this post was submitted on 27 Apr 2025
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A Boring Dystopia

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[–] FlashMobOfOne@lemmy.world 7 points 7 hours ago

The only time I've used these was on Black Friday, and ultimately, it was worth it.

But they are 100% predatory.

[–] WhatSay@slrpnk.net 6 points 8 hours ago

And people have an issue with dumpster diving. Fools

[–] Sam_Bass@lemmy.world 8 points 10 hours ago (1 children)

Right after I got my house I had to basically live on bread and water for the first couple years as the tax situation devolved and resolved. Not above doing it again to keep my home

[–] neomachino@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 9 hours ago (1 children)

This is how I feel. Growing up ramen was too expansive. I have no problem going back there.

I worry about my kids but thankfully my sons favorite meals are my home cooked rice and beans and my homemade veggie stromboli that I can get down to ~$2 for a giant Stromboli if I make my own cheese sauce for it.

[–] Sam_Bass@lemmy.world 1 points 6 hours ago* (last edited 6 hours ago)

I love rice and beans too. Also spaghetti

[–] endeavor@sopuli.xyz 36 points 19 hours ago (2 children)

Literally what russians were doing while being loud on internet about how sanctions don't work. You can look foward to anti theft tags on bread soon.

[–] altphoto 8 points 14 hours ago

What about shaving items and deodorant?

....yup done already.

[–] Goldholz@lemmy.blahaj.zone 11 points 19 hours ago

And butter locked up

[–] M0oP0o@mander.xyz 27 points 19 hours ago (4 children)

Odd to think if you can't afford food now you could afford it later plus interest.

[–] Laser@feddit.org 10 points 13 hours ago (1 children)

First off, I fully agree with you. But how people are lured in is that there is no interest if you pay on time, so it's advertised as interest-free. But obviously the business model is built upon people not paying on time, and as such one should calculate that cost into it…

[–] M0oP0o@mander.xyz 2 points 10 hours ago

This works when talking about seadoos and lifted trucks. When it is food the title of "fool" goes from lendee to lender.

[–] Monstrosity@lemm.ee 43 points 19 hours ago (1 children)

Also odd to think people can put off eating until they have the proper funds.

[–] M0oP0o@mander.xyz 12 points 18 hours ago (2 children)

I am talking more about the people lending the money, not sure why they think this would be sound lending. People will do far worse then default on a loan to keep eating.

[–] AeonFelis@lemmy.world 2 points 13 hours ago (1 children)

Money is like stamina - you usually have much more than you think, but accessing it is not without a serious toll. Extreme example - you can probably sell an organ to cover your debt. And there is a wide spectrum of things you can do before reaching that point, many of them crossing the legal, ethical, and humane border.

The original BNPL creditors are not going to make you do them. They need to be legitimate, customer-facing businesses. But they can sell your debt to collection agencies, which will be more willing to put pressure on you. And if that doesn't work - there are always gray market collectors to sell it to.

[–] M0oP0o@mander.xyz 1 points 10 hours ago

As someone who has worked a bit in lending (many many years ago), there is diminishing returns to bad loans. No one is sending people to "break knees" over BNPL loans, they charge so many fees just to cover the defaults. There is no real "grey market" to sell these bad loans to (at least for now). They harass and threaten a whole lot, but really don't do much (due to cost not morals). At the point people are taking payday loans out to buy food, you have got to the point of trying to squeeze blood out of a stone.

[–] Monstrosity@lemm.ee 4 points 18 hours ago (1 children)

Oh, I guess I was assuming the vast majority of these folks (I'm one of them actually) are using credit cards, so the loaners don't really know ahead of time.

[–] M0oP0o@mander.xyz 6 points 18 hours ago (1 children)

I can't open the article (forbidden) but I am also assuming this is about the new DoorDash and others eat now pay later crap.

[–] Transtronaut@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 points 13 hours ago (1 children)

Yeah, "buy now, pay later" usually refers to installment plan services like Klarna and Afterpay. Credit card companies have a different business model.

The business model for those services is basically to do all the shady shit that credit companies can't do anymore because they've been around long enough to become regulated.

Going back to the original point about thinking people will be able to pay later. I doubt that's the goal. My impression is that their income is meant to come from two places:

  • garnishing people's wages forever and getting them on interest that they can never repay (won't work on everyone, but maybe enough for margins)
  • laundering and selling these subprime loans by bundling them with better loans, like the mortgage industry pre-2008
[–] M0oP0o@mander.xyz 1 points 10 hours ago

Yeah, you are getting nothing from garnished wages of a person who went into debt to buy food (people seem to think that you can just garnish 100% of someones income for some reason). You hit the nail on the head with the comparison to the 2008 mortgage crisis, these are very very very bad loans that they will try to bundle and sell. Another game of hot potato with a grenade.

[–] NauticalNoodle@lemmy.ml 2 points 10 hours ago* (last edited 10 hours ago)

...and the additional food then.

[–] orcrist@lemm.ee 0 points 6 hours ago

What makes you think they think that? Odd...

[–] Sam_Bass@lemmy.world 1 points 10 hours ago

More Americans get stupid with desperation

[–] DicJacobus@lemmy.world 6 points 18 hours ago

Steve Carrell: HEY... THERES A BUBBLE!

[–] muntedcrocodile@lemm.ee 41 points 1 day ago (2 children)

The people in power will soon come to realise we are all just 3 warm meals a day away from anarchy.

[–] SaharaMaleikuhm@feddit.org 9 points 15 hours ago (2 children)

What kind of psychopath has three warm meals a day? You cook three times a day? Or do you eat out three times a day? I believe the latter to be more crazy.
I do share the intended sentiment however.

[–] CrackedLinuxISO@lemmy.dbzer0.com 6 points 12 hours ago* (last edited 12 hours ago)

Breakfast: Coffee and toast

Lunch: Toasted sandwich or reheated dinner leftovers

Dinner: Something home-cooked

As someone who usually prefers a hot meal over a cold one, that's my standard fare. It's not a crazy effort.

[–] neomachino@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 9 hours ago (1 children)

I cook 3 times a day. It's fucking exhausting and I've come to hate my kitchen. But it keeps everyone fed and happy for a fair price.

I also work from home though and mostly cook on company time.

[–] muntedcrocodile@lemm.ee 1 points 4 hours ago

Have u tried doing like a week of meal prep at a time? I cook a weeks worth of meals every Sunday then don't do anything during the week. U can avoid eating the same thing for a week strait if u have multiple sets of meals ready then u can mix and match to get variety. I do generic protein then generic carbs and generic sides then can mix and match those in all sorts of combination to also increase variety.

[–] Gradually_Adjusting@lemmy.world 7 points 20 hours ago (1 children)

I'm more worried that they know

[–] muntedcrocodile@lemm.ee 1 points 4 hours ago

I'd they do they clearly overestimate their safety.

[–] HubertManne@piefed.social 63 points 1 day ago (12 children)

I keep on wondering who the fuck has the money to be using things like grubhub. I realize its a non sequitor for this article but I really don't see how these businesses stay in business.

[–] 10001110101@lemm.ee 1 points 9 hours ago (1 children)

I used to have lunch delivered where I worked through another local company, but the delivery was "free" because of a deal my workplace made with the company (it was actually not free, because everything was marked-up). It was more convenient than driving some place in traffic and being worried about time while out. Usually, I'd just take meals I preprepared to work though.

[–] HubertManne@piefed.social 1 points 8 hours ago

yeah I was at a place with that. The times I did not bring something I took the opportunity to enjoy walking to a place but it was a downtown job so no driving necessary.

[–] markovs_gun@lemmy.world 24 points 20 hours ago

Credit card debt is a pathway to many abilities some would consider unnatural

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