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https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:https://doctorow.medium.com/an-interoperability-rule-for-your-money-f45a7934f46a>
“If you don’t like it, why don’t you take your business elsewhere?” It’s the
motto of the corporate apologist, someone so Hayek-pilled that they see every
purchase as a ballot cast in the only election that matters — the one where you
vote with your wallet.
Voting with your wallet is a pretty undignified way to go through life. For one
thing, the people with the thickest wallets get the most votes, and for
another, no matter who you vote for in that election, the Monopoly Party always
wins, because that’s the part of the thick-wallet set.
Contrary to the just-so fantasies of Milton-Friedman-poisoned bootlickers,
there are
plenty of reasons that one might stick with a business that one
dislikes — even one that actively harms you.
The biggest reason for staying with a bad company is if they’ve figured out a
way to punish you for leaving. Businesses are keenly attuned to ways to impose
switching costs on disloyal customers. “Switching costs” are all the things you
have to give up when you take your business elsewhere.
Businesses love high switching costs — think of your gym forcing you to pay to
cancel your subscription or Apple turning off your groupchat checkmark when you
switch to Android. The more it costs you to move to a rival vendor, the worse
your existing vendor can treat you without worrying about losing your
business."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
