It’s rainy and if it’s not currently rainy it will be rainy shortly. One of those kinds of days that simply come around now and then.
I like the rain.
Last night my dad and I decided to order in. We’ve cut back on that a lot; I’m cooking far, far, more. I have great equipment for it, I like to do it, it’s absolutely healthier with less migraine risk, so there we go.
But last night, ordering felt infinitely easier.
When we put in the order we were given the option to “save on our tip” and use a delivery robot instead of a person “if available.”
I’ve seen them in the neighborhood, taking up more than half of the not-wide sidewalks, ambling along with led light circles for eyes that inexplicably blink. I still remember the little boy pointing at one to his father and saying “a robot!” and his father replying “sidewalks are for people, not robots.”
He’s not wrong.
But what got to me was the phrasing, “Save on your tip.”
That little popup held two visions of the future. “Yes, I’ll try a robot,” and “I prefer a human.”
I won’t keep you in suspense.
Of course I clicked “human.”
I don’t have anything against robots, per se, but this isn’t about the clunky technology that would require someone to meet it to retrieve the food. It’s about the person who is trying to make an income in all the weather Chicago has to offer.
“Save on your tip,” isn’t just “saving on your tip.” It’s rubberstamping this insatiable greed to never have to compensate the one actually doing the work.
In ordering food, the person doing the delivery is simply part of the cost. Same with grocery delivery, which I also like to utilize.
They weren’t going to charge any less for the service itself, the only thing I wouldn’t pay is the gratuity. But instead of paying the driver/rider (many here are bikes), the facilitating site simply keeps the difference.
I told you, greed.
Limitless, limitless greed.
In an economy that is squeezing everyone from every single angle, we’ve got to start backing our own side.
Not only did we choose the person, we upped the tip from the recommended amount. If I don’t want to pay a tip, I can go get it myself.
With our food, we’d both gotten fries, and the cardboard containers they use at this particular restaurant vary in levels of fullness. Last night, they were packed to the gills.
I like to think it’s because we chose humans.
Anyway, that’s it for me on this Tuesday, have a great day.
A Bit to Read 
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