link to original reddit post by /u/mrpenguin_86
I have started to realize that whenever you are treated as a customer instead of, e.g., a student or a taxpayer, you almost automatically receive vastly better treatment. Think about any number of businesses where they will just throw free stuff at you if you are treated poorly or receive a product that did not meet your standards. Businesses will also bend the rules to make sure customers come back.
In contrast, you can have people like students. K-12, universities, etc. have no interest in providing a product that students feel is acceptable. Students have to deal with incompetent staff, teachers, professors, you name it, and they just have to accept it. They are given a product they have no recourse to demand a refund. Same with government agencies. If we do not like the service being provided by a government agency, we're free to go suck it up and continue to suffer their services.
I really do wish I was treated like a paying customer in all aspects of life.