Outsmart the system

November 7, 2007 11:07 AM

Everyday Loopholes: Beat the system I enjoy sites like Consumerist and Lifehacker, and ran across Everyday Loopholes, a site that sort of combines the two. It catalogs hacks for beating companies at their own game, such as saving money on airline fares, getting cheaper coffee at Starbucks through Starbitrage, and winning at carnival games. I haven't tried most of the tricks yet, but I'd curious to know how well they worked from people who've tried them.
posted by lsemel (29 comments total)

Is it really wise to upset a carnie?
posted by cowbellemoo at 11:12 AM on November 7, 2007

This copy sounds like it came from a marketer.
posted by cytherea at 11:16 AM on November 7, 2007

Some of those (like how to get to your floor on an elevator) aren't a guide to being savvy as they are a guide to being a dick.
posted by drezdn at 11:18 AM on November 7, 2007

Get FREE STUFF from Wal-Mart

Shoplift that shit.
posted by TheOnlyCoolTim at 11:21 AM on November 7, 2007 [3 favorites]

The content is kind of thin. This site only went live in mid-September. And what cytherea said.

How did you hear about this site?
posted by vacapinta at 11:26 AM on November 7, 2007

Lee, did you work on this site for Morgan?
posted by brownpau at 11:26 AM on November 7, 2007

Hey guys, try to find the anti-Semitism in the linked item!
posted by brianvan at 11:27 AM on November 7, 2007

Nice. Lee is a friend of Morgan so that's how he discovered the site.
posted by Stynxno at 11:28 AM on November 7, 2007

mostly "how to cheat".... great site if you have no ethics and just spend your life sticking it to the man....
posted by HuronBob at 11:28 AM on November 7, 2007

The project is run by the same guy who did overheardinnewyork and various other web projects.
posted by Stynxno at 11:30 AM on November 7, 2007 [1 favorite]

I like the one that encourages you to save money on CDs and DVDs by borrowing them from the library and ripping them to your computer. Or committing mail fraud by switching the To and From addresses on the envelope and then not including postage.

I have one for them... you can save gas money by siphoning it out of others' gas tanks! Or shoot your neighbor and take all of their stuff!
posted by evilangela at 11:31 AM on November 7, 2007

You got to stick it to the man before he sticks it to you.
posted by TheOnlyCoolTim at 11:35 AM on November 7, 2007

Did you know you can get free tomato soup by going to Mcdonalds asking for hot water and then filling the hot water with ketchup?

It's true! Stick it to the fat cats!
posted by drezdn at 11:35 AM on November 7, 2007 [1 favorite]

Hey guys, try to find the anti-Semitism in the linked item!

"Think Yiddish."


Classy.
posted by jquinby at 11:36 AM on November 7, 2007

how to get to your floor on an elevator

FACT*: Pushing the close and floor buttons simultaneously can also lead to the elevator seizing up and trapping you between floors - which in its own perversely clautrophobic way, is another way of guaranteeing your selfish ass can have the elevator all to yourself.

*FACT is a completely alarmist fabrication, created only to discourage people from being selfish elevator-hogging jerks.

Or is it?
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 11:38 AM on November 7, 2007

Did you know that if your dorm mate commits suicide you get all A's for the semester? It's true!
posted by sourwookie at 11:38 AM on November 7, 2007

Not only does the site suck in many ways already mentioned, I have a funny feeling about the poster's bona fides.
posted by yhbc at 11:39 AM on November 7, 2007

I am totally going to kick Jacob's Ladder's ass at the next Ren Faire.
posted by spec80 at 11:42 AM on November 7, 2007

I was disappointed in the lack of hints for savings on OJ (lol).
posted by never used baby shoes at 11:43 AM on November 7, 2007 [2 favorites]

D'oh, "perverse and claustrophobic way..."
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 11:44 AM on November 7, 2007

great site if you have no ethics and just spend your life sticking it to the man....

When the man is corrupt, not sticking it to him would be the unethical action.
posted by Pope Guilty at 11:48 AM on November 7, 2007

Dude, let's go smoke a blunt over by that sewage drain.
posted by turaho at 11:53 AM on November 7, 2007

Dude, I'm so stoned, I meant to link to this. Whoa!
posted by turaho at 11:53 AM on November 7, 2007

I haven't tried most of the tricks yet, but I'd curious to know how well they worked from people who've tried them.

They worked like SHIT. I asked for some free broken chocolates and guess what? I'm homeless and covered in weeping lesions now! Curse you, Everyday Loopholes!
posted by Ambrosia Voyeur at 11:55 AM on November 7, 2007

Turning off comments is the last refuge of the lame.
posted by stupidsexyFlanders at 11:56 AM on November 7, 2007

GARBAGE. Everything on it was on Gizmodo, etc. months ago. Also, they push things that have been repeatedly proved not to work, like the elevator button hoax.
posted by KRS at 11:58 AM on November 7, 2007

I have a great trick for getting out of speeding tickets: Because cops have a fraternal bond, and many of them are motorcyclists, it's safe to assume that they are members of the Harley Owners Group, and that they are going to be pleased when you recognize their HOG affiliation, they also take pride in their sexual prowess and like to have it remarked upon. And since the police are busy people, anything you can do to speed up the process, like having your ID ready, will probably help.

So when you are pulled over, get out of your car, reach quickly for your walled and say in a loud voice "I've got something for you, you fucking pig"

I promise you, you a speeding ticket will be the absolute least of your worries after that.
posted by quin at 12:03 PM on November 7, 2007 [1 favorite]

Well, these loopholes are just everyday. Boring. I want to see the XTREME LOOPHOLZ.
posted by JanetLand at 12:04 PM on November 7, 2007

one too many 'you's there. whoops.
posted by quin at 12:04 PM on November 7, 2007