Why are US consumers so angry? It's not just high prices

Post by cadamsdotcom » Sun, Jul 12, 2026, 5:56 AM UTC

pessimizer wrote: post #66

cadamsdotcom wrote: post #12

This article reads like rage bait and it's about rage bait. Reading this then taking to the comments to kvetch about your personal suffering is learned helplessness writ large. There are so many beautiful parks. There are so many experiences to be had away from sources of rage & frustration. But you won't find it from a publication that depends on your rage addiction.

What exactly do you think your comment is? Metagriping is not somehow superior. Stop complaining about other people complaining. At least they're complaining about systems and trying to think about how to regulate or change them. You're just complaining about your neighbors.

Post by casey2 » Sun, Jul 12, 2026, 6:05 AM UTC

rkagerer wrote: post #45

This all comes down to humane treatment of your fellow human beings. I grew up in an era where that was a core expectation of our culture. But I see that tenet degrading in various ways - how we broadcast our views on social media (reduced empathy), how we interact in the real world (less patience and understanding), the polarization of our politics (less compromise and thus less effectiveness), and how organizations…

Post by femto » Sun, Jul 12, 2026, 6:09 AM UTC

russelg wrote: post #80

m1llie_ wrote: post #40

I feel a very similar sentiment in Australia. Everything is poorly made and full of anti-features. It breaks prematurely, and software updates make it worse by disabling features, adding things I don't want, or holding functionality I already paid for to ransom as a subscription. Warranties aren't worth the paper they're printed on. Every warranty claim I've made in the past 5 years (a fair few) has been a Kafka-esqu…

The key in Australia is to buy from a physical retailer. They often cannot give you the runaround as under consumer law, they're responsible for the resolution.

Post by m1llie_ » Sun, Jul 12, 2026, 6:21 AM UTC

sbfriends wrote: post #56

m1llie_ wrote: post #40

I feel a very similar sentiment in Australia. Everything is poorly made and full of anti-features. It breaks prematurely, and software updates make it worse by disabling features, adding things I don't want, or holding functionality I already paid for to ransom as a subscription. Warranties aren't worth the paper they're printed on. Every warranty claim I've made in the past 5 years (a fair few) has been a Kafka-esqu…

Australia's consumer guarantees cannot be replaced or excluded by warranties and offer huge protections for consumers who know how to exercise their rights. Companies try to apply friction to the process and I suspect that frustrates a lot of people to the point of giving up.

Post by fsckboy » Sun, Jul 12, 2026, 6:32 AM UTC

darth_avocado wrote: post #24

fsckboy wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> If something that costs $20 and shouldn’t break for 4 years, breaks in 2 weeks, you effectively paid a high price for a $2 product. not true if all the other knives on the market at that price have the same performance, in which case that's just "the price of such a knife." in order to have paid too much there needs to be cheaper options with the same or better performance.

> in order to have paid too much there needs to be cheaper options “Paid too much” from a consumer standpoint doesn’t need to have viable cheaper options. It’s about consumer expectations and results. If eggs in the grocery store cost $20/dozen, and you as a producer are taking a loss at that price because your producer costs arw $2/egg, consumers will still say they are paying too much. Because the expectation is co…