Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Massachusetts to tax ride-hailing apps, give the money to taxis

reuters.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

191–200 of 539 posts

Re: Massachusetts to tax ride-hailing apps, give the money to taxis

#191

Post by hx87 »

tro2102 wrote: post #109
Trundle wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Many of them don't want to go back to school or get technical training... What do we tell the taxi and truck drivers when Uber shows up with self-drivers, etc.? Uhhh, how about "suck it up and do it anyway"? I know plenty of people on hn are all about the "making the world a better place" shtick and would work anyway/for the sake of it but for the vast majority of people work straight up means doing things you otherw…

how about "suck it up and do it anyway"? I don't necessarily disagree with this sentiment, but this doesn't really address the question, which is about what happens to an industry when it's made redundant by technology. Cab drivers competing with self-driving cars can't "suck it up". "what if they don't want to" in regard to people working? Again, I feel you haven't read the spirit of this comment accurately. What ha…

> What happens to an entire class of working people

In a free market capitalist society, the most optimal case is that they spend a significant portion of their earnings buying capital (i.e. stocks and bonds), so as time goes on more of their earnings come from capital. Unfortunately, in the USA at least, we make capital accumulation ridiculously hard for working class people due to the cult of homeownership and a tax system where interest on mortgages (but not stock purchases) are deductible.

Re: Massachusetts to tax ride-hailing apps, give the money to taxis

#194

Post by edko »

dsacco wrote: post #169
edko wrote: post #153

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Every year, 3.5 million people in the US experience homelessness.

I assume you're getting your data from here[1]. I'd counter by asking which modern society does not have homeless citizens. Particularly, which countries that rank more highly than the US in the Quality of Life or Human Development Indices? The other challenge I have is that homeless in America enjoy a quality of life patently superior to that present in nearly every class virtually everywhere else in the world. Sure…

Well, if being homeless in the US is such a privilege, then I must concede that income inequality must not be such a bad thing after all.

Re: Massachusetts to tax ride-hailing apps, give the money to taxis

#195

Post by dagss »

cookiecaper wrote: post #133
edko wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

When self-drivers become the norm, taxi and truck drivers, and their families (a significant section of the economy) will be the first to suffer, but it will not end there. The knock-on recessive effect on every other sector of the economy will be huge. Anyone thinking lightly along the lines of "truck drivers should adapt to the new economy", feeling safe for being in another industry, should remember how the housin…

We can't keep going with this type of attitude; it's blatantly anti-change. The government's job is not to ensure that everyone has comfortable finances. The government's job is to provide a framework that makes it possible and a structure that removes nefarious actors. As long as that's occurring, the economy is self-governing, and we shouldn't be propping up legacy economic sectors just because we feel bad for the…

You write like your political view is a force of nature. Surely what the government's job is is what the people decide it is through democratic processes?

Re: Massachusetts to tax ride-hailing apps, give the money to taxis

#196

Post by thesumofall »

I believe they have a point. The traditional taxi industry _can_ be rescued. Living in Germany I use myTaxi which is basically providing the same interface as Uber but connects you with professional taxis that are regulated, insured, and being paid proper wages. There is simply no difference in convenience (even the opposite: you can book taxis in advance) and the driving experience itself is typically by far better than any Uber I've ever taken in the US (inexperienced drivers, often old cars,...)

So I would argue that the tax could help achieve a similar scenario in MA if invested properly and if Uber is forced to raise prices by bringing them to uphold professional standards. I was long enough in MA to know that regular taxis have a long way to go but there is hope

Re: Massachusetts to tax ride-hailing apps, give the money to taxis

#197

Post by onion2k »

BurningFrog wrote: post #173
tro2102 wrote: post #109

Earlier quoted context omitted.

how about "suck it up and do it anyway"? I don't necessarily disagree with this sentiment, but this doesn't really address the question, which is about what happens to an industry when it's made redundant by technology. Cab drivers competing with self-driving cars can't "suck it up". "what if they don't want to" in regard to people working? Again, I feel you haven't read the spirit of this comment accurately. What ha…

> what happens to an industry when it's made redundant by technology We have over 200 years experience of countless industries being made redundant by technology. It's not a new scary thing that has never happened before.

We also have 200 years of people in the redundant industries complaining about it, and 200 years of government regulating to make the transition less painful. Why should we stop that with taxis?

Re: Massachusetts to tax ride-hailing apps, give the money to taxis

#198

Post by akulbe »

If the taxi cab companies can't make it on their own, they should go out of business.

As a self-employed person, I shouldn't expect someone else to bail me out by their efforts. If I can't make it on my own steam, I close up shop.

When this happens, it's unfortunate, and unpleasant, but it's a simple fact of doing business.

Our parents and grandparents would balk and roll in their graves at the thought of this idea that someone else should shoulder the burden of bailing you out.

What ever happened to the idea of (in the case of business hardship or failure) picking yourself up, dusting yourself off and starting OVER??

Re: Massachusetts to tax ride-hailing apps, give the money to taxis

#199

Post by staticfish »

jacobolus wrote: post #185
ricw wrote: post #93

This is unbelievable. Never have I used a more corrupt and unfriendly taxi service as the one in Boston / Cambridge. And they are supposed to be subsidised?! I have 1) been driven round crazy detours to up my cost 2) been forced to drive a detour because the card machine was broken and they only accepted cash 3) been turned down because my destination wasn't far enough 4) been shouted at because I was watching the fr…

I lived in Cambridge for about 6 years from ~2004–2011. Nothing but positive experiences with Boston-area cabs. The drivers were uniformly friendly and competent, and had no trouble with the ridiculously convoluted MA street layouts. When I was carrying suitcases or moving boxes of books around, they were patient and helpful with loading/unloading. When I left my wallet one time, the driver called me as soon as he fo…

I'm not disputing your experiences for one second, but mine closely match OP's in Boston, and just about every other large city in the US.*

*With the exception of London. Maybe having to study The Knowledge has something to do with it..

Re: Massachusetts to tax ride-hailing apps, give the money to taxis

#200

Post by hx87 »

dsacco wrote: post #134
HillRat wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>I'd like to see a dialectic about why income inequality increasing is bad, in of itself. One main issue is that income inequality decreases socioeconomic mobility by inflating the cost of scarce goods that improve earnings capabilities. So 4K TVs are cheaper but college tuition becomes unaffordable, because good universities and grad programs are valuable, scarce goods that the wealthy can outbid everyone else on. P…

In response to your main issue regarding socioeconomic mobility - why is this, in turn, a problem? If you can demonstrate that reduced social mobility is an issue, and that this is increased by progressively greater income inequality (the latter of which I probably agree with on cursory inspection), then it seems income inequality is a net loss. However, from a utilitarian perspective, I don't see a reason to care ab…

> Where did I conflate socioeconomic mobility and income equality?

The first section of your comment was about socioeconomic mobility, but starting with the "two axioms" portion, you started talking about inequality instead. The two concepts are different, although related.

> I respond by asking whether or not the socioeconomic standing of a scientist matters for the societal impact of their work.

Not very, but for people at the bottom of the ladder, they need some socioeconomic mobility to become a scientist in the first place.

> if reduced socioeconomic mobility can't be demonstrated to be a net loss for society

That's presupposing that it can't, and thus begging the question.

Post reply on HN