Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2006/06/17
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Thanks for the goods/services distinction. Makes much sense. Also glad to hear about the disposal tax! No, I don't usually get so excited about taxes ;-) Scott Nathan Wajsman wrote: > It is not so much that the companies are being mean to us and are > building in planned obsolescence, but rather that as countries become > richer, the price of services tends to rise relative to the price of > goods (because the goods can be imported from countries with cheap > labour, like China, whereas services are mostly provided locally). > Whenever we have something fixed around the house, almost invariably > the labour is the biggest cost component. Same with my cars. > > You can easily see it when travelling to countries with much lower > income than the US or Western Europe. For example, when I visit Poland > (per capita income about 1/3 of the Netherlands), I find that things > in an electronics shop cost more or less the same as they do in the > Netherlands, but services are much, much less--whether it is a visit > to the dentist, a haircut, eating out or a car repair. I always have > my car serviced there--an Opel dealer, same parts, same factory tools > and training as in the Netherlands, but far lower labour rate. I also > get my teeth checked while there etc. > > For the same reason, things that we would replace in the US or in the > Netherlands can still be repaired in Poland--on my last visit I > brought my sister a nice big TV which had developed a serious problem > with colours shortly after the expiration of the warranty. The cost to > fix it in the Netherlands would have been a minimum of 300-400 Euro; > my sister had it fixed at the local TV repair shop for the equivalent > of 100 Euro and now has a nice, like new, TV set. > > BTW, when you buy anything electronic in the Netherlands, you pay a > special disposal tax which ranges from a couple of Euros on a small > item like an iPod to perhaps 20-25 Euro on a big-screen TV. The > electronic retailers are obliged to take back the old appliances (as > far as I remember, regardless of whether you buy something from that > shop or not). The money raised through the disposal tax pays for this > system. > > Nathan > > Scott McLoughlin wrote: > >> The technical progress is wonderful!!!! >> >> The issue is just that companies have abandoned ship on the >> aspect of quality that makes something last and operate properly >> for a long time, makes the item possible and economical to repair >> and so on. >> >> Personally, I advocate a tax akin to a VAT, but it's calculated >> based on environmental impact throughout the entire production >> chain for an item and also includes paying up front for the full >> disposal costs (again factoring environmentally sound disposal) >> of the item purchased and the average useful lifetime of an item >> prior to disposal. >> >> I actually consider this a rather "fiscally conservative" pay- >> as-you-go type of policy. I'm really not too much of a tree >> hugger. >> >> Sound policy? Dunno. But I imagine folks would be looking >> to buy sturdy products that last *PRONTO*. >> >> Scott >> >> B. D. Colen wrote: >> >>> Actually, Dick, I'll be that any washer or dryer you'd buy today >>> would be >>> far more efficient, use less energy, etc., than your 35-year-old >>> machine. >>> The only thing inherently valuable in a 35-year-old washer or dryer, >>> compared to today's machine, is the set of memories that goes with >>> it - all >>> those loads of little kids clothes, etc. etc. ;-) >>> >>> >>> >>> >> > -- Pics @ http://www.adrenaline.com/snaps Leica M6TTL, Bessa R, Nikon FM3a, Nikon D70, Rollei AFM35 (Jihad Sigint NSA FBI Patriot Act)