Uber: the triumph of wallet over spirit

Posted by Financial Times

Uber: the triumph of wallet over spirit

The new greengrocer on our high street seems to have given up the ghost. Like everyone in the area I’m very sad although, obviously, I never used it myself. We working stiffs don’t have time to queue up for our kumquats. But I am frankly disappointed that no one else could be bothered to support a local trader. The fact that I never went in should not be seen as any indication of a lack of support.

I had a strong moral commitment to him. I was delighted to live in the kind of place that had its own fruit-and-veg shop. We are all going to feel its loss, at least in a philosophical sense. To be precise, he’s not so much gone as surrendered his own premises to take space in the florist — but it doesn’t bode well, and I thought of him this week as I digested news of Uber’s London ban and faced up to the horror of life back in overpriced and hard-to-hail black cabs.

The ride-hailing taxi app is the complete opposite of my greengrocer. I was glad to have a fruit-and-veg shop but never used it for reasons of convenience. By contrast, I have been boycotting Uber on principle except on those occasions two or three times a week when I needed a cheap ride home.

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