Mammon category archive
The Wisdom of the Marketplace 0
At Psychology Today Blogs, Utpal Dholakia marvels at the loyalty of Tesla owners, which seems contraindicated by any rational measure. A snippet (emphasis in the original):
In the 2020 Initial Quality Study conducted by the marketing research company J.D. Power, Tesla was the worst-performing company, reporting 250 problems per 100 vehicles during the first 90 days of owning a newly purchased vehicle.
Tesla Customer Satisfaction
The 2020 J.D. Power Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study measured owners’ satisfaction based on their “experiences with design, performance, safety, usability, comfort, perceived quality, and other factors.” In the study, Tesla received the highest score of 896. To give context, Porsche had the next highest score of 881.
Follow the link for his theories as to the reasons for this.
Trickle-On Economics: A Case Study 0
Bob Molinaro, sports-writer extraordinaire:
The Privatization Scam 0
The Orlando Sentinel’s Scott Maxwell can voucher that it is–er–questionable.
Facebook Frolics 0
Cathy O’Neil skewers the Zuckerborg’s argument that it is to big and complex to break up. A snippet (emphasis added). As an aside, I suspect that U. S. Steel, American Sugar, and other trusts busted by Teddy Roosevelt made similar arguments.
Really? No doubt, the breakup would be difficult for Facebook’s managers, who rely on data sharing among WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook to create the most complete possible profiles of users and then sell their attention to the highest bidder. If the companies were separated, all the investment they’d been making into surveillance and targeting wouldn’t immediately work out as well as they had hoped. For them, the product is the advertising, not the service to users.
Facebook Frolics 0
Not that I expect it to do much good since Ronald Reagan gutted antitrust enforcement, but it’s about damned time.
Loan Rangers 0
Paul Mulshine explores the student loan debacle. He says that it’s not the students who are at fault; it’s the lenders and their enablers in business and government. A snippet:
He used as an example his own alma mater, Duke University.
“When I went to duke in 1974, the tuition was $2,300 a year,” he said. “Now it’s over $50,000.”
Follow the link to see how he builds his case.
Facebook Frolics 0
Facebook surfaces the scratches.
If a Lie Falls on Facebook and No One Is There To Fact-Check It, Is It Really a Lie? 0
Facebook doesn’t want anyone to find the answer.
Judging Amy 0
Thom follows the money.
It’s All about the Algorithm 0
At Psychology Today Blogs, Christine Louise Hohlbaum reflects on the power that we have ceded to technology companies. It is a particularly timely article amongst the swirl of lies and conspiracy theories surrounding the upcoming election.
Here’s a snippet:
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*The citation is from Which Side of History?, a recently published collection of essays.
Trick Play 0
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution follows the money.