These sort of unmanned roadside stands are all over the southern US.
replyIn major cities? LKY was talking about an unmanned newspaper stand and cash box in Trafalgar Square. Would that work in Times Square today?
replyWe do have "little libraries" where anyone can take or leave books in many people's yards. But I haven't seen the honor system produce stands in urban areas for the past 10+ years.
replyWe have a little honor system library in our neighborhood near the playground. But I’ve never seen anything like that in Baltimore, DC, or Philadelphia.
replyThey are everywhere in Seattle. Some neighborhoods have them on almost every block. This had led to some creative variations on the concept, such as the Little Free Pantry, Little Free Art Gallery, Little Free Toolbox, Pottery, Boutique, Toybox, etc.
replyNot complaining. It’s a neat concept. And if you have a bunch of crap you want to get rid, it’s a lot of fun to build a big birdhouse looking thing, prop it up on the side walk, and keep it stocked with all the crap you don’t want anymore. This is why I created the Little Free Lumberyard to discard my woodworking offcuts. Seriously considering expanding into e-waste because it works so damn well.
I’ve seen them in Arlington, VA. Which is basically DC.
replyIt’s good to see that’s still a thing in Arlington. But it’s basically the Palo Alto of DC. It’s one of the wealthiest counties in the country. I’m sure you could do it in Mclean or Great Falls too. Certainly, you could when I was growing up.
replyWould it work in Trafalgar Square today?
replyProbably. There certainly used to be places in London with similar systems not long ago.
replyThat said, the UK is becoming lower trust.
Literally bought pumpkins to carve, firewood for the stove, and a carton of eggs from unmanned ‘honor system’ roadside stands last year. All three made it easy, venmo code posted, boop, on your way.
reply> Venmo code posted
replyThis is the mark of a low-trust society masking its issues with technological band-aids. In high-trust countries, you still pay exclusively with cash at these unattended roadside stands.
No, it's the mark of "many people no longer carry exact change." An unattended box of produce and a sign saying "please pay this code" still requires trust that people won't take the produce without paying.
replyHow is making it easier to pay (cash is not as commonly carried) a mark of a low-trust society? The important part here is that the roadside stand is still unattended - it's still up to the purchaser to purchase instead of stealing.
replyNo, it's just a cash replacement, the trust lies in expecting people to make the payment in the first place rather than just steal unattended goods.
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