Here's a pickle: I agree with the direction of this article, but I don't agree with most of the individual points and statements. I think the expectation of tipping in the US is in general a bad thing, but has enough upsides for business owners and some higher-earning servers (and even some customers) that it will be hard to dislodge. I also think the incentive for any business to change is probably not as high as the author's wishful thinking makes out.

I mostly disagree that "it’s robbery", or it's some kind of unpleasant surprise at the end of the meal for the customer. Tipping is not a secret. You know it going in. You might not like it but it's not a new thing that gets sprung on you at the end of the meal. If you can't afford to tip at the level you want to, you probably won't enjoy eating there. It is too costly for you regardless of the printed menu prices, because you know in advance that if you experience service you really love, you're going to be delighted and you'll want to be generous with a tip - but if you feel like you can't afford the extra 20%, that will be unpleasant for you and the server.

Printed Price + Tip + Tax is the cost of many services in the US. It is not an ambush. I still prefer non-tipping cultures, like where I grew up, but I accept that this is the real cost of things here.

There are complexities related to the psychology of putting cheaper prices on the menu than you really end up paying, I agree with that, but it is not as simple as many of us seem to think.

Much of this article, and many of these comments, seem to ignore the realities of the complicated and entangled cultural accident that tipping the US is. It might be better to unravel it - but it will be difficult, and it will have costs.