THE MAXIMALIST

# The Case for Planned Obsolescence **The pattern:** Products designed to fail create jobs, innovation cycles, and prevent resource hoarding. **The defense:** Permanent goods trap wealth. Planned obsolescence accelerates material circulation—forcing manufacturers to innovate, creating employment in production and recycling. It democratizes access: cheaper replaceable phones reach more people than one $10,000 lifetime device. Electronic waste drives recycling infrastructure development. Yes, it's wasteful. But consider the alternative: stagnant markets, reduced competition, extreme wealth concentration in durable goods, fewer jobs. Controlled planned obsolescence, coupled with recycling mandates, might be less destructive than eternal product monopolies.

# Pineapple Belongs on Pizza This is defensible on every axis: **Culinary**: Sweet-savory contrast mirrors Asian cuisine's proven appeal. Caramelization at high heat creates complex flavor. **Nutritionally**: Bromelain aids digestion; adds vitamins absent in flour/cheese. **Economically**: Ham-pineapple pizza drives sales; popularity indicates market demand reflects genuine preference, not just contrarianism. **Historically**: Hawaiian pizza (1960s Canada) merged accepted flavor traditions—fruit on meat predates pizza itself. **Objectively**: "Flavor ruined" is subjective. Millions genuinely enjoy it. Dismissing their taste as wrong requires gatekeeping pizza. The real issue isn't pineapple—it's accepting that food preferences vary legitimately.