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Zucktown, USA

thebaffler.com

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Re: Zucktown, USA

#61

Post by pault »

eru wrote: post #40
d_theorist wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, it’s annoyingly over-written. Some parts barely even make sense. I also question whether the author knows what the word “capitalism” actually means.

Alas, capitalism means many different things to many different people. (As a mildly interesting example of a similar phenomenon: the pro-business libertarian / neo-liberal FDP party in Germany still proudly calls itself 'liberal'.)

For some people liberty means freedom from government interference; for others it means freedom from corporate and class oppression.

Re: Zucktown, USA

#62

Post by mercurysmessage »

rtpg wrote: post #22
rdtsc wrote: post #19

And you'd go to Zuckshop and buy Zuckbread: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Company_store It would be creepy having to live in a employers' housing unit. But if it is subsidized enough many would jump on it. The interview process at many of these company is already geared to bring in college graduates. So a dorm of sort would make sense. Then they could outfit them work spaces so you could live there and maybe work rem…

Japan has a lot of this, but it's usually a building in the middle of a city so you're not like... completely surrounded. But your neighbors are probably from the same company.

Can you expand on this? I've spent a lot of time in Japan, but have never heard of it.

Re: Zucktown, USA

#63

Post by ddnb »

eru wrote: post #40
d_theorist wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, it’s annoyingly over-written. Some parts barely even make sense. I also question whether the author knows what the word “capitalism” actually means.

Alas, capitalism means many different things to many different people. (As a mildly interesting example of a similar phenomenon: the pro-business libertarian / neo-liberal FDP party in Germany still proudly calls itself 'liberal'.)

Especially since the liberal meaning differs only in the USA

Re: Zucktown, USA

#64

Post by rtpg »

mercurysmessage wrote: post #62
rtpg wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Japan has a lot of this, but it's usually a building in the middle of a city so you're not like... completely surrounded. But your neighbors are probably from the same company.

Can you expand on this? I've spent a lot of time in Japan, but have never heard of it.

Many companies have appartments to rent for their employees, especially bigger companies in things like civil engineering. They'll usually let you rent for a super low rate (like $100/month), and though obviously your salary is given with an understanding you'll stay there.

Re: Zucktown, USA

#65

Post by ryanbrunner »

jrimbault wrote: post #50
TrickyRick wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If I'm a healthy individual then the risk that I need my healthcare insurance are low (But it has a big impact on my economy if I do need it). However the risk that I need some form of housing is 100% and the impact of not having it is huge which to me makes it a bigger risk. However YMMV depending on your situation.

>If I'm a healthy individual I don't think I know any family without a member of it having some kind of medical condition. (bad turn of phrase, but do I get the point across ?)

I think the point is while losing healthcare insurance is absolutely a big problem, it's often not an immediate problem - there's a decent chance that a typical Facebook employee doesn't currently have a pressing need for healthcare, and even if they do, there's a decent chance they'll find new employment and be covered relatively quickly.

On the other hand, being evicted from your home is going to affect everyone, and there's no avoiding the upheaval - you're forced to find new housing in a famously overpriced market at the exact moment that you just lost your job.

Re: Zucktown, USA

#66

Post by ryanbrunner »

tanilama wrote: post #17
apsec112 wrote: post #2

This article's main topic is just "tech companies are building big offices", dressed up in some purple prose. And they're also to blame for high rents. But if they build apartments to help ease the housing shortage, that's a "company town" and we can't have that either. And Amazon is a "commandeering leech" which "suck[s] up our resources and refus[es] to participate in daily upkeep", but when Google offers Mountain…

Good point. The bus thing is not the only example those people are contradictory against themselves. They blame techies for the hike of real-estate price, which to certain degree is justified. But at the same time they also oppose any construction of high density accommodation, blaming the company for destroying the neighborhood culture, talking about the good old days with orchards and trees. I think what is really…

While there are people who oppose high-density construction in general, the writer of this article isn't necessarily among them. There's a difference between the arguments "we shouldn't build high-density housing" and "having employees' housing, shopping, and most of their other needs provided by their employer has lead to some bad things in the past".

Re: Zucktown, USA

#67

Post by ryanbrunner »

eru wrote: post #34
Nullabillity wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And what happens to (your access to) that community when you quit Google?

It's actually not too bad. I quit, and am still friends with them. You can still get a visitor pass to go boardgaming etc. Of course that might be just a best case scenario..

Doesn't that seem a bit insane to you though? You're essentially saying the company is permitting you to continue your friendships. What about when they stop doing that?

Re: Zucktown, USA

#68

Post by zghst »

Such lazy, barren journalism. Automatically slanted towards racism, Marxism, and other hot topics of the day. This didn't inform me in any way other than the author's personal agenda.

Re: Zucktown, USA

#69

Post by [deleted] »

ryanbrunner wrote: post #67
eru wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's actually not too bad. I quit, and am still friends with them. You can still get a visitor pass to go boardgaming etc. Of course that might be just a best case scenario..

Doesn't that seem a bit insane to you though? You're essentially saying the company is permitting you to continue your friendships. What about when they stop doing that?

[deleted]

Re: Zucktown, USA

#70

Post by princekolt »

HN is criticizing the article wording but completely ignoring its point. This article coupled with the other one on the dystopian reality of San Francisco[1] have me feeling completely disgusted at the current state of the tech industry.

Simply put: these tech giants are making too much money. They are losing touch with the average people and simply put with reality itself. It wouldn't surprise me if that's exactly how all "evil" companies of the past became evil themselves.

[1]: https://www.mhudack.com/blog/2017/10/1/san-francisco-now-wit...

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