Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain • Hacker News Board

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#331

Post by raxxorrax » Tue, Sep 28, 2021, 9:56 AM UTC

madaxe_again wrote: post #236

photochemsyn wrote: post #197

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The issue with free movement of labor is that it only works out well across a region with standardized pay rates. Otherwise corporations will import labor from the low-cost zones and fire their high-cost local workers. This causes a lot of anger, see Brexit.

An outcome of free movement is flattening of income distribution across geography. Nowhere stays cheap, as wage inflation hits, and nowhere stays expensive, as employers move to cheaper places. Sure, cities will be wealthier than the regions, but ultimately a city in Romania and a city in sweden, infrastructure and education being also equalised through structural funds, should present equal opportunities.

What is the advantage for Sweden here when they have higher wages and can people and cities in Romania compete against the Swedish ones to not pull the most educated out of the country?

Completely disregarding the language barriers, which are quite extensive so practically freedom of movement would be easy for corporations to use the benefits but not the wider population even if you neglect family ties.

These questions need to be answered and I don't think the educational elite has an answer without painting flowery pictures not too many might be inclined to believe.

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#332

Post by gifnamething » Tue, Sep 28, 2021, 10:05 AM UTC

WaltPurvis wrote: post #313

gifnamething wrote: post #310

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sorry but this is just wrong. The difference in feeling after filling up a small car from empty is significant just for normal driving. Look at what people pay for making sports cars lighter - 50 pounds is a lot!

Even small cars weigh thousands of pounds. Fifty pounds is objectively not a lot. If you're trying to tell me you can tell a significant difference in performance and handling in a car with a 7-year-old in the backseat versus no 7-year-old in the backseat, well, I don't believe you at all.

I can feel that too. Or a suitcase in the back. It's absurd you're telling me I haven't experienced this.

Luckily I don't have to be concerned with what someone who can't notice that believes: it falls to you to explain why there are so many lightweighting products on the market. Why do BMW offer a carbon roof that reduces weight by 5kg? Why did pre-refill-ban F1 only do partial refills? Why do rally co-drivers sit lower than the drivers?

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#333

Post by raxxorrax » Tue, Sep 28, 2021, 10:07 AM UTC

sockpuppet_12 wrote: post #286

djhworld wrote: post #257

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> that it's not simply an issue of pay, and there aren't enough Brits willing to do those jobs. From what I've read (and take this with a pinch of salt) there are a lot of licensed HGV drivers in the UK who don't drive anymore, with common reasons being long, unsociable working hours, management that treat you like dirt, shitty rules around where they can park to take rest stops with substandard (typical everywhere i…

This seems like a case of trying to cram the ruinous practices back into pandora's box, which has been leaking for a very long time. Transport companies have had a long time to optimise their extraction of value from cheap, easily exploitable employees from overseas. The easily exploitable workers aren't available anymore, so the companies who exploited them will have to change their exploitation habits if they want…

Problem is that these transport companies are one of the most affected industries by international and open markets. That had severe repercussions for prices for any form of logistics. Transportation is dirt cheap and highly competitive and that has an effect on wages of course.

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#334

Post by tim333 » Tue, Sep 28, 2021, 10:27 AM UTC

traveler01 wrote: post #93

"British ministers have insisted that Brexit is nothing to do with the current trucker shortage." BUT... "The government on Sunday announced a plan to issue temporary visas for 5,000 foreign truck drivers." The politicians think that everyone's dumb. If you need to pass temporary visas, a thing that truckers didn't needed when UK was in the EU, clearly Brexit caused this issue.

There were multiple factors of which brexit was maybe number two. People stopping working due to covid was no 1. Also the diver license folk knocking off.

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#335

Post by tim333 » Tue, Sep 28, 2021, 10:40 AM UTC

newbamboo wrote: post #244

Diesel too?

Yup. Apparently there's been a 20x increase in people putting the wrong fuel in their vehicle - diesel in petrol or visa versa which is rather dumb.

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#336

Post by nicoburns » Tue, Sep 28, 2021, 10:54 AM UTC

nly wrote: post #323

fignews wrote: post #287

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Don’t forget coasting. On a modern fuel-injected car there is no fuel injected into the cylinder while coasting.

If you're referring to coasting out of gear then that is incredibly dangerous

May I ask why? The breaks still work out of gear.

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#337

Post by bluGill » Tue, Sep 28, 2021, 12:53 PM UTC

brianwawok wrote: post #299

bluGill wrote: post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Depends on where you live. Farmers in the US typically have around 8000 liters petro on their farm in various grades. They have a contract with a local company to keep those tanks full of whatever the correct fuel for the current season is. When it is a long way to town and many vehicles never go to town having your own private fuel station starts to make sense.

They also dye diesel, the dye shows no tax was paid so you get in poo-poo if you try to drive on public roads with it https://www.ricochetfuel.com/blog/dyed-diesel-fuel-vs-regula...

Farmers tend to have more than one grade of fuel. dyed diesel is the most common grade because there is no road tax. Farmers that aren't close to town (most of them) are likely to have undyed diesel for their trucks as well. Gasoline is somewhat common - though gasoline tractors went out of style around 1960, sometimes there is a car that never goes to town, lawnmowers, ATVs... It depends on the farm what they keep on hand.

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#338

Post by [deleted] » Tue, Sep 28, 2021, 12:55 PM UTC

gifnamething wrote: post #332

WaltPurvis wrote: post #313

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Even small cars weigh thousands of pounds. Fifty pounds is objectively not a lot. If you're trying to tell me you can tell a significant difference in performance and handling in a car with a 7-year-old in the backseat versus no 7-year-old in the backseat, well, I don't believe you at all.

I can feel that too. Or a suitcase in the back. It's absurd you're telling me I haven't experienced this. Luckily I don't have to be concerned with what someone who can't notice that believes: it falls to you to explain why there are so many lightweighting products on the market. Why do BMW offer a carbon roof that reduces weight by 5kg? Why did pre-refill-ban F1 only do partial refills? Why do rally co-drivers sit l…

[deleted]

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#339

Post by stinkytaco » Tue, Sep 28, 2021, 1:14 PM UTC

gifnamething wrote: post #309

mattowen_uk wrote: post #262

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Unless your petrol station is on one of your regular routes, it's false economy not to fill up completely when you have an empty tank, otherwise you are incurring an extra trip to the petrol station. Of course if you can't afford a full tank, and are living hand to mouth each month/week, then you are in the poverty trap where everything is a percentage more expensive for you overall.

But the efficiency is lower driving around with a full tank.

In addition to my sibling comment, I'd point out that the weight of fuel is negligible in this application, especially in a smaller car. A full 14 gallon tank weighs half of an adult male. You'd save more fuel in the long run by losing some weight, but it still wouldn't be that much.

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#340

Post by maxerickson » Tue, Sep 28, 2021, 2:28 PM UTC

Ajedi32 wrote: post #250

dev_tty01 wrote: post #245

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is odd to you because you have never had to live paycheck to paycheck. Many people are barely getting to the next pay day so that extra $70 the first week means less food that week.

True, if you have literally $0 cash on hand then it could make sense. If you ever get your hands on $70 though that seems like a worthwhile investment to spend ~50% less time at the gas station for the remainder of your life. Probably one of the more cost efficient quality-of-life purchases you could make in my opinion, which is why I find it odd that it's not more common (apparently).

You aren't addressing the situation the people are in. They are constantly choosing which need to address with the funds they have at present, not simply deferring the purchase of one half tank of gas.

Building a small financial buffer would likely improve their situation a great deal. It seems likely that it isn't always the case that the lack of buffer is a choice...