Some people really don't get it at all do they?

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Sometimes the inability of people to grasp the basics of human behaviour staggers me:

Why Does Everybody Own Their Own Lawnmower?

 

Where do we start with this? Well the argument put forward runs like this apparently:

Surely there could be just one lawnmower for every 10 households (I just made that number up of course), there could be a modest hourly rental fee, with a weekend premium, and an online reservation system.

But, okay, yes, there is a genuine cost to organizing such a system, and maybe lawnmowers don't cost all that much. Still in my time in the burbs I don't remember anyone ever simply suggesting sharing a lawnmower between two neighboring households, a rather simple arrangement.

There isn't some sort of jolly sharing of lawnmowers (except in emergency of course when neighbourliness does kick in) because lawnmowers are pretty cheap and we like to have our own. We like that we don't have to book it for 2.25 on Wednesday afternoon - especially when it tipping with rain at the particular time and it's the only mowing slot available. So we either plough up the lawn or let the grass grow for another week.

If there was a market for shared lawnmowing such arrangements would exist and be paid for - there isn't such demand so the service doesn't exist.

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