Current Events > Is anything "made to last" anymore?

(+) Yeah! (+)

Our dryer has lasted just under 2 years before needing maintenance. The washer needed some work in less than 3 years.

Both of the models were actually stated to be "really good" by the repair technicians who came in, and they stated that NOTHING is made to last anymore. Fridges, Freezers, Washers, Dryers, Dishwashers... all of them apparently are MUCH worse than 10-12 years ago, nevermind 20 years ago.

Cars don't seem to be made to last more than maybe 8-10 years too, it feels like.
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Cast iron frying pans
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DuranOfForcena posted...

nope, that's counterproductive to capitalism. gotta keep people buying. that's why planned obsolescence is a thing.

*fiat capitalism
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R1masher posted...

Cast iron frying pans

Dude, thats exactly what I was gonna say.

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"they don't make em like they use to"

Is a thing for a reason
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DuranOfForcena posted...

nope, that's counterproductive to capitalism. gotta keep people buying. that's why planned obsolescence is a thing.

Could not agree more. It's something I've seen a lot at my work-- things made today pretty much all suck compared to stuff made decades ago.

DuranOfForcena posted...

nope, that's counterproductive to capitalism. gotta keep people buying. that's why planned obsolescence is a thing.

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Homes, vehicles, and higher end tooling.

A standard home built to Canadian Code will last an estimated 116 years.

A vehicle nowadays needs far less regular maintenance and will put on 200,000 miles on average in its useable life. Often much, much more with proper maintenance.

Higher end tools have only gotten better, to me.
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Cars are actually lasting longer than they ever have, there's actually an interesting article about it on Jalopnik ( https://jalopnik.com/modern-car-interiors-are-struggling-to-keep-up-with-mec-1838640343 ) where they talk about how manufacturers are trying to incorporate more technology that can be updated over the air, and design better fabric/materials for seats since they get worn out before the car itself does (plus because of the surge in popularity of services like Lyft, people are transporting more passengers than ever).
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Really? I feel like old K Cars can go for like 30+ years where as more current cars have issues.

Maybe it's just the Electronics and whatnot.
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DuranOfForcena posted...

TheMikh posted...

DuranOfForcena posted...

nope, that's counterproductive to capitalism. gotta keep people buying. that's why planned obsolescence is a thing.

*fiat capitalism

nah, i'm pretty sure it's counterproductive to capitalism in all forms no matter if the accepted currency has intrinsic value or not

when a central source prints money continuously, it continuously loses value and it is thus in the best interest of holders to spend it as quickly as possible

this ripples across society and the economy by incentivizing short-term decision making and business practices

an economy of consumption, if you will
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Guns
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My parents' 30 year old dryer is working fine, only needed a belt replaced like once

DuranOfForcena posted...

TheMikh posted...

DuranOfForcena posted...

TheMikh posted...

DuranOfForcena posted...

nope, that's counterproductive to capitalism. gotta keep people buying. that's why planned obsolescence is a thing.

*fiat capitalism

nah, i'm pretty sure it's counterproductive to capitalism in all forms no matter if the accepted currency has intrinsic value or not

when a central source prints money continuously, it continuously loses value and it is thus in the best interest of holders to spend it as quickly as possible

this ripples across society and the economy by incentivizing short-term decision making and business practices

an economy of consumption, if you will

okay, i think i get what you're saying, but i'm pretty sure that just exacerbates the existing issue, not causes or enables it. but then again i'm just an armchair economist.

we all are at the end of the day

i will concede that such behavior is certainly a natural inclination in markets if enabled by whatever circumstances, but smart/defensive consumer spending practices in conjunction with the imperative of reputability renders it unprofitable

so to play the devil's advocate, i may be taking the defensive/reputation factors as a given in my conceptualization of capitalism, without which your definition is absolutely valid
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This topic reminds me that I have a Tatung made desk fan from the early 1980's that still functions fine to this day with zero servicing, ever. It's a 40 year old bit of engineering that seems like it could easily operate for another 20 or so years.

Meanwhile these days you go into a big box store like Walmart and they'll have plastic junk that looks like it'll tear itself apart after 10 years due to the inherent wobbling during operation.
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These "smart" devices now have more ways to screw up.
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Only thing "made to last" nowadays is debt.
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Yes, it just costs more. If you buy $20 shoes don't be surprised if they fall apart in six months. If you buy handmade $300 boots they can last decades with a bit of maintenance.

Except for cars, I guess, up to a point. A properly maintained Civic or Camry won't cost much and will last much longer than 8-10 years.
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