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Tell HN: I'm Afraid We're Shutting Down

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Re: Tell HN: I'm Afraid We're Shutting Down

#351

Post by throwaway742 »

gremlinsinc wrote: post #126
RBBronson123 wrote: post #99

When I announced the launch of 70 Million Jobs on HN back in 2017, it proved to be one of the most widely read and discussed posts ever on the site. I was totally blown away. Once again, I am struck by the incredibly sensitive and supportive tenor of the reactions to my news here. For some context, besides having a criminal record, I was/am a solo founder who somehow talked his way into Y Comb. Perhaps most surprisin…

This sounds awesome, I want to do something similar, only with housing for people with bad credit, or records, or anything really that makes keeping housing rough. My grand idea is creating an intentional community with some glamping areas for cashflow, a community garden, shared tools and worker space with 3d printers, recreational vehicles, brooms, rakes, etc...things you really don't need to 'own', and cut back on…

>My grand idea is creating an intentional community with some glamping areas for cashflow, a community garden, shared tools and worker space with 3d printers, recreational vehicles, brooms, rakes, etc...things you really don't need to 'own', and cut back on too much consumerism. The idea being if you had 2 city blocks and everyone was related or at least friendly and built a huge garage to share items they maybe use infrequently, how much space would that free up for more people to live, or to work on a hobby or something?

The shared garage idea seems hopelessly naive to me. What is stopping someone from stealing the items? Who maintains the items? What happens if the items break either via negligence or normal wear and tear? It is a classic tragedy of the commons problem.

I live in a low-income neighborhood and we literally can't have anything nice. Neighbor gets a BBQ and puts it in the courtyard literally chained down. Someone gets some bolt cutters and steals it. The courtyard regularly gets trash dumped in it and if you clean it up people will immediately just dump more. I stopped trying to clean it up when people started just tossing entire garbage bags of trash out there. Our shared laundry space got vandalized by bored kids now there is only one functional washer and dryer. These are usually full of clothes (some people leave their laundry in them for days) so you have to drive to a laundromat if you want any chance of getting laundry done on your day off.

Re: Tell HN: I'm Afraid We're Shutting Down

#352

Post by throwaway742 »

the_only_law wrote: post #319
throwaway742 wrote: post #314

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I managed to hitchhike from the bay area to the Canadian border and back to California. I met lots of really cool people. Contrary to popular belief nowadays most people don't want to murder you.

> Contrary to popular belief nowadays most people don't want to murder you. Sure, but when I look at things like Nextdoor this is the prevailing attitude regardless of whether it’s true or not.

Definitely. I do feel like this attitude has contributed to the decline in hitchhiking in recent years. Still there are enough decent people to make it viable. I did end up having to wait a while in some areas to get a ride (pro-tip wear sunscreen). Anecdotally every single person who picked me up smoked weed although in CA/OR/WA that might have just been a coincidence.

Re: Tell HN: I'm Afraid We're Shutting Down

#353

Post by mellavora »

Jiro wrote: post #199
javajosh wrote: post #119

Earlier quoted context omitted.

America is so strange. On one hand, nearly everyone thinks the system doesn't work. And yet, they tacitly assume the justice system works. They think it works just like on TV - innocent until proven guilty, detail-oriented public defenders and judges, and scrupulously honest prosecutors and police. It's nothing like that. The justice system is a machine that chews people up, and spits out convicts, and it operates wi…

I think you basically answered your own objection. Probably 90% of convicted criminals are really criminals, and that's why people are suspicious of hiring them. The point of this project wasn't "get convicts hired because 10% of them are innocent", it was "get convicts hired because even though 90% of them are guilty, that's okay." It's called "70 million" because that's the total number of convicts, not an estimate…

Not sure where that 90/10 ratio comes from...

wondering what you know about how many cases are decided by plea bargain rather than trial, where the plea bargain is coerced rather than voluntary?

wondering also what your opinion is of felony drug convictions (for possession)? Technically a crime, but can you name the harm?

But more seriously wondering about your unwillingness to believe that people can change, and unwillingness to allow for redemption or forgiveness.

Which ultimately means you don't believe in justice. If society has decided that a certain crime has a penalty of 5 years in prison, then after 5 years the person has paid their debt to society. They are no longer a criminal, that debt is paid.

Re: Tell HN: I'm Afraid We're Shutting Down

#354

Post by mellavora »

Jiro wrote: post #199
javajosh wrote: post #119

Earlier quoted context omitted.

America is so strange. On one hand, nearly everyone thinks the system doesn't work. And yet, they tacitly assume the justice system works. They think it works just like on TV - innocent until proven guilty, detail-oriented public defenders and judges, and scrupulously honest prosecutors and police. It's nothing like that. The justice system is a machine that chews people up, and spits out convicts, and it operates wi…

I think you basically answered your own objection. Probably 90% of convicted criminals are really criminals, and that's why people are suspicious of hiring them. The point of this project wasn't "get convicts hired because 10% of them are innocent", it was "get convicts hired because even though 90% of them are guilty, that's okay." It's called "70 million" because that's the total number of convicts, not an estimate…

> And the founder himself is an ex-con, and he admits that he's actually guilty, and the crime he committed actually harmed people.

And the founder realized that his actions cause real harm, that hurting people is bad, and decided to dedicate his life to acts that did not hurt people.

He repented.

How have you changed your life based on the hurts you have caused others? Do you even admit that your actions have hurt others? Because I guarantee that you have caused pain, and harm.

I wonder if you know what true repentance is.

Re: Tell HN: I'm Afraid We're Shutting Down

#355

Post by notch656a »

throwaway742 wrote: post #352
the_only_law wrote: post #319

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Contrary to popular belief nowadays most people don't want to murder you. Sure, but when I look at things like Nextdoor this is the prevailing attitude regardless of whether it’s true or not.

Definitely. I do feel like this attitude has contributed to the decline in hitchhiking in recent years. Still there are enough decent people to make it viable. I did end up having to wait a while in some areas to get a ride (pro-tip wear sunscreen). Anecdotally every single person who picked me up smoked weed although in CA/OR/WA that might have just been a coincidence.

>Anecdotally every single person who picked me up smoked weed

My experience in hitchhiking was the same ha ha, probably half the drivers were smoking while driving.

Re: Tell HN: I'm Afraid We're Shutting Down

#356

Post by mellavora »

mynameishere wrote: post #137
giraffe_lady wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

fuck offffff seriously. The hardships aren't self-imposed, our justice system is specifically and intentionally retributive , imposing punishment for its own sake rather than imposing consequences with the goal of rehabilitation. And we're talking here of additional ad-hoc social punishments beyond the terms of the sentence that make finding a job harder. The level of personal discipline it takes to get released and…

The level of personal discipline it takes to get released and stay "good" on probation is far beyond what we expect from workers in general and almost certainly stricter than either of us requires for ourselves. Yeah, it's part of the corrections system. You go on probation or parole and they keep you on a leash. It's intentional. If you don't like it, you can serve out the whole term. "Saintly". For god's sake peopl…

The "saintly" is not because they committed a crime, it is because they are willing to endure a "level of humility and, frankly, debasement it takes to find a willing employer" instead of going out and jacking a car.

They have to put up with people with opinions like yours, which do not allow them any hope of redemption.

I wonder what you are like when you need forgiveness? I do hope you get some, and even more that it opens your eyes and heart.

Re: Tell HN: I'm Afraid We're Shutting Down

#357

Post by m3047 »

the_only_law wrote: post #271
notch656a wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Several options 1) Marshall islands or Micronesia. Buy flight on credit, do farm or whatever labor you can to eat while you get booted. No visa needed to live or work. 2) Some nations such as Argentina have effectively no immigration enforcement. Once you're in the country you're good and you can file a court case to become a citizen immediately (you'll have to wait 2+ year for it to be granted). In the meantime the…

> If you truly have ABSOLUTELY NOTHING and no access to credit you may be able to hitchhike and/or work on boats/yachts to get to any nation in the Americas. How does this work? Do you just go to the docks and start asking randos if they’re going to X and also looking for labor? > Also YPG and some Kurdish militias I think still accepts recruits and they don't require anything past your flight which you could buy on…

As a bored youth a few times I made a sign and stood by the ship canal in Seattle and arranged to hop on boats and help them through the locks.

Re: Tell HN: I'm Afraid We're Shutting Down

#358

Post by BizarroLand »

DarylZero wrote: post #259
BizarroLand wrote: post #200

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Buying a plane ticket sounds impossible for someone without a job, but you would be surprised how much money you can make by busking, day labor, or just straight up begging. I've made over $100 in 2 hours just from flailing on a cheap guitar in a busy location. Sure, I had to have a skill to begin with, but saying you can't do it is wrong. Just most people won't do it because they think they can't do it.

Most people don't have the location. It's expensive to live where that kind of opportunity exists.

Outside of America, maybe, but most people in America live close to a gas station or a highway intersection.

My income quote comes from a gas station in a backwater town in the deep woods of Alabama, and I'm not a great guitarist or something amazing worth throwing money at.

Re: Tell HN: I'm Afraid We're Shutting Down

#359

Post by nonameiguess »

RBBronson123 wrote: post #145

There seems to be some confusion here over my use of the expression, "The Great Resignation." https://www.investopedia.com/the-great-resignation-5199074 This is a economic/workforce phenomenon that began amidst the pandemic and continues. (The NY Times reported today that there are 11.4 million unfilled jobs. That's historically off the charts.) My company operates/ed a job board and a staffing business. Both ran lik…

Given people wanting to donate to support you and an apparent issue being the inability to earn sufficient profit margins, why not organize as a non-profit instead? You're clearly trying to perform a socially-beneficial service here, focusing on underserved populations. Missions like that are the entire reason for the 501(c)(3) carve-out and you could potentially survive if you didn't have to earn profit or pay taxes. Most states even allow you to apply for hardship exemptions to property taxes, which can help a lot on office expense.

Re: Tell HN: I'm Afraid We're Shutting Down

#360

Post by carapace »

RBBronson123 wrote: post #302
buf wrote: post #31

This really bums me out. I was a convicted felon at 18 years old, poor, living on the street. It wasn't any government re-integration program that helped me, it was a random person I met in highschool. I worked my way through everything -> college -> jobs -> startups -> lucky windfalls -> owning my own company. I've immigrated to Europe (3 times in the last 10 years technically), beating the legal issues each time. A…

Hey Buf-thanks for sharing your feelings and your kind words of support. And congrats for kicking ass in your release. A number of people have asked about donating, but frankly, I don't feel right about accepting charity. We'll get through this, and I will continue pursuing my life's work. Thank you again for your big heart. Richard

> I don't feel right about accepting charity.

Maybe think of it this way? There are those of us who want to help but for whatever reasons can only feasibly do so though donations, if you were to accept our charity it would allow us to be part of the solution even if only a little.

In any event, may God bless you and may you succeed beyond your wildest dreams.

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