I sympathize with the barista here, but mindset that customers need to cover 10 to 20% of his income is symptom of decades of brainwashing of employees and customers alike. In this case NPR is part of this brainwashing. I will not tip someone for doing their job. I will only tip when I feel it is needed based on the service provided.
Look, I know it’s idealist, but corporate profits are at an all time high. C-level execs make hundreds to thousands times what their lowest level employee does. It’s disgusting. The greed and their assumption that we will just let them continually be more greedy is disgusting. Maybe they don’t need all that. They can actually pay their employees better. They choose not to because we have barely any social nets in this country, what does exist can be really hard to get, and people have to eat and have a home. They prey on desperate people, hide behind the idea what minimum wage is "supposed to be for teenagers, and refuse to entertain the notion that they are the problem.