Tipping - The madness is out of control

Just getting back from Italy made me again realize how much we tip in this country, AND how many people EXPECT to be tipped for doing their jobs. In my eyes, few people actually should be tipped; Wait staff in restaurants, bartenders, valet parkers (if the valet is free), someone who goes out of their work norm like a bagger who helps you out with your groceries and puts them in your car for you, cleaning staff at a hotel.

Generally, in Europe it is insulting to tip. It means you feel they are poor and need the money. Their culture is that a server, is a server, was trained and schooled to be a server, and is paid a fair wage by the restaurant they work for. Same with a hairstylist, etc. There are some things, like students during the summer time working at a gas station pumping gas that are working solely on tips from generous patrons. This is fine to tip as, like above, it is out of the norm what they are doing.

I was online the other day reading a Groupon deal or something like that about a laser hair removal deal. This is what started my slight rant over tipping. I was reading the deal on the vendor's webpage and read "Please tip on the actual cost of the service, not the discounted amount". I thought to myself, "You have to tip someone to get laser hair removal? Aren't you paying enough to the over priced treatment anyway? (Mind you, the sale was $149 for $600 worth of treatment. To me that just shows how grossly marked up that process is.) Then I started thinking, who the hell else are we going to have to start tipping now?

It's bad enough when you walk into a fast food place (not that I am there often) and they have a tip jar sitting there. ARE YOU KIDDING! YOU MAKE FUCKING HAMBURGERS FOR YOUR JOB. YOU ARE NOT EVEN DELIVERING THEM TO MY TABLE AND YOU WANT A FUCKING TIP?? I find it overly offensive that I am expected to tip when I get a hair cut. You want more money? Then charge more for the haircut. I think it is ridiculous that I pay $30 for a haircut, on my shaved head, easiest cut ever, and then am expected to tip for 10 minutes of their time on top of the overpriced charge. Then if you are at a fancier salon you tip the person washing your hair too? Are you kidding? Isn't that their fucking job to just wash hair all day? WOW! What a super skill to tip on! When I did go regularly to get my hair cut, I did get treatment above and beyond that I did feel a tip was due. I had a hot towel on my face, a light facial massage and neck massage, all ABOVE AND BEYOND just getting a hair cut.

But what's next? Will it be customary to tip your nurse and doctor now? Dentist and his hygienist? Cashiers at stores? Plumbers who make $30+ an hour plus a trip charge, plus a truck charge, plus markup on material? Fuck, tip me people! I make sure you get paid! That is a service worth giving money for!

We are just out of control in this country with tipping. People who don't do anything worthy of it want it, people who do a job that should be tipped expect it (even if they give shitty service), and people who go out feel they have to pay it. We I say fuck that! Make a choice people. Tip and tip well when it is deserved! But tip those who deserve it. Tip based off your service, not a percentage (I tip well over 20% most times, but on shitty service I will go under 10%). I am just saying, stop over tipping. Not in the way of leaving a great tip for someone deserving, but stop tipping the taco bell workers for making you a taco. Just stop tipping people who really do nothing but what they are hired and paid to do. Stop the madness!