Amazon workers to strike at multiple US warehouses during busy holiday season • Hacker News Board

Re: Amazon workers to strike at multiple US warehouses during busy holiday season

#161

Post by ch4s3 » Thu, Dec 19, 2024, 2:41 PM UTC

vouaobrasil wrote: post #88

vasco wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If by "short-term" you mean "until we stop killing each other in massive wars" (I doubt we can eliminate individual murder), I guess I agree, but by my estimation that will take several centuries at least. If by short term you mean before that, I doubt that we can agree. I'm talking about something that to me is already so far in the future that it was strange to hear "short-term" as a response to that argument! Rega…

Well, when I see people dump their shit into the homes of animals, then I think that comes from an attitude of human supremacy. When I see pristine forests cut down for profit but laws protecting the homes of people, that's human supremacy. My goal is not to get most people to like me, or agree with my views. I fully acknowledge that I am a fundamentalist in the sense that I have a few axioms (all life is equal and t…

> pristine forest

You have probably never in your whole life been to a forest that's more than a few hundred years old. Even the Amazon was largely managed by humans with fire prior to about the 15th-16th century.

> technology must be regressed

This is a morally deranged axiom. The life-giving benefits of so many technologies can't be overstated.

Re: Amazon workers to strike at multiple US warehouses during busy holiday season

#162

Post by bufferoverflow » Thu, Dec 19, 2024, 2:45 PM UTC

euroderf wrote: post #20

sen wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I needed some 3D printing filament a few days ago. Shopped around locally and the absolute cheapest was ~$50. Amazon was $17 with next day shipping. The overheads of physical retail stores makes it all but impossible for them to compete with online shopping. I’d love to “support local” but I don’t have the expendable income to spend double/more on everything. What we ideally need is more “local online businesses”, bu…

It turns local businesses into showrooms for Amazon, and that is a failing business model. I do not patronize Amazon. But f I did, I would pick a margin - let's say 20% - and resolve to buy locally when the price is at least that close to the online price.

That's equivalent to you making 20% less money.

Not many people will choose that.

Re: Amazon workers to strike at multiple US warehouses during busy holiday season

#163

Post by ch4s3 » Thu, Dec 19, 2024, 2:46 PM UTC

vouaobrasil wrote: post #72

iLoveOncall wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

It is a bad thing. And you say it like it's a dichotomy. And I could certainly get most of the comforts of modern life with 5% of the force of globalization. House, food, bed, some reading material, etc. I don't really care for technology, and I use it because it's part of my work and livelihood. BUT, I could easily be just as happy living a simpler life. Believe me, I've already thought about it. I could be pretty m…

> BUT, I could easily be just as happy living a simpler life

Put your money or your comfort where your mouth is.

> if there were other forms of labor, I wouldn't be less comfortable.

Yes you would be. My grand parents all farmed and my grandfather was born in a cabin with a dirt floor and no electricity. His mother died in child birth, which was common at the time. He lost siblings to disease. His life was brutally difficult.

Let's face it, you're a math PHD and a photographer, you aren't made of the same stuff as people who clawed potatoes from the ground to avoid starvation. You have no clue what that actually means and you come here to lecture us about the comforts you yourself cling to. It's disgusting.

Re: Amazon workers to strike at multiple US warehouses during busy holiday season

#164

Post by ch4s3 » Thu, Dec 19, 2024, 2:46 PM UTC

infecto wrote: post #126

vouaobrasil wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is a bad thing. And you say it like it's a dichotomy. And I could certainly get most of the comforts of modern life with 5% of the force of globalization. House, food, bed, some reading material, etc. I don't really care for technology, and I use it because it's part of my work and livelihood. BUT, I could easily be just as happy living a simpler life. Believe me, I've already thought about it. I could be pretty m…

Please get off the internet then, destroy your computer and go live on a farm. I don't say this to be an antagonist but it is what you yourself is suggesting others do.

That man is the most insufferable person I've seen online in weeks.

Re: Amazon workers to strike at multiple US warehouses during busy holiday season

#165

Post by stronglikedan » Thu, Dec 19, 2024, 2:47 PM UTC

n144q wrote: post #138

nine_k wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To me, the key feature of Amazon is the fast delivery with Prime. Do other merchants offer fast delivery often enough? Regarding credit cards, I started using privacy dot com for virtual, merchant-locked cards. It protects against (rare) card details leaks, but, of course, does not give you any points or cashback.

Do you actually care that much about fast delivery? My Prime membership ended 3 years ago. These days I just put items in the cart, and place order whenever it reaches $35. If I need an item in a hurry -- which rarely happens -- I go to a store to buy it. This barely affected me, and I ended up with much fewer impulse purchases. What's funny though is that the "standard" delivery often takes 5 calendar days. But AliE…

> Do you actually care that much about fast delivery?

Yes. Simple as. But a lot of people don't, so it's nice that there's options.

Re: Amazon workers to strike at multiple US warehouses during busy holiday season

#166

Post by rickydroll » Thu, Dec 19, 2024, 2:47 PM UTC

delichon wrote: post #148

ChrisMarshallNY wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's the thing that I see a lot of. I grew up in Africa, and was exposed to extreme poverty, since as far back as I can remember. People living poor don't like it. They may have accepted it, and may have learned to deal with it, but they don't tend to like it. They want out, and generally jump at the chance to do so. People in richer communities may have fantasies about "living closer to nature," but that doesn't u…

I picked a place to live that's close to nature, right across my back fence from millions of acres of public forest. I love it here. Poverty is not required. I commute to work via Starlink and most nonperishables are delivered to my front porch by UPS, mostly from Amazon. It's green on both sides of my fence, and it's a choice that normal people, who can work remotely, can make if they value it. My house is far cheap…

I understand the joy of your choices. I live in an old mill town that has had multiple Renaissances. I consider myself lucky because I live at the edge of the town and have a 10,000-square-foot lot that is in the process of intentionally rewilding. My house wasn't necessarily cheaper than other houses. It's much more living space, fewer neighbors, and roughly the same cost per month as a three-bedroom apartment closer to where my partner works.

The downside is that she has a 1 1/2 hour commute. Not because of distance but because of congestion. She is willing to take public transit, except it takes roughly twice as long to take the train, then a bus, then another bus, then a third bus, and not be able to do errands during the day or on the way home.

life is all about trade-offs.

Re: Amazon workers to strike at multiple US warehouses during busy holiday season

#167

Post by bufferoverflow » Thu, Dec 19, 2024, 2:47 PM UTC

carlosjobim wrote: post #137

nxm wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Should I spend 15 minutes each way driving (carbon emissions) to the store and waste 1 hr of my time in this case, when it can be delivered to me tomorrow? I definitely want to support local, but the cost/benefits are not as clear in this case.

You really need to consider the reality outside of your own bubble of concern. Especially as your bubble doesn't even extend beyond the door of your house, since you don't understand that the Amazon delivery driver is also driving and also spending his time.

The driver is getting paid for his time. You driving to a local store are not paid.

Re: Amazon workers to strike at multiple US warehouses during busy holiday season

#168

Post by OfficeChad » Thu, Dec 19, 2024, 2:48 PM UTC

vouaobrasil wrote: post #61

vasco wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In my grandpa's village everything was local production and commerce but they all lived way worse than me and my friends that get paid through remote companies and spend our money online. It's incredibly unclear to me why a super poor and undeveloped local economy is better than a specialized globalized one. In my country there was a dictatorship with protectionism and when we opened things got way better, not worse.…

> In my grandpa's village everything was local production and commerce but they all lived way worse than me and my friends that get paid through remote companies and spend our money online. (1) That is because technology also takes away components of life that one can enjoy without being rich such as accesss to nature and local food production. (2) The global economy is only so "good" because it takes advantage of th…

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Re: Amazon workers to strike at multiple US warehouses during busy holiday season

#169

Post by AndyMcConachie » Thu, Dec 19, 2024, 2:48 PM UTC

nine_k wrote: post #108

a12k wrote: post #102

I’ve found that the rise of Apply Pay as a payment mechanism on random sites has been helpful in getting me off of Amazon. Often it’s just as easy to order something direct if they have Apple Pay (or ShopPay, but I have other issues with them) and the same price as Amazon. Plus discoverability is awful on Amazon anyways. Still don’t get the Whole Foods return ability when not shopping from Amazon, but not punching in…

To me, the key feature of Amazon is the fast delivery with Prime. Do other merchants offer fast delivery often enough? Regarding credit cards, I started using privacy dot com for virtual, merchant-locked cards. It protects against (rare) card details leaks, but, of course, does not give you any points or cashback.

It's interesting to me that some people really see fast-delivery as an important feature of e-commerce. In the 20+ years I've been buying stuff online I think maybe less than 5% of the time I have cared about how fast I get something delivered.

Then again I don't have a business that relies on things getting to me fast. I'm just a guy who buys crap online for myself and my family. If I'm getting a book or some electronic doodad it rarely matters to me if I get it tomorrow or in 10 days.

For most Amazon non-business shoppers is getting stuff delivered quickly really an important consideration? I've always assumed that fast shipping, and the importance that Amazon places on it, was at least partly because of their desire for rapid cash flow. That fast shipping was more instituted because of Amazon's accounting needs than because most customers actually needed it. Maybe I'm wrong. It would be nice to hear people's informed opinions on this.

Re: Amazon workers to strike at multiple US warehouses during busy holiday season

#170

Post by gruez » Thu, Dec 19, 2024, 2:48 PM UTC

vouaobrasil wrote: post #107

chaostheory wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Few people would be able to afford much in your local economy.

Well for one, lots of my local economy would just involve trade and helping community members for free, creating local community gardens, etc. Quite a lot can be possible with very little.

>my local economy would just involve trade and helping community members for free, creating local community gardens, etc. Quite a lot can be possible with very little.

Isn't this basically collectivization, which empirically has been shown to a massive failure? Without a monetary incentive, it's hard to get people to actually do stuff rather than lying on their couch and watching tiktok.