THERE ARE OTHER OPTIONS!

Why?

By necessity, the first thing a music fan learns how to do is build a collection! So when I see someone using Spotify, I assume they aren't very interested in music. I've seen streaming services like Yahoo!Music, Pandora, 8tracks and Rhapsody rise and fall because music licensing is too complicated to sustain. Somehow, Spotify has beaten the odds and become a household name. And in the process, it's sucking the life out of collecting and the music industry.

1) Spotify pays artists [stat]. This is why I will never buy a subscription. The money we spend on music isn't even going to the people who made it!
2) Spotify is a middleman. They offer convenience, but only as long as it's convenient for them. If Spotify got bought, changed its content policy, or closed tomorrow, would you know where to find your favorite tracks?
3) Spotify's discovery algorithm is repetitive. It's also easy to ruin by "letting your niece" listen to Disney musical soundtracks. And if you're the trendsetter in your friend group, you won't be for long-- it's going to recommend you the same top hits it eventually recommends to everyone else.
4) Plenty of artists aren't on Spotify, especially ones that weren't active when it started. I've also noticed that some artists have incomplete discographies on there, often due to licensing issues. You could be missing out on a lot of music without even knowing it!
5) Streaming uses data. But phones have more memory than ever! Just delete some memes off your phone and you can store MP3s. Or go retro and pick up a refurbished iPod! Nothing says "I love music" like a dedicated Shuffle, haha.
6) Subscription plans are designed to exploit us. You should always try to own your own copy of the media you care about, be it music, software, or information. We see the consequences of online subscription models in John Deere tractors becoming unusable. Pay once, enjoy forever.
7) The more we rely on streaming, the less bands are compelled to make physical copies.

Other options:

Bandcamp. Probably the most ethical middleman for buying music. Full song previews, fantastic embedding, and the ability to sell MP3s as well as physical merch. Keep an eye on their social media for Fridays, when all the proceeds of your purchases go to the artists! Searchable by (self-assigned) genre.
Last.fm. Sign up to track your listening habits! This site is almost a decade old, conceived of before user data was only gathered for evil. Find similar artists on the pages of your favorite bands, or check the front page for recommendations based on your history. If it exists, someone has probably logged it here. Great place to learn about bootlegs, EPs, and other gaps in your collection. Check out the stats of other users, too!
Youtube. Obscure songs get uploaded there all the time, often without the band or label knowing. This is exploitative in that Youtube makes money on the ads around these videos, but ideally you'll go on to buy the MP3 from the creator. And this is one area where youtube comments can be a godsend. There's also discussion in the comments where fans can recommend similar bands.
Discogs. Buy secondhand CDs, records, and even tape cassettes! Find out about rare pressings here.
RateYourMusic. Review site. I don't have much experience here because I don't believe in rating music. Searchable by genre and mood!
SputnikMusic. Review site that encourages longer reviews. The users lean snobby.
File sharing. Haha, you can figure this one out yourself. Don't download anything that ends in .exe. Make sure you buy a t-shirt or some concert tickets from the bands you like.

Why?

1) They don't pay their workers enough to live. They insist they be classified as "contractors" and not employees, because a business is supposed to take care of its employees with proper wages and benefits. They keep them from unionizing. They pay more to convince us they're an ethical company than actually paying their employees.
2) Uber isn't profitable. They're working at a loss in order to outlast the competition. Once they do, they will be free to raise the prices because they'll be the only game in town.
3) Ghost kitchens. Because of these delivery services, there's a new phenomenon: selling food from a home or building that customers can't enter. These restaurants only exist on the app and can disappear or change their branding the minute their menu stops selling well. Brick-and-mortars have to compete with that flexibility.
4) They're expensive! Restaurants raise prices on the app because they're being charged to use it. And the drivers still need a good tip to justify the gas they spent to get to you.
5) Subpar service. Because these gig apps are based around being cheap, they are NOT luxury and NOT service-oriented. The people doing the jobs tend to be desperate, rushed, and undertrained. This is where those "my Postmates driver stole my food!" stories come from. They're paid little and treated badly by headquarters, so they have no reason to take pride in the job.

Other options:

Contact the restaurant directly. Some places still offer in-house delivery (but delivery people are being put out of a job by Uber workers who do the same job for even less).
Get takeout. Most places allow you to order ahead from their website. Consider ordering food 10 minutes before you head home from school or errands! In lieu of Instacart, some grocery stores will also put togther a list of items for you for pickup.
Make it a trip! If your friends are thinking about ordering in, suggest going out for a meal as a group. It helps to have something you can do on the side, like checking out a local park or picking something up front the store (thankfully we haven't lost errands to same-day shipping yet.)

Spotify

Why not?

Suboptimal decision: Letting your cat outdoors unsupervised. Why?: 1) Your local ecosystem is a delicate balance of native grazers, predators, and scavengers that evolved alongside each other and keep each other in check. Cats originated in Africa and are a comparatively new addition to North America, Europe, and Australia. With our help, they destroy [stat] songbirds and other animals every year that nature hasn't adjusted for yet. 2) Dogs don't go out without their owners. Horses don't roam the streets unsupervised. Neither do hamsters, parrots, or goldfish. Cats shouldn't be the exception. 3) With land development, predators have less space to hunt their natural prey. A cat is easy pickings for coyotes. There's also cars, dogs, raccoons, snakes, feral cats, poison, rabies, fleas and ticks, FIV, and humans. Someone may hurt your cat for fun... or just decide they want to keep her for themselves! Why would you want to risk not seeing her again? 4) Lots of shelters in North America will only adopt out if you promise to keep your cat indoors. 5) Cats hunt (even if they don't bring anything home) and their saliva is poisonous to some small animals. became invasive, hostile aliens. Letting a housecat loose in a forest is no better than releasing a cane toad or boa constrictor where it doesn't belong. Other options: Supervised outdoor time. Many cats, especially young ones, can be acclimated to harness leashes. Some cats can stay in the yard and explore a small patch of grass for hours. Others like going on long walks along the street or in the park. Catio enclosures are also available, to give your cat more space and Play with your cat. A lot of owners let their cats out for exercise because they're too lazy to spend time with their animal. [30 minutes] of play is recommended per day. M Consider another animal. If the only option for your lifestyle is to let your cat outside, you aren't prepared to care for a cat. That's okay! Suboptimal decision: