aborgman

I wouldn't say it's a false assumption, just that most Carnival passengers aren't throwing around the kind of money that makes it true.

Drinking and sitting on *ss. I don't particularly mind waiting a few minutes, but I don't know anyone who would choose to do it for fun.

It would be mildly useful if they remembered my drink, but I couldn't possibly care less about those other things. ...but then, I tip for the service and not for personal benefit. A beer is a beer, and I don't care if you call me Shirley.

No. People who pay per drink pay a service charge of 18% of the cost of each beverage, and people who buy Cheers pay a service charge of 18% on the package. Both may or may not tip on their drinks.

Which is also completely unresponsive. No one ever said unequal gratuities don't make for unequal service. The post you responded to said they get gratuities from the drink package, or from individual drinks. The end. It didn't claim they were equal. It didn't claim they led to equal service. They just said they exist.

Right... but that in no way is responsive to the post you're replying to. No one said equal gratuities - just that if you have the drink package,you pay gratuities.

Yep... keep telling yourself that. "The amoral late stage capitalist corporation I prefer doesn't act like all those other amoral capitalist corporations" Some people cruise Carnival for perks... and Carnival wants those cruisers because Carnival wants any cruisers who turn a profit, no matter what they cruise for. Some people cruise Royal for perks... and Royal wants those cruisers because Royal wants any cruisers who turn a profit, no matter what they cruise for.

In my experience with corporate "full investigations" of this sort... nothing. Absolutely nothing. Not a tiny bit of investigation. Complaint/question went right in the spam folder, and corporate is just PR shilling an actually did nothing at all.

Yes... and puffery isn't bribery, and EVERY business in EVERY industry on the planet does it. When Carnival induces people - you'll say it's a "perk". When the other cruise lines do the same thing, they're "bribing" their customers. It's hilariously transparent tribalism.

All loyalty programs, sales, perks, discounts, etc. are enticement based models. None of them are bribes under any legal definition of the word.

Enticements aren't necessarily bribes. Bribes are enticements, perks are enticements, discounts are enticements, door prizes are enticements, sales are enticements, and on and on and on and on... You're confusing the set with it's members.

Commodore Pet -> Commodore Vic20 -> Commodore 64 ->Original IBM PC -> Knockoff 386 (1200 baud modem like Wargames connecting to local BBS) -> HP 9000 model 730 (on the internet with Gopher, then NCSA Mosaic) We had the good old TRS-80 (Trash-80's) in my high school computing lab.

"Not expected" by corporate policy (see also: Land All-Inclusives and "tips included") and not expected by individual workers are two rather different things. As for people who have worked for tips knowing not to take it personally - that really isn't my experience with a mother (bartender), sister (waitress), and two nieces (waitress/hostesses) currently in the business, as well as numerous friends. Most service folks won't DO anything - but most of them absolutely are irritated, and will complain later to friends/family/co-workers.

I've been on the internet since before the first graphical browser (NCSA Mosaic)... I'm well acquainted with fanboys. When their team does it, it's good and virtuous - and when the other team does it, it's nefarious. When their favorite cruise line induces people - it's a perk. When the other cruise lines do the same thing, they're "bribing" their customers. It's hilariously transparent tribalism. As for "cheap"...I grew up in a region and household that considers it a badge of honor. I'm proud of being cheap. It's a virtue.

There is no vacation - land or cruise line - where cost isn't bundled and you aren't subsidizing (and being subsidized). There are different degrees of it - but ala carte doesn't (and cannot) exist.

You. "Taking out the internet" means the internet is down everywhere. As long as 2 computers are connected and communicating using IP - the internet is up.

No, they couldn't. They might cause the internet at your house to be down for weeks, months, or longer.

Oy... tell me you have no idea why DARPA created the internet to begin with, without saying it. The entire design of the internet comes out of research into distributed adaptive message block switching - specifically to sustain operation of the phone system during partial destruction in a nuclear war.

That was one that surprised me... they are throwing away money by not serving drinks in the theater.

Bribes are an illegal or unethical inducement to influence a person's behavior. That is the difference between a discount/perk and a bribe. If it's legal - it ain't a bribe, it's a perk.

Yes - global casino operation, Carnival Cruise Lines, Princess Cruise lines, Cunard, HAL, Costa, Aida - all are "under Carnival".

Huh? Were we doomed when having a phone was a necessity? Because today - you largely can't make a phone call without using the internet. At it's most basic - pretty much all phone communication today is covering at least part of it's journey as VoIP.

We don't make the decisions, but that doesn't change one bit that they only "should" involved is maximizing profits. If letting everyone who spends $100 in the Casino on the ship for free and increasing room cost for non-gamblers increases profit... that is exactly what they "should" do.

Nothing. Absolutely nothing different. Just a choice of what objects with heating elements to allow. Even Carnival doesn't ban all of them - they let you bring on personal grooming devices with heating elements.

Internet ON A CRUISE SHIP is a luxury. Internet access at home is a necessity.