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Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

johnwhiles.com

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Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#631

Post by stjohnswarts »

this_is_eline wrote: post #462

While I believe that many things stated in this post are correct, this still has that hard 'old man yelling at the internet' odor. If you are to compare stuff, stuff like modern razor cartridges and double-edged razors, you ought to mention the convenience side of the things. I hate being the devil's advocate, but shaving with 4-blade cartridge designed for easy shaving is still 'miles' ahead compared to shaving with…

If you shave with a sharp double edge safety you are at 95% of whatever the "4 blade megarazors" do. The only ones I might like a little better are the bendy heads that conform to the face a bit better. But it's not worth destroying the environment or paying 20X as much for the blades.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#632

Post by lotsofpulp »

betwixthewires wrote: post #580

My dad bought me one of these bulky 12 speed razors, 5 years ago. I've used 1 cartridge from it about 6 months ago. I hadn't shaved my face since before they came out. I use a clipper to keep it trimmed. Why use any disposable product whatsoever. His point on single use plastics is spot on. I know a lot of people that love to lecture me about my moralistic views, the types of people who believe in overpopulation and…

> Start refusing to buy things and stop making excuses and until then you should feel ashamed to lecture anyone about anything.

This does not make sense to me. The single biggest consumption item is living in a detached single family house with yard space (due to knock on effects of everything you consume having to travel further, including the people in your house).

I know this, and I can advocate for change such that it people are incentivized to live more densely and consume less space (drastically higher fossil fuel taxes). But that does not mean I should give up my enjoyment of resources. If everyone else is going to consume, then so am I. But if the collective decides to sacrifice, then I am signaling I am willing to also. There is no reason for someone to not live it up if the collective is not going to also sacrifice.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#633

Post by pmoriarty »

juve1996 wrote: post #597
jader201 wrote: post #455

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I guess it’s hard to imagine the upsides of straight razors justifying the (apparent) downsides. I mean, other than a somewhat closer shave, it seems like everything else about them is worse (expense, waste, time/effort, mess, cuts/removing skin, ingrown hairs).

It's not about "closer shave." Electric razors never get close enough for me. Complete areas of my face they do nothing to and it just causes irritation on my skin. Frustrating, takes way too long vs my DE razor. > (expense, waste, time/effort, mess, cuts/removing skin, ingrown hairs). Eh, shaving isn't that hard. I know we've gotten lazy but holy crap. A DE shave never results in any of that for me. Shower, lather,…

Here's a video of a guy shaving with a double-edged safety razor in 5 minutes:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdyU9qItBMA

It could be done faster too, because he does a lot of stuff that is unnecessary.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#634

Post by gernb »

my impression is there is some kind of shaving cartel and illegal price fixing going on. There is no good reason you some competitor could not sell razor cartridges for like 50 cents each but they are sold for $4 each. The only good explanation is some kind of collusion

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#635

Post by sandworm101 »

wbsss4412 wrote: post #527
sandworm101 wrote: post #231

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> season and care for cast iron So they need more work and skill than other pans. In other words: they are in fact less convenient . Cast iron also has multiple issues when used with induction ranges, which are by far the most efficient/environmental cookers.

> Cast iron also has multiple issues when used with induction ranges, which are by far the most efficient/environmental cookers. This is the first I’m hearing of this. My understanding is that pans only need to be magnetic to work with induction, in which case cast iron are prime candidates for induction.

Scratches are a minor issue because the induction surface is flat, as opposed to electric/gas which are not. A heavier dropped pan can also sometime shatter the glass surface of an induction range. And being heavier, a cast iron pan requires more electricity to heat. If you are cooking an egg in a 5-lb pan the vast majority of the power goes to heating the pan. A thinner/cheaper pan will heat faster, pass more heat to the actual food, and therefore use less electricity.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#636

Post by stjohnswarts »

dghughes wrote: post #132
motohagiography wrote: post #11

I've used a straight razor for almost 20 years. Vindicating to read that the price of a Dovo pays for itself. I think my bar of shaving soap is probably the better part of decade old as well. In the interim, a whole peculiar subculture around shaving has developed, but you don't have to be a part of it to just use a razor. Makes you unreachable by corporate marketing as well, which is itself its own reward.

I have a straight razor it's almost a lost art using one. I tried one but I figured I'd end up killing myself by accident. Plus I don't have to patience to sharpen and strop the blade. A safety razor is also a great investment and cheap. I bought a Wilkinson Sword handle $20 and a pack of five blades $5. It's an old name-brand sold practically everywhere. I can get more than a month out of one double-sided blade. Plu…

I tried straight razor but it was just too much maintenance. Parker safety razor and plain old dove beauty bar have been the sweet spot for me. I like the idea of a straight razor but the maintenance just wasn't worth it. If my safety razor blade gets dull I just toss it and know that it's just iron and carbon and will degrade and not pollute the earth.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#637

Post by random-human »

gruez wrote: post #427
tristor wrote: post #378

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Also, claiming that they "seem to be poisonous" without any qualifiers is a little misleading. To my knowledge they're only poisonous during manufacturing (ie. the precursor chemicals) and when they get too hot. 1. The manufacturing process results in those precursor chemicals entering urban water supplies where they are nearly impossible to filter out (only RO is effective and it's not even 100% effective), and on…

>1. The manufacturing process results in those precursor chemicals entering urban water supplies where they are nearly impossible to filter out (only RO is effective and it's not even 100% effective), and once in the bloodstream of people are powerful endrocrine disruptors which circulate and are filtered slowly by the kidneys... and when peed out go right back into the water supply due to not being able to be remove…

You may like blue carbon steel pans. I tried lodge cast iron and while I like them, I thought they were too much work - mostly the weight (female who doesn't shy away from lifting real weights at the gym, but cast iron is not user friendly in that way). The blue steel pans are lighter than cast iron (heaver than teflon), cleans easier, heat faster, the handle stays cooler longer, and still has all the positives of cast iron without the cheap teflon. The only work/inconvenience is most are not pre-seasoned, which I preferred after learning to season my first new pan. It can be a simple 1-2 hour process after buying or can be thought of as an art.

I personally dont like cooking, and I avoid anything requiring more than 3 items - my steel pans remove the annoying factors (equipment handling, maintenance & care) make me dread cooking a little less. Had the pans for 4-5 years now and they are an absolute joy to use

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#638

Post by gernb »

ericmay wrote: post #604
hattmall wrote: post #592

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Reminds me of George W Bush vs Al Gore in that Bush had a modest ranch house with all the eco friendly features and Gore, the environmentalalist had some 20,000+ foot megamansion.

Yea... it was unfortunate that so many people focused on that instead of the general problem and now we are barreling toward a very bad outcome. Ultimately, it doesn't matter what wealthy people do - they're going to be just fine regardless of what the rest of us do, except that if we kick and scream about their big houses and refuse to do anything we just wind up inheriting the problem and they're still right where…

people need to set examples. "Do as I say not as I do"

it's not about distraction, it's about showing you're sincere. If you're like "save the planet" out of one side and on the other planning your 5th airflight you don't "actually" care.

it's like asking poor countries to bare all the burden of climate change and rich countries doing little. "I've got mine and sorry you don't but too bad, you're not allowed to have it" is not going to convince anyone except to follow your actions, not your words

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#639

Post by stjohnswarts »

CoastalCoder wrote: post #48
motohagiography wrote: post #11

I've used a straight razor for almost 20 years. Vindicating to read that the price of a Dovo pays for itself. I think my bar of shaving soap is probably the better part of decade old as well. In the interim, a whole peculiar subculture around shaving has developed, but you don't have to be a part of it to just use a razor. Makes you unreachable by corporate marketing as well, which is itself its own reward.

Aside from differences in cost, do you find anything about a straight razor compellingly better than e.g. a Gillette Mach 3? I go through Mach 3 cartridges pretty slowly, so price isn't a big concern. And I don't notice anything deficient about the quality of my shaves. But one thing I really like about safety razors is that there's zero risk of serious injury.

No plastic waste is the biggest one for me when it comes to safety/straight razors.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#640

Post by jseban »

simias wrote: post #386
connor4312 wrote: post #359

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I made the switch to a projector a couple years ago and advocate highly for them. The screen can disappear when not in use, and they're "dumb by default". New LED projectors have bulbs rated to last 10k hours or more.

I use a projector as well instead of a TV but they're definitely not standard replacement for a normal TV in all situations. You need a dark room (so if you like to have the TV on while do you chores or other tasks, it won't work well with a projector), the fans can be a bit loud depending on your noise tolerance, the contrast, color and brightness/blacks won't be as good as a decent OLED TV unless you go for a very…

The other thing I've noticed, is that you can't casually watch something in the company of some visitors, it's going full movie night or nothing. That's a real use case I'm missing with a TV.

And you can't even make the picture on the wall smaller if you want, it always dominates completely.

When my mother is visiting we just want to half watch some game show and chit chat, we don't want to have a movie night, and we don't want to focus entirely on each other/conversation for a whole evening either, it's kind of exhausting.

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