Uber has defeated Bill de Blasio’s plan to rein them in • Hacker News Board

Re: Uber has defeated Bill de Blasio’s plan to rein them in

#21

Post by bitJericho » Thu, Jul 23, 2015, 12:01 AM UTC

beatpanda wrote: post #13

marssaxman wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

When their business model is only illegal due to a corrupt, inefficient, entrenched monopoly which is just as hostile to its customers as its employees, yes, it is indeed a pleasure to watch someone take on the machine and win.

Where "winning" is the normalization of precarious labor where the employee assumes all risk and somehow makes even less money than they did in "the machine". Oh, but you got to the club a little faster. Baller, bro.

What, a fair wage? Clearly that's un-American.

Re: Uber has defeated Bill de Blasio’s plan to rein them in

#22

Post by littletimmy » Thu, Jul 23, 2015, 12:01 AM UTC

mgraczyk wrote: post #18

s73v3r wrote: post #3

Why are we still calling this "ridesharing"? Isn't it pretty clear to everyone that there is no ride sharing going on?

I use UberPOOL more often than UberX these days. I think it's fair to call that "ridesharing".

In other news, McDonalds is not a burger shop anymore because I just order the icecream.

Re: Uber has defeated Bill de Blasio’s plan to rein them in

#23

Post by deegles » Thu, Jul 23, 2015, 12:03 AM UTC

marssaxman wrote: post #10

rquantz wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, a company with an illegal business model stayed under the radar until they got big enough that they could combat the legal challenges to their illegal business model. Always a pleasure to watch.

When their business model is only illegal due to a corrupt, inefficient, entrenched monopoly which is just as hostile to its customers as its employees, yes, it is indeed a pleasure to watch someone take on the machine and win.

Yes, once Uber takes the crown they will behave ethically, operate within the confines of the law and re-classify their drivers as employees with full benefits. They also won't even consider dropping them as soon as self-driving car technology matures. /s

Re: Uber has defeated Bill de Blasio’s plan to rein them in

#24

Post by marssaxman » Thu, Jul 23, 2015, 12:04 AM UTC

beatpanda wrote: post #13

marssaxman wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

When their business model is only illegal due to a corrupt, inefficient, entrenched monopoly which is just as hostile to its customers as its employees, yes, it is indeed a pleasure to watch someone take on the machine and win.

Where "winning" is the normalization of precarious labor where the employee assumes all risk and somehow makes even less money than they did in "the machine". Oh, but you got to the club a little faster. Baller, bro.

I make a point of asking Uber and Lyft drivers how they like it. Lyft drivers universally love it. Uber drivers are less enthusiastic on the whole, but they have generally said it's better than working as a cab driver. I've since stopped using Uber since it's hard to feel comfortable about their business practices, but they're still better than the taxi monopolies and I'm happy to see them pursuing the fight and clearing the way for kindler, gentler services along the same lines.

I am generally inclined to think that people should be free to make their own decisions about their lives. Whatever you may think about the risk/benefit tradeoff, it seems clear to me that drivers in Seattle who have the choice choose to drive for Uber, Lyft, or a private for-hire service rather than put up with the traditional cab dispatcher. I can make guesses at why that might be, overall, but I am certainly not going to tell them that they are making the wrong choice.

Re: Uber has defeated Bill de Blasio’s plan to rein them in

#25

Post by dang » Thu, Jul 23, 2015, 12:04 AM UTC

s73v3r wrote: post #3

Why are we still calling this "ridesharing"? Isn't it pretty clear to everyone that there is no ride sharing going on?

The article doesn't call anything ride-sharing. The HN title did, but that broke the site guidelines (unless it was Vox who changed theirs).

Re: Uber has defeated Bill de Blasio’s plan to rein them in

#26

Post by [deleted] » Thu, Jul 23, 2015, 12:05 AM UTC

niklasni1 wrote: post #8

s73v3r wrote: post #3

Why are we still calling this "ridesharing"? Isn't it pretty clear to everyone that there is no ride sharing going on?

This is where people go wrong! You're not paying to be driven anywhere. You're paying the driver to want to go to the same place where you are, and then he might as well give you a ride there. So it's completely different, and the driver doesn't deserve any of the perks and protections people with real jobs get. Being an Uber driver obviously isn't a job, it's just doing something for money. And there's an app involv…

[deleted]

Re: Uber has defeated Bill de Blasio’s plan to rein them in

#27

Post by masterleep » Thu, Jul 23, 2015, 12:07 AM UTC

littletimmy wrote: post #20

Pity. This modern day exploitation should end. Uber's huge profits are because they exploit people for labor. Ban it already.

Yay taxi cartel!

Re: Uber has defeated Bill de Blasio’s plan to rein them in

#28

Post by onewaystreet » Thu, Jul 23, 2015, 12:07 AM UTC

pbreit wrote: post #4

More accurate headline: De Blasio legislative threat successful in persuading Uber to turn over data at 11th hour. California wasn't able to get that result with its $7m fine.

Not really, defeating the cap was much more important to Uber than the data access.

Re: Uber has defeated Bill de Blasio’s plan to rein them in

#29

Post by marssaxman » Thu, Jul 23, 2015, 12:08 AM UTC

deegles wrote: post #23

marssaxman wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

When their business model is only illegal due to a corrupt, inefficient, entrenched monopoly which is just as hostile to its customers as its employees, yes, it is indeed a pleasure to watch someone take on the machine and win.

Yes, once Uber takes the crown they will behave ethically, operate within the confines of the law and re-classify their drivers as employees with full benefits. They also won't even consider dropping them as soon as self-driving car technology matures. /s

It depends on the state, but in many places taxi drivers are not employees either; they are independent sole proprietorships who rent the taxi medallion from its owner. Uber is not perfect but is an improvement over the status quo for both drivers and riders. Once it "takes the crown", we can work on the next step in improving transit.

Re: Uber has defeated Bill de Blasio’s plan to rein them in

#30

Post by ethanbond » Thu, Jul 23, 2015, 12:09 AM UTC

onewaystreet wrote: post #28

pbreit wrote: post #4

More accurate headline: De Blasio legislative threat successful in persuading Uber to turn over data at 11th hour. California wasn't able to get that result with its $7m fine.

Not really, defeating the cap was much more important to Uber than the data access.

Okay? And the data access was clearly more important to NYC than the cap. If you really think NYC can't step up at a moment's notice and drop the hammer, you're awfully optimistic. I mean, it's in the press release that the cap is not off the table.

Unfortunately, this world cannot have win-wins, so I've got to find someone to hate in this situation!