191–200 of 211 posts
Take what he says with a grain of salt and apply to your life what you think is right.
Hacker News comments are created by a bunch of self-righteous, over-generalizing trolls.
Live and let live and don't be a cheapskate :]
I tend to buy in two strategies. Either so cheap but functional I don't mind throwing it out later (as eco bad as that might be), or buying good quality wares. I believe that if you can afford good quality wares, that that will both make you happier and leave you with something of substantial resale value. So it may be a better financial strategy. Compare cheap Target cabinet with "Handmade Amish Furniture." That sai…
This is something I've never understood. Considering that a new car loses a huge chunk of its "value" the second you drive it out of the car dealer's, if you're buying new the only sensible strategy is to drive it nearly into the ground. If you have to pay a wrecker to take it away, I agree, you may have taken it too far. But unless there are obscure tax reasons, I can't see any benefit to flipping cars regularly.
The thing is, it's really hard to quantify how much that extra safety is actually worth in terms of reduced risk of injury or death for a typical driver. If a QALY is worth, let's say $200K to me, then how many QALYs am I theoretically saving by trading in a 10 year old car for a new one? I would love to see a web application for this.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Then do it! Believe in yourself!
OK, it was a good joke, but signing up new accounts for one joke works on reddit, not here.
My username on reddit is the same also. 2+ Years or so and no comments.
The number of Tony Robbins-esque rah-rah lifestyle articles here has gotten entirely out of hand lately. Seeing this at #1 on the site today makes me want to delete my HN bookmark and be done with it.
I disliked the article itself too, but find that the nice discussion it caused balances it out.
I think I may already practice everything this blog post tells me to, but I still feel insulted, both on my behalf and on behalf of people I know. The author comes off as a real dick. I can't point to any recommendation in the post I specifically disagree with, but I'm pretty confident if he met me he'd find some reason to think I'm a loser. And my whole family. And most of my friends. Maybe it's because I don't take…
The "loser" word choice, as someone pointed out below, was a double entendre, meant to mean, first, that you're losing in the long run when you make bad/cheap purchases, and second, that I think there is a psychological effect of surrounding yourself with low quality stuff.
Second, I'm really not talking about expensive v. cheap. Most of the stuff I'm talking about, like nail clippers, might be 2-3 times the price of the cheapest you could find, but still well under $10. And, the quality is so much better it makes life easier/more enjoyable.
And, of course there's a way to get beyond "piece of shit" when there's better or more expensive available. There are nail clippers on amazon right now for like $80. That's absurd. And, you can get fantastic meals for $15, or terrible meals for $80. I think that's kind of missing the point. We're talking about quality here, which isn't always synonymous with price.
As to the psychological effect: I don't think anyone literally thinks "damn, I'm worth this" (maybe occasionally as a rationalization?) or "damn, I'm not worth it". But, I really do think that there is some psychological effect of surrounding yourself with cheap, shitty quality stuff that never quite works right. Whether that's morally wrong or not, I think people do this to themselves (I've got no studies to back this one up, btw, just what I've observed). I also think there's a psychological upside to surrounding yourself with well-made and well-designed stuff. If nothing more, it frees up some neurons from getting angry at shit that doesn't work well, but even more so, for me at least, it helps creativity.
One of the keys in all of this is differentiating between "cheap crap", "cheap crap with a big price tag", and "expensive but worth it". I recently went shoe shopping. I was looking for a pair of comfortable, casual shoes. What I came across were: $50 bunch-of-choices, made in China $150 Boss/Diesel/etc, made in China $225 Mephisto, made in France $325 Ferragamo, made in Italy. There is one obvious "wrong" choice her…
I don't know about Ferragamo, but I do own several pairs ( gasp !) of shoes in that price range from a famous shoe brand here ("van Bommel", for the Dutch reading this, and in case it matters). They will last for decades with proper care and resoling every couple of years, but that's not the reason I bought them; I'm pretty sure that after 15 years I'll want something different, vareity being the spice of life and al…
No arguments here on appearance.
The privilege of spending extra on "nice things" is almost purely in the realm of the well-to-do. This is the rationale Rich White People™ use when buying L.L. Bean backpacks (LIFETIME WARRANTY GUYS) that end up piled in attics and covered in dust from neglect. Also, a downside of 'nice stuff' is you have to lug it everywhere. If you lead even a moderately itinerant lifestyle, this totally blows . Don't listen to som…
Sounds like you're a "frugal" person who got offended at this (correct) message. >Also, a downside of 'nice stuff' is you have to lug it everywhere. What on earth are you talking about? If you buy a cheap generic $200 17" laptop you'll have to lug it around just as much as a nice MBP. The difference is; you'll have to replace the cheapy about 10 times in the lifetime of my MBP.
Sweet ad hominem attack, bro.
> The difference is; you'll have to replace the cheapy about 10 times in the lifetime of my MBP.
And when that sweet MBP gets stolen or you spill tea all over it rendering it useless, you have to spend a ton more to get it back/working again.
People keep saying "I never have to think about it again!!!" but the opposite happens: you turn into a little gollum thinking about and protecting your stuff whenever it's in danger. Again, I'm not advocating one or the other, just be aware that expensive stuff has downsides and making fun of people who choose not to have that is a shitty move.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
>I can throw out or resell a 400$ laptop with some ease; not so easy with a more expensive model. I disagree here. If you pay $400 for it what is your resale value after a year? I wouldn't even pay $50 for a year old $400 laptop since it's nearing end of life. A good MBP, however could be sold three years later for half value or a little less. This is not a bad option for people who want the quality but can't afford…
I should probably bring up a few issues. > Laptops It's hard to find a buyer for an expensive laptop. Furthermore, you can find people who buy Pentium 4 laptops for more than 50$ if the battery is working properly. Point being, a one-year old 400$ laptop selling for 200-300$ is not utterly unheard of, especially if you have kept good care of it. I understand that it may be different in other parts of the world. The a…
Not to mention selling stuff is a pain in the ass. I'm a programmer, not a professional craigslist haggler. Buying things "because I can sell them later" has always burned me in the end.
I think I may already practice everything this blog post tells me to, but I still feel insulted, both on my behalf and on behalf of people I know. The author comes off as a real dick. I can't point to any recommendation in the post I specifically disagree with, but I'm pretty confident if he met me he'd find some reason to think I'm a loser. And my whole family. And most of my friends. Maybe it's because I don't take…
Interesting points. (I'm the original author, btw). Some thoughts: The "loser" word choice, as someone pointed out below, was a double entendre, meant to mean, first, that you're losing in the long run when you make bad/cheap purchases, and second, that I think there is a psychological effect of surrounding yourself with low quality stuff. Second, I'm really not talking about expensive v. cheap. Most of the stuff I'm…
Small stuff adds up dude.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
The OP is arguing mostly for _better_ stuff, not _more_ stuff. It doesn't argue for credit. It does argue for conservation of time and attention, rather than cash. I'd say reading comprehension is step one for free thought. And you overlook the point that "better" == "more functional". Good shoes will walk much farther, in better comfort and health, than bad ones. If you choose bad shoes, everyone who understands thi…
And you overlook the point that "better" != "more expensive". Being frugal is not mutually exclusive to living a good quality life.
And no one has claimed that goods of any kind are essential to a "good quality life".