61–70 of 83 posts
"Texas Bans the Sale of Tesla Vehicles" Title is misleading. Texas didn't ban the sale of Teslas but rather Teslas are incapable of being sold due to legislation that was added back in 2003. Still a problem, but it should at least be presented correctly.
Is it correct to assume a Texas resident may order one from another dealer and drive it home? Can they just drive it home and legally have it registered in Texas?
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Is "since the 70's" some sort of ironic joke? US industries were extremely and overtly anti-competitive up until the deregulation of the 1970's. If competition is restricted now, it was far worse in the past. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staggers_Rail_Act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motor_Carrier_Act_of_1980 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airline_Deregulation_Act
> Is "since the 70's" some sort of ironic joke? No. Some time ago the United States was a world leader in terms of the standard of living for the average citizen. Now it's dead last among developed countries, and by many measures, it's solidly among developing countries. I, personally, think that fall from grace began around the 70's (ish) when the "We're the greatest" mentality put a stop to innovation. Basically, t…
You mean the mentality that motivated deregulation?
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Is "since the 70's" some sort of ironic joke? US industries were extremely and overtly anti-competitive up until the deregulation of the 1970's. If competition is restricted now, it was far worse in the past. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staggers_Rail_Act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motor_Carrier_Act_of_1980 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airline_Deregulation_Act
like Airbnb getting sued in New York? or Uber/Lyft/etc having to go through extortionary-like procedures in California? ...
Hotels and taxis are regulated to protect consumers (think safety).
Requiring car manufacturers to sell via franchised dealers protects franchised dealers.
That's a big difference.
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You can buy a Tesla in Texas. You have to order it online and (as the page says) it will be delivered by a 3rd party. You can see plenty of them in Austin. Tesla also maintains two "showrooms", one in Austin and one in Houston where you can see the car, but cannot test drive it or discuss pricing. Tesla is not allowed to run its own dealerships in Texas, because the auto dealer's union has laws which prevent car manu…
By "union" you mean the lobbyists of the Texas Automobile Dealers Association right? I've never heard of lobbying arms being referred to as "unions"
Although a union is for all intents and purpose a lobbying arm...
Does any other company get so many straight press releases consistently voted up on HN? BTW this is old, the referenced bills did not pass.
It's shocking how quickly this got to the top of the front page. People really, really like Tesla :)
1 - A charismatic "Rocket scientist" as a founder (Arguably the most inspiring founder since Steve Jobs). Check!
2 - A disruptive idea in a industry that hasn't been disrupted since the rise of Japanese cars (A long long time ago). Check!
3 - Wining against all odds (a year ago very few people were betting on Tesla). Check!
4 - A world changing idea. Check!
5 - A David and Goliath story. Check!
6 - A sexy machine and a delightful product. Check!
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Extortion is perhaps not the most accurate word, going strictly by its definition. Anyway, the objection isn't to taxation of taxis, but rather to outright excluding new entrants to the taxi market. Which many cities do, via the medallion system.
I must admit, I don't see how it's extortion. It's capitalism at it's finest (by forcing the consideration of externalities as a free-market commodity). Since space in the streets is a fixed size-resource, supply and demand work to price medallions accordingly. If anything, the city sells medallions (referring to NYC) at a rate much lower than their actual value on the free market.
not that i'm a huge fan of unfettered capitalism, but just clarifying...
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like Airbnb getting sued in New York? or Uber/Lyft/etc having to go through extortionary-like procedures in California? ...
I'm not arguing that US is universally free-market today, rather that it was less free-market 50 years ago.
"Prior to the filing deadline, Tesla Motors reached out to Sen. Craig Estes (R-Wichita Falls) and Rep. Eddie Rodriguez (D-Austin) who agreed to file bills on our behalf. These bills would permit U.S.-based manufacturers of 100% electric- or battery-powered vehicles to sell directly to Texas consumers." A silly band-aid to ridiculous legislation.
The band-aid is easier to pass.