When Uber was first invented, my mother was incensed about the star-rating system. She did not wish to be evaluated for her manners, she said. It was outrageous. You paid someone to take you somewhere – your personality was none of their concern. “You could try just being nice?” I suggested. “I am nice! I’m always nice. I’m really nice,” she said, with feeling. “I just don’t want to be ranked on my niceness.” I pointed out that she could rank them back; it was a symmetrical power dynamic that could only serve to drive up niceness in aggregate. And........

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