Great post. I noticed the trend years ago. You could buy a copy of Adobe and have no monthly fees. Once the monthly fees started I quit using their programs. I now avoid Adobe like the plague. I try to avoid any monthly fee products.
Microsoft is another offender. So is Apple. I pay a $10 monthly fee for cloud storage and am looking for a no fee option. Streaming services are another rip off. I now rent them for one month and cancel. There isn’t enough worthwhile content for more than two months per year anyway.
This rent, never own, is a fairly recent phenomenon. Your post puts it all in perspective. It’s another great american rip-off. Another racket run by the greedy oligarchs and monopolistic corporations. Health care, insurance and banking are also screwing us over every day.
I remember when almost every appliance was repairable. In the 1950’s my parents could get their toaster repaired. The same thing with their coffee pot. I was thinking about that a few days ago while using our $20 chinese made throw away cuisinart toaster. We have been conned for so long it’s amazing to think we didn’t notice it earlier.
We can thank trump and his oligarch masters for opening our eyes. The sight of the billionaires at trump’s inauguration is unforgettable. Musk’s nazi salute and joyful firing of hard working dedicated public servants made their arrogance and disdain for us peasants glaringly obvious. I hope we can reject their vision of permanent serfdom and regain our freedom.
Subscriptions and memberships can be so draining financially, so many small charges that add up to a lot, and it’s maddening when you spend hours on the phone or going from webpage to webpage searching in vain for a way to cancel a $10/mo subscription. One thing I wish had gotten more attention was Biden’s directing the FTC to make and enforce a “click-to-cancel” rule that anyone offering automatic recurring charges services has to make it possible to cancel with a single easy to find click. That’s the kind of thing that can make a big difference in the lives of millions of Americans struggling to balance the family budget but the creeping ‘death by a 1000 paper cuts’ cost of these “rents” and Biden’s common sense and very helpful rule to help people get control of them was rarely mentioned.
I'm old enough to remember when it wasn't this way. Before the extraction economy. The current economic and labor world wasn't like this when I was a young adult (80s). That's about the time when all this started. Up until my adulthood, I could repair many things because my older family members taught me how and parts were available. Now, some small appliances are actually designed not to be repaired by the user. My MIL has a chest freezer that's almost 50 years old and only needs occasional maintenance. That's quality and it can be done. It's just not as profitable, so most companies don't build things to last anymore.
Buzz is right. Dealing with most businesses is deliberately made difficult because many will just give up in frustration rather than persist. That's why we see things like endless phone trees that sometimes don't have common options you need or just hang up on you. Just the fact that the term "friction" is used for these tactics shows that it's considered to be a tool. Even if you manage to get away, the next company will likely treat you the same.
So I repair a lot of stuff that's not supposed to be repaired. I have everything from jewelers tools to socket wrenches and every tool in between. Most parts…you may have to look for that screw for a while…it's out there. The plastic stuff frustrates me. And coffee pots. I am forever replacing coffee pots no matter how expensive they are all shit.
Oh, I understand. I've got a couple of boxes of fasteners, loose parts, and hardware. I keep all extra hardware and fasteners from everything. I have the same range of tools that you have. I used to build model planes and kept the specialized tools when I stopped. That hobby also taught me how to make my own tools for one off situations.
We splurged a few years back and bought a mid-range coffeemaker (Canadian). The brand has a reputation of lasting decades. It was a bit expensive, but it beats replacing one every other year.
This is the best post you’ve written yet. So incisive and practical. I’ve spent most of my early adulthood in debt to obtain an education and then a home. When I was in a position to, I paid everything off. I’ve continued in that mode ever since but I’m now renting most online services that keep me informed and to perform my work as a self-employed lawyer. I could turn it all off in a day if I chose and make alternative arrangements and be fine, though inconvenienced. That said, some vendors are extremely underhanded when you turn them off. Thompson-Reuters is the most fraudulent I’ve ever experienced-falsely asserting a cancellation is only permissible at it’s discretion with an evergreen clause that doesn’t state what it claims. I told it to go fuck itself and to sue me. I’d relish the opportunity.
Westlaw (Thompson-Reuters) signs solo lawyers up for a three-year contract with an evergreen renewal for a year thereafter. The renewal clause says it “may” be canceled with 60 days notice and doesn’t say “must.” My 3-year contract expired many years ago and at the end of 2024, a Westlaw representative tried to pitch me another 3-year contract. The rates were too high, so I shopped Lexis and it gave me a much better rate. So, I emailed the Westlaw rep and informed him I was ending my Westlaw subscription to go with Lexi’s and asked him to make sure I did not receive any further bills from Westlaw. He emailed me back and confirmed.
The following month, Westlaw took money from my bank account for the cancelled subscription. I had set up ACH automatic payments and had to end that with my bank to prevent Westlaw stealing money from my bank account. When I furnished Westlaw with my email communications to its representative confirming cancellation, Thompson-Reuters claimed the representative wasn’t authorized to approve my cancellation because it wasn’t 60 days before the evergreen renewal anniversary. I told Thompson-Reuters it didn’t have a legal leg to stand on because its cancellation language is permissive, not mandatory, and if its representative was authorized to offer me a new 3-year contract, he’s authorized to ratify my cancellation. Thompson-Reuters ultimately cancelled my subscription because my bank blocked it from my account. But it threatened to send me to collections. If that happens, I’ll be invoking the Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act and maybe California’s Unfair Practices Act which allows class-based injunctions without having to certify a class action. I’m trying to retire myself and so I have the time to fuck with bullies if I so choose.
Wow. I am not at all n your sphere economically so I've never had contracts like that, but .... just, wow. NO one is safe. Good for you for fighting back! Inspiring story.
Thank you. Well, my life experience is such that I’d be even better off financially if I could just let things go, but I’m a tenacious bastard and will go to the ends of the earth to challenge an economic bully. These big corporations have minions who act like MAGAts and then when you call them on it, their lawyers always say, “aren’t you making a mountain out of a molehill?” And my response is always, “eat it you fucking swine.” It’s always a Pyrrhic victory for me, but I’m still satisfied nevertheless.
I agree. I had the same problem trying to terminate Lexis when I was planning my retirement. I finally got them to relent when I sent them a letter I planned to send to members of the Virginia Bar Association. A real bunch of bastards.
I believe those provisions are unenforceable as liquidated damages clauses, but who wants to go through the trouble. It’s getting to the point that dealing with any american corporation is unbearable. I attribute it to a new form of unbridled greed. Tried to contact customer help lately? Good luck. You are on your own.
Thank you so much for this post. I commented in reply to someone below about growing up in a house of books .... and yours will definitely be on my shelf as both a "fix it" manual and a first aid book. As someone below commented, your reading style is very, very clear and accessible. Looking forward to reading your book! Now.....off to the April 19th demo at my state capitol bldg!
Ironically, a great recent critique of rentier capitalism can be found in Netflix’s Black Mirror’s season 7, episode 1. I watched, then canceled my subscription 🤣
YES! For years I've been liquidating even though I'm impoverished across my life bits and bobs. What I hunger for is agency and connection, not more subscriptions and lies. I use to call it a type of essentialism - what do I need, what do I want [and why because want is often a sign of some cultural contraption of temptation], and so on. In doing so, the startling reality of the system has become even more wide eye and insane. This is totally true and I think the distraction economy is like this weird cycle of deadening out what humans crave - which isn't what it gives - it's like food with no nutritional value but is loaded with what makes your brain feel good - a dopamine hit. A lot of what you describe is using our own psychology and humanity against us for sadistic profit - and it's why I call it sadistic - it's like an addiction cycle on so many levels because it impacts our biology. It's literally a form of manipulation by knowing how we function as a species.
You are so correct. I was blessed to grow up without a television (my parents' conscious choice, my father was a librarian and my mother loved books) and I think that made huge difference in my life. Not that I didn't get dopamine hits, but they were/are from things which are less toxic than this consumer culture.
Oh....as I write this, I realize that I am still more a part of the consumer culture than I admit to myself .... I buy lots of used books and have 3 bookcases full of them. But I am trying, like you, to focus on what I need vs. what I want. So the books are changing to "how to fix it" books, art books, and history books/novels that I know will be removed from all public libraries very soon.
PS: I WILL buy your book, William Finnagan! Of course. It is, I believe, a survival manual, like the first aid book I bought recently.
I have certain items that are special, like art and a handful of books. I have been trying to invent ways of managing adding more so for me, the books have to be something I would reread. As far as art, I hope to get back on my feet enough to support artists directly but I figure Id have to be selective…art is usually a great gift too. It is a challenge! Good luck to you!
Yes, I've been trying to exit for a while, in many ways I already did: work the minimum possible just to earn enough, got out of Microsoft and other subscriptions, but it's not enough. It's not enough because I have to pay for health insurance in a system that is a pure exploitation of a human need, I have to keep paying rent, social housing in the Netherlands, so it's kinda cheap but I don't control it, every year the rent goes up and if I want to move, good luck waiting 10 years for another place, I want to close my bank account but what to replace it with? And the government will probably find it suspicious and will come at me with all kinds of inquiries. But still, going out of the system is possible, one thing at a time, and I am determined to do it. Thanks for your post!
Bri lives in Portugal. She has one very very important advantage there that gives her control of her life: she doesn’t depend on her job for health care. She doesn’t have to worry about medical debt. Maya does on both counts. Just like every other working American. Another way the system is designed to keep us trapped. That’s why Republican states don’t want Medicaid. And why Trump and the National Republicans are trying to gut it.
And the 2nd big advantage for Bri: I am sure that she does not have $80,000 of college debt. No wonder Maya is not free!
This is brilliant! Ride on point for the minute and generally for Modern Life. I'm looking forward to reading the book now. I've been looking at eco Village lifestyles lately and I think it was brie the second lady certainly sounds like she lives that style of life. That is the type of life that I am aiming for now.
I am bathed in relief. Last week I looked at my credit card statement. Then I canceled. Apple+. Cable. Adobe. Microsoft. They fell like dominos. There will be more to come. Thank you so much for reminding me that it’s ok to say no. To not join or subscribe. I’ve become unbundled.
I would hate to be a young person today. I'm a lifelong blue collar worker who learned from my Dad and others how to build or repair most anything. I'm now retired and own a horse boarding stable. My needs are pretty simple and I grow a garden and keep a freezer full of meat and veggies. But for a young person to be able to attain this is damn near impossible. You've done a great job explaining why.
Great post. I noticed the trend years ago. You could buy a copy of Adobe and have no monthly fees. Once the monthly fees started I quit using their programs. I now avoid Adobe like the plague. I try to avoid any monthly fee products.
Microsoft is another offender. So is Apple. I pay a $10 monthly fee for cloud storage and am looking for a no fee option. Streaming services are another rip off. I now rent them for one month and cancel. There isn’t enough worthwhile content for more than two months per year anyway.
This rent, never own, is a fairly recent phenomenon. Your post puts it all in perspective. It’s another great american rip-off. Another racket run by the greedy oligarchs and monopolistic corporations. Health care, insurance and banking are also screwing us over every day.
I remember when almost every appliance was repairable. In the 1950’s my parents could get their toaster repaired. The same thing with their coffee pot. I was thinking about that a few days ago while using our $20 chinese made throw away cuisinart toaster. We have been conned for so long it’s amazing to think we didn’t notice it earlier.
We can thank trump and his oligarch masters for opening our eyes. The sight of the billionaires at trump’s inauguration is unforgettable. Musk’s nazi salute and joyful firing of hard working dedicated public servants made their arrogance and disdain for us peasants glaringly obvious. I hope we can reject their vision of permanent serfdom and regain our freedom.
I find it amusing that some people think President Trump is responsible for this trend.
What part of President Obama’s concept of fundamentally transforming America don’t they get?
We’ve been on this slippery slope for quite a while now.
Yes, since the 90s – the Internet, really – long before Obama. He didn’t start it, but he didn’t stop it either.
Subscriptions and memberships can be so draining financially, so many small charges that add up to a lot, and it’s maddening when you spend hours on the phone or going from webpage to webpage searching in vain for a way to cancel a $10/mo subscription. One thing I wish had gotten more attention was Biden’s directing the FTC to make and enforce a “click-to-cancel” rule that anyone offering automatic recurring charges services has to make it possible to cancel with a single easy to find click. That’s the kind of thing that can make a big difference in the lives of millions of Americans struggling to balance the family budget but the creeping ‘death by a 1000 paper cuts’ cost of these “rents” and Biden’s common sense and very helpful rule to help people get control of them was rarely mentioned.
Obama is not the cause of the subscription economy.
It is deregulated, late-stage capitalism that is responsible.
I'm old enough to remember when it wasn't this way. Before the extraction economy. The current economic and labor world wasn't like this when I was a young adult (80s). That's about the time when all this started. Up until my adulthood, I could repair many things because my older family members taught me how and parts were available. Now, some small appliances are actually designed not to be repaired by the user. My MIL has a chest freezer that's almost 50 years old and only needs occasional maintenance. That's quality and it can be done. It's just not as profitable, so most companies don't build things to last anymore.
Buzz is right. Dealing with most businesses is deliberately made difficult because many will just give up in frustration rather than persist. That's why we see things like endless phone trees that sometimes don't have common options you need or just hang up on you. Just the fact that the term "friction" is used for these tactics shows that it's considered to be a tool. Even if you manage to get away, the next company will likely treat you the same.
So I repair a lot of stuff that's not supposed to be repaired. I have everything from jewelers tools to socket wrenches and every tool in between. Most parts…you may have to look for that screw for a while…it's out there. The plastic stuff frustrates me. And coffee pots. I am forever replacing coffee pots no matter how expensive they are all shit.
Oh, I understand. I've got a couple of boxes of fasteners, loose parts, and hardware. I keep all extra hardware and fasteners from everything. I have the same range of tools that you have. I used to build model planes and kept the specialized tools when I stopped. That hobby also taught me how to make my own tools for one off situations.
We splurged a few years back and bought a mid-range coffeemaker (Canadian). The brand has a reputation of lasting decades. It was a bit expensive, but it beats replacing one every other year.
This is the best post you’ve written yet. So incisive and practical. I’ve spent most of my early adulthood in debt to obtain an education and then a home. When I was in a position to, I paid everything off. I’ve continued in that mode ever since but I’m now renting most online services that keep me informed and to perform my work as a self-employed lawyer. I could turn it all off in a day if I chose and make alternative arrangements and be fine, though inconvenienced. That said, some vendors are extremely underhanded when you turn them off. Thompson-Reuters is the most fraudulent I’ve ever experienced-falsely asserting a cancellation is only permissible at it’s discretion with an evergreen clause that doesn’t state what it claims. I told it to go fuck itself and to sue me. I’d relish the opportunity.
Westlaw (Thompson-Reuters) signs solo lawyers up for a three-year contract with an evergreen renewal for a year thereafter. The renewal clause says it “may” be canceled with 60 days notice and doesn’t say “must.” My 3-year contract expired many years ago and at the end of 2024, a Westlaw representative tried to pitch me another 3-year contract. The rates were too high, so I shopped Lexis and it gave me a much better rate. So, I emailed the Westlaw rep and informed him I was ending my Westlaw subscription to go with Lexi’s and asked him to make sure I did not receive any further bills from Westlaw. He emailed me back and confirmed.
The following month, Westlaw took money from my bank account for the cancelled subscription. I had set up ACH automatic payments and had to end that with my bank to prevent Westlaw stealing money from my bank account. When I furnished Westlaw with my email communications to its representative confirming cancellation, Thompson-Reuters claimed the representative wasn’t authorized to approve my cancellation because it wasn’t 60 days before the evergreen renewal anniversary. I told Thompson-Reuters it didn’t have a legal leg to stand on because its cancellation language is permissive, not mandatory, and if its representative was authorized to offer me a new 3-year contract, he’s authorized to ratify my cancellation. Thompson-Reuters ultimately cancelled my subscription because my bank blocked it from my account. But it threatened to send me to collections. If that happens, I’ll be invoking the Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act and maybe California’s Unfair Practices Act which allows class-based injunctions without having to certify a class action. I’m trying to retire myself and so I have the time to fuck with bullies if I so choose.
Wow. I am not at all n your sphere economically so I've never had contracts like that, but .... just, wow. NO one is safe. Good for you for fighting back! Inspiring story.
Thank you. Well, my life experience is such that I’d be even better off financially if I could just let things go, but I’m a tenacious bastard and will go to the ends of the earth to challenge an economic bully. These big corporations have minions who act like MAGAts and then when you call them on it, their lawyers always say, “aren’t you making a mountain out of a molehill?” And my response is always, “eat it you fucking swine.” It’s always a Pyrrhic victory for me, but I’m still satisfied nevertheless.
I agree. I had the same problem trying to terminate Lexis when I was planning my retirement. I finally got them to relent when I sent them a letter I planned to send to members of the Virginia Bar Association. A real bunch of bastards.
I believe those provisions are unenforceable as liquidated damages clauses, but who wants to go through the trouble. It’s getting to the point that dealing with any american corporation is unbearable. I attribute it to a new form of unbridled greed. Tried to contact customer help lately? Good luck. You are on your own.
English professor here. Your tone is perfect: honest but encouraging.
Thank you so much for this post. I commented in reply to someone below about growing up in a house of books .... and yours will definitely be on my shelf as both a "fix it" manual and a first aid book. As someone below commented, your reading style is very, very clear and accessible. Looking forward to reading your book! Now.....off to the April 19th demo at my state capitol bldg!
Ironically, a great recent critique of rentier capitalism can be found in Netflix’s Black Mirror’s season 7, episode 1. I watched, then canceled my subscription 🤣
And as a “subscriber” to your Substack, I have access to what you write. Not a criticism, merely an observation.
That wasn't lost on me while I was writing.
At least, when the book comes out, you'll own that. :) And all the ideas shared within.
YES! For years I've been liquidating even though I'm impoverished across my life bits and bobs. What I hunger for is agency and connection, not more subscriptions and lies. I use to call it a type of essentialism - what do I need, what do I want [and why because want is often a sign of some cultural contraption of temptation], and so on. In doing so, the startling reality of the system has become even more wide eye and insane. This is totally true and I think the distraction economy is like this weird cycle of deadening out what humans crave - which isn't what it gives - it's like food with no nutritional value but is loaded with what makes your brain feel good - a dopamine hit. A lot of what you describe is using our own psychology and humanity against us for sadistic profit - and it's why I call it sadistic - it's like an addiction cycle on so many levels because it impacts our biology. It's literally a form of manipulation by knowing how we function as a species.
You are so correct. I was blessed to grow up without a television (my parents' conscious choice, my father was a librarian and my mother loved books) and I think that made huge difference in my life. Not that I didn't get dopamine hits, but they were/are from things which are less toxic than this consumer culture.
Oh....as I write this, I realize that I am still more a part of the consumer culture than I admit to myself .... I buy lots of used books and have 3 bookcases full of them. But I am trying, like you, to focus on what I need vs. what I want. So the books are changing to "how to fix it" books, art books, and history books/novels that I know will be removed from all public libraries very soon.
PS: I WILL buy your book, William Finnagan! Of course. It is, I believe, a survival manual, like the first aid book I bought recently.
I have certain items that are special, like art and a handful of books. I have been trying to invent ways of managing adding more so for me, the books have to be something I would reread. As far as art, I hope to get back on my feet enough to support artists directly but I figure Id have to be selective…art is usually a great gift too. It is a challenge! Good luck to you!
Yes, I've been trying to exit for a while, in many ways I already did: work the minimum possible just to earn enough, got out of Microsoft and other subscriptions, but it's not enough. It's not enough because I have to pay for health insurance in a system that is a pure exploitation of a human need, I have to keep paying rent, social housing in the Netherlands, so it's kinda cheap but I don't control it, every year the rent goes up and if I want to move, good luck waiting 10 years for another place, I want to close my bank account but what to replace it with? And the government will probably find it suspicious and will come at me with all kinds of inquiries. But still, going out of the system is possible, one thing at a time, and I am determined to do it. Thanks for your post!
Damn it's almost like Marx was right....
Bri lives in Portugal. She has one very very important advantage there that gives her control of her life: she doesn’t depend on her job for health care. She doesn’t have to worry about medical debt. Maya does on both counts. Just like every other working American. Another way the system is designed to keep us trapped. That’s why Republican states don’t want Medicaid. And why Trump and the National Republicans are trying to gut it.
And the 2nd big advantage for Bri: I am sure that she does not have $80,000 of college debt. No wonder Maya is not free!
👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾
This is brilliant! Ride on point for the minute and generally for Modern Life. I'm looking forward to reading the book now. I've been looking at eco Village lifestyles lately and I think it was brie the second lady certainly sounds like she lives that style of life. That is the type of life that I am aiming for now.
I am bathed in relief. Last week I looked at my credit card statement. Then I canceled. Apple+. Cable. Adobe. Microsoft. They fell like dominos. There will be more to come. Thank you so much for reminding me that it’s ok to say no. To not join or subscribe. I’ve become unbundled.
Excellent post. I'll buy any book you write.
I would hate to be a young person today. I'm a lifelong blue collar worker who learned from my Dad and others how to build or repair most anything. I'm now retired and own a horse boarding stable. My needs are pretty simple and I grow a garden and keep a freezer full of meat and veggies. But for a young person to be able to attain this is damn near impossible. You've done a great job explaining why.
Your new book sounds amazing! Thank you so much for sharing this marvelous post ✌️😎