. It is extreeeeemely rare that I buy anything besides clothes and food in person. It is likely in excess, but I would say that I contribute to hundreds of dollars of USPS services every year that I had otherwise never used. Even if Amazon got cut a good deal, the sheer quantity of shipping must have skyrocketed as a result of Amazon. yeah. USPS even says so themselves. I'd say it's just another appeal to "good old times when everything was better". People used to go to the store next door, talk with the old lady behind the counter and buy their things over there. It's the same as with coal, isn't it? The idea that you can magically turn back time to a time when everything was "easier". The funny part is that long before department stores there was a robust mail order business in the US. Sears got was a mail order catalogue long before it was a department store. I don’t think the country would be any worse if we had five versions of Amazon. But I don’t think we are very healthy with one company being as dominate as Amazon is.
As it currently stands, I save a lot of time and money using Amazon. I also find significantly higher quality stuff on Amazon, when I want it, compared to other stores. I don't doubt they'll be evil some day, but I think Amazon is purely positive for me right now.
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Well, right now, Trump is worse than Amazon. So.. isn't he impeached yet?
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On April 03 2018 06:25 Plansix wrote:Show nested quote +On April 03 2018 05:10 Toadesstern wrote:On April 03 2018 05:01 Mohdoo wrote:
Doesn't USPS benefit tremendously from Amazon? I would say a significant majority of all of my purchases are through Amazon and are delivered to my door. It is extreeeeemely rare that I buy anything besides clothes and food in person. It is likely in excess, but I would say that I contribute to hundreds of dollars of USPS services every year that I had otherwise never used. Even if Amazon got cut a good deal, the sheer quantity of shipping must have skyrocketed as a result of Amazon. yeah. USPS even says so themselves. I'd say it's just another appeal to "good old times when everything was better". People used to go to the store next door, talk with the old lady behind the counter and buy their things over there. It's the same as with coal, isn't it? The idea that you can magically turn back time to a time when everything was "easier". The funny part is that long before department stores there was a robust mail order business in the US. Sears got was a mail order catalogue long before it was a department store. I don’t think the country would be any worse if we had five versions of Amazon. But I don’t think we are very healthy with one company being as dominate as Amazon is.
I don't think Amazon is near the sort of monopoly that Ma Bell had which required it to be broken up, though. Maybe they'll get there or close to it, but breaking up Amazon as it is now would be a massive expansion of what counts as a monopoly under Sherman and other antitrust regulation. However, I don't disagree that the behemoth that is Amazon is not completely a good thing for our economy.
And most of the Baby Bells ended up merging and acquiring themselves back together, though the breakup into regional operating companies did provide the room for other telecom providers to get into the business.
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On April 03 2018 06:25 Plansix wrote:Show nested quote +On April 03 2018 05:10 Toadesstern wrote:On April 03 2018 05:01 Mohdoo wrote:
Doesn't USPS benefit tremendously from Amazon? I would say a significant majority of all of my purchases are through Amazon and are delivered to my door. It is extreeeeemely rare that I buy anything besides clothes and food in person. It is likely in excess, but I would say that I contribute to hundreds of dollars of USPS services every year that I had otherwise never used. Even if Amazon got cut a good deal, the sheer quantity of shipping must have skyrocketed as a result of Amazon. yeah. USPS even says so themselves. I'd say it's just another appeal to "good old times when everything was better". People used to go to the store next door, talk with the old lady behind the counter and buy their things over there. It's the same as with coal, isn't it? The idea that you can magically turn back time to a time when everything was "easier". The funny part is that long before department stores there was a robust mail order business in the US. Sears got was a mail order catalogue long before it was a department store. I don’t think the country would be any worse if we had five versions of Amazon. But I don’t think we are very healthy with one company being as dominate as Amazon is.
While I do agree that it seems unhealthy, it is what people want. I'm pretty sure there'd be an awful lot of people complaining about suddenly having to pay 5 companies with Prime subscriptions rather than just one, to still effectively just get the same product as before.
I'm a lot in the anime thread on TL and it's basicly the same thing there. It used to be just one monthly payment to more or less be able to see everything (assuming you don't pirate or live outside the US) and now there's CR, Netflix, Amazon, Hulu and whatever else all in there, all getting rights for shows so the others don't have them and people get pissed because they can't conveniently get everything at just the one company they like the most out of the aforementioned. And you have to pay for all of them.
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On April 03 2018 07:39 Toadesstern wrote:Show nested quote +On April 03 2018 06:25 Plansix wrote:On April 03 2018 05:10 Toadesstern wrote:On April 03 2018 05:01 Mohdoo wrote:
Doesn't USPS benefit tremendously from Amazon? I would say a significant majority of all of my purchases are through Amazon and are delivered to my door. It is extreeeeemely rare that I buy anything besides clothes and food in person. It is likely in excess, but I would say that I contribute to hundreds of dollars of USPS services every year that I had otherwise never used. Even if Amazon got cut a good deal, the sheer quantity of shipping must have skyrocketed as a result of Amazon. yeah. USPS even says so themselves. I'd say it's just another appeal to "good old times when everything was better". People used to go to the store next door, talk with the old lady behind the counter and buy their things over there. It's the same as with coal, isn't it? The idea that you can magically turn back time to a time when everything was "easier". The funny part is that long before department stores there was a robust mail order business in the US. Sears got was a mail order catalogue long before it was a department store. I don’t think the country would be any worse if we had five versions of Amazon. But I don’t think we are very healthy with one company being as dominate as Amazon is. While I do agree that it seems unhealthy, it is what people want. I'm pretty sure there'd be an awful lot of people complaining about suddenly having to pay 5 companies with Prime subscriptions rather than just one, to still effectively just get the same product as before. I'm a lot in the anime thread on TL and it's basicly the same thing there. It used to be just one monthly payment to more or less be able to see everything (assuming you don't pirate or live outside the US) and now there's CR, Netflix, Amazon, Hulu and whatever else all in there, all getting rights for shows so the others don't have them and people get pissed because they can't conveniently get everything at just the one company they like the most out of the aforementioned. And you have to pay for all of them.
To be fair, all that Crunchyroll anime was never on Netflix. I pirated it. We are paying these subscriptions because each offer me something I want and don't already have.
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On April 03 2018 07:39 Toadesstern wrote:Show nested quote +On April 03 2018 06:25 Plansix wrote:On April 03 2018 05:10 Toadesstern wrote:On April 03 2018 05:01 Mohdoo wrote:
Doesn't USPS benefit tremendously from Amazon? I would say a significant majority of all of my purchases are through Amazon and are delivered to my door. It is extreeeeemely rare that I buy anything besides clothes and food in person. It is likely in excess, but I would say that I contribute to hundreds of dollars of USPS services every year that I had otherwise never used. Even if Amazon got cut a good deal, the sheer quantity of shipping must have skyrocketed as a result of Amazon. yeah. USPS even says so themselves. I'd say it's just another appeal to "good old times when everything was better". People used to go to the store next door, talk with the old lady behind the counter and buy their things over there. It's the same as with coal, isn't it? The idea that you can magically turn back time to a time when everything was "easier". The funny part is that long before department stores there was a robust mail order business in the US. Sears got was a mail order catalogue long before it was a department store. I don’t think the country would be any worse if we had five versions of Amazon. But I don’t think we are very healthy with one company being as dominate as Amazon is. While I do agree that it seems unhealthy, it is what people want. I'm pretty sure there'd be an awful lot of people complaining about suddenly having to pay 5 companies with Prime subscriptions rather than just one, to still effectively just get the same product as before. I'm a lot in the anime thread on TL and it's basicly the same thing there. It used to be just one monthly payment to more or less be able to see everything (assuming you don't pirate or live outside the US) and now there's CR, Netflix, Amazon, Hulu and whatever else all in there, all getting rights for shows so the others don't have them and people get pissed because they can't conveniently get everything at just the one company they like the most out of the aforementioned. And you have to pay for all of them.
Streaming services are just becoming the buy what you want cable services we wanted. Because that is what people are saying in that thread, that they want a Comcast cable package.
And I’m not convinced that the same applies to Amazon. I don’t browse books at Amazon, for instance. If there was an online bookstore store that was better curated and not filled with self published trash, I would use that site.
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On April 03 2018 08:00 Plansix wrote:Show nested quote +On April 03 2018 07:39 Toadesstern wrote:On April 03 2018 06:25 Plansix wrote:On April 03 2018 05:10 Toadesstern wrote:On April 03 2018 05:01 Mohdoo wrote:
Doesn't USPS benefit tremendously from Amazon? I would say a significant majority of all of my purchases are through Amazon and are delivered to my door. It is extreeeeemely rare that I buy anything besides clothes and food in person. It is likely in excess, but I would say that I contribute to hundreds of dollars of USPS services every year that I had otherwise never used. Even if Amazon got cut a good deal, the sheer quantity of shipping must have skyrocketed as a result of Amazon. yeah. USPS even says so themselves. I'd say it's just another appeal to "good old times when everything was better". People used to go to the store next door, talk with the old lady behind the counter and buy their things over there. It's the same as with coal, isn't it? The idea that you can magically turn back time to a time when everything was "easier". The funny part is that long before department stores there was a robust mail order business in the US. Sears got was a mail order catalogue long before it was a department store. I don’t think the country would be any worse if we had five versions of Amazon. But I don’t think we are very healthy with one company being as dominate as Amazon is. While I do agree that it seems unhealthy, it is what people want. I'm pretty sure there'd be an awful lot of people complaining about suddenly having to pay 5 companies with Prime subscriptions rather than just one, to still effectively just get the same product as before. I'm a lot in the anime thread on TL and it's basicly the same thing there. It used to be just one monthly payment to more or less be able to see everything (assuming you don't pirate or live outside the US) and now there's CR, Netflix, Amazon, Hulu and whatever else all in there, all getting rights for shows so the others don't have them and people get pissed because they can't conveniently get everything at just the one company they like the most out of the aforementioned. And you have to pay for all of them. Streaming services are just becoming the buy what you want cable services we wanted. Because that is what people are saying in that thread, that they want a Comcast cable package. And I’m not convinced that the same applies to Amazon. I don’t browse books at Amazon, for instance. If there was an online bookstore store that was better curated and not filled with self published trash, I would use that site.
well, I do buy books on amazon. I wouldn't browse or look for reviews over there but if I know what I want I certainly will just buy it there instead of ordering it at the closest bookstore.
It's just so much more convenient. You don't have to remember 5 different passwords for 5 different sites, if you're getting some kind of cashback you can use that for whatever you want instead of going "ooh, I got 5$ worth of points for my 50$books? And I can use it for more books? Though....I'm kinda good with books for now. I just bought a bunch after all"
I can certainly see some reasons why people would just get everything from amazon if only they could.
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I think the biggest problem Amazon's size presents is that even if people are browsing specific product categories (books, computer parts, lawn ornaments, whatever) on specialty sites, many people will check the price on Amazon after they decide on a product, and then possibly order it there if it's cheaper and/or there's free shipping.
Given Amazon's size and lack of serious competition, checking for a better price after browsing a more specific online store is simple, as there is only one other major site to check - Amazon - and likely to provide a decent return on the time invested because Amazon can afford to sell things for lower prices.
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On April 03 2018 08:25 Kyadytim wrote:
I think the biggest problem Amazon's size presents is that even if people are browsing specific product categories (books, computer parts, lawn ornaments, whatever) on specialty sites, many people will check the price on Amazon after they decide on a product, and then possibly order it there if it's cheaper and/or there's free shipping.
Given Amazon's size and lack of serious competition, checking for a better price after browsing a more specific online store is simple, as there is only one other major site to check - Amazon - and likely to provide a decent return on the time invested because Amazon can afford to sell things for lower prices.
I don't see how this is a problem for anyone besides their competitors. So long as Amazon is indeed cheaper, there is no disadvantage to consumers.
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5930 Posts
On April 03 2018 08:25 Kyadytim wrote:
I think the biggest problem Amazon's size presents is that even if people are browsing specific product categories (books, computer parts, lawn ornaments, whatever) on specialty sites, many people will check the price on Amazon after they decide on a product, and then possibly order it there if it's cheaper and/or there's free shipping.
Given Amazon's size and lack of serious competition, checking for a better price after browsing a more specific online store is simple, as there is only one other major site to check - Amazon - and likely to provide a decent return on the time invested because Amazon can afford to sell things for lower prices.
For a lot of people, Amazon's prices aren't even its main selling point. For me, the main draw of Amazon include:
- Far better customer service, especially with regards to returns and delayed/out of stock items
- Zero upselling
- Fast and affordable shipping
- Better range of products
Its also why I will often choose to shop at B&H Photo Video and not my own country's retailers. Its not cheap but these guys will pay for my return shipping and won't question my competence when I need to return a product. Not just that, these guys ship and deliver products at around the same speed as our domestic retailers despite being on the other side of the world.
It is no surprise that the arrival of Amazon in my country has already changed the attitudes of retailers for the better. They are now offering more competitive shipping options, they are more accommodating with warranty claims and are no longer spending 15 minutes upselling warranty options that you've already made clear that you don't want.
While the size and reach of Amazon is fueling the impending retail apocalypse, a lot of retailers are dying because they have little justification to exist in a free market. Its clear now that you either have to offer a unique business model, like Costco, customer service or expertise, like B&H and Sweetwater, or unique services, like audiophile or industry retailers.
Linus from Linus Tech Tips actually talked about the Amazon retail threat after it was confirmed his former employer, NCIX, filed for bankruptcy. When he was still working at the late NCIX, he claims that he saw the writing on the wall when Amazon entered the Canadian market. He wanted NCIX to shift business models from having lots of big box stores with huge costs to lots of small one-man kiosks that would build and sell the most optimal gaming desktops for customers on the spot. While I don't know about the longevity of such a plan, it would be offering a service at a cost and convenience that Amazon couldn't compete with.
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On the topic, Trump is being told by his advisers to open a full investigation into Amazon's tax.
The man has gone full Nixon. The reason why he is doing this is simple, Jeff Bezos owns the Washington Post. And Trump, like Nixon, is attacking his enemies using the power of the office. I hope everyone is ready for this sneak peak of the remaining months of 2018.
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On April 03 2018 09:28 Mohdoo wrote:Show nested quote +On April 03 2018 08:25 Kyadytim wrote:
I think the biggest problem Amazon's size presents is that even if people are browsing specific product categories (books, computer parts, lawn ornaments, whatever) on specialty sites, many people will check the price on Amazon after they decide on a product, and then possibly order it there if it's cheaper and/or there's free shipping.
Given Amazon's size and lack of serious competition, checking for a better price after browsing a more specific online store is simple, as there is only one other major site to check - Amazon - and likely to provide a decent return on the time invested because Amazon can afford to sell things for lower prices. I don't see how this is a problem for anyone besides their competitors. So long as Amazon is indeed cheaper, there is no disadvantage to consumers.
The selection can suck and it is impossible to tell if anything made of quality material. I won't even buy work gloves or any landscaping tools on Amazon, because I want to see what those are made out of before I purchase them.
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On April 03 2018 09:37 Plansix wrote:Show nested quote +On April 03 2018 09:28 Mohdoo wrote:On April 03 2018 08:25 Kyadytim wrote:
I think the biggest problem Amazon's size presents is that even if people are browsing specific product categories (books, computer parts, lawn ornaments, whatever) on specialty sites, many people will check the price on Amazon after they decide on a product, and then possibly order it there if it's cheaper and/or there's free shipping.
Given Amazon's size and lack of serious competition, checking for a better price after browsing a more specific online store is simple, as there is only one other major site to check - Amazon - and likely to provide a decent return on the time invested because Amazon can afford to sell things for lower prices. I don't see how this is a problem for anyone besides their competitors. So long as Amazon is indeed cheaper, there is no disadvantage to consumers. The selection can suck and it is impossible to tell if anything made of quality material. I won't even buy work gloves or any landscaping tools on Amazon, because I want to see what those are made out of before I purchase them.
My impression of what Kyadytim was saying is that once you've decided on a product, you can often just open an Amazon tab and get it cheaper. If you already know what gloves you want, usually it is smart to look for them on Amazon. But you're right about there being an advantage to getting something like that in a brick and mortar store.
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Plus, that's what reviews are for. Beyond that, I recommend using WikiBuy or a similar widget to find the best prices on stuff.
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On April 03 2018 10:56 ticklishmusic wrote:
Plus, that's what reviews are for. Beyond that, I recommend using WikiBuy or a similar widget to find the best prices on stuff.
I trust user reviews about as much as I trust random posts on reddit. I'll go buy something in person if I'm concerned it will break or might be cheap.
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On April 03 2018 11:02 Plansix wrote:Show nested quote +On April 03 2018 10:56 ticklishmusic wrote:
Plus, that's what reviews are for. Beyond that, I recommend using WikiBuy or a similar widget to find the best prices on stuff. I trust user reviews about as much as I trust random posts on reddit. I'll go buy something in person if I'm concerned it will break or might be cheap.
Amazon quality on a lot of things completely sucks. Plansix is right about this. Amazon is great when you know the exact item you want, but if you are just looking for something to fit a particular need, the chances that you are going to land on a flimsy, cheap product are very high, unless there are reputable brands in that niche that you know deliver quality.
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The great thing about capitalism is that greed can drive efficiencies, one major problem is that it prioritizes enriching powerful people over distributing the gains of those efficiencies.
So Amazon has done a great job of removing some of the glut from the retail market as has been outlined in several posts, the problem is where that surplus value is allocated.
Instead of having tens of thousands of people making a living with some excess as retailers, Bezos has consolidated that shared wealth into his and a few shareholders pockets, in exchange he's offered a marginally better service.
So instead of pressuring out the excess enjoyed by retailers while leaving their livelihoods intact, Amazon has systematically destroyed them for self enrichment. If/when Amazon/Walmart are the overwhelmingly dominant sellers they will inevitably go to cutting qol for their lower employees and providing worse service to ensure more profit.
This is already apparent in many Walmarts around the country. Where after killing local retailers, prices rise and staffing is cut to extract more profits out of the community.
Amazon may end up being the best possible one stop shop with the most amazing interface and service and all that means is that those things will only get worse from there. Except with something like Amazon, there can't and won't be some competitor springing up to keep them honest, they will already practically own the governments where they are located and no entity short of the federal government would have the access or ability to compete.
Their domination seems somewhat inevitable, what seems possible is their appropriation back to the people who did the work that made the money.
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