Oh, this bread is so tasty and the clowns are so funny! Thanks Al Franken!
Senator Al Franken's Letter to Uber [pdf]
81–90 of 147 posts
Re: Senator Al Franken's Letter to Uber [pdf]
#82Earlier quoted context omitted.
This was my reaction as well. Yes, Uber's behavior here is reprehensible. But it's also kid stuff compared to what other entities (including the Federal Government itself, whose behavior we never agreed to in a TOS agreement) are engaged in, and I have to wonder what, if any, authority the government could exert in these circumstances (disregarding the appropriateness of the use of said authority, or any potential le…
My feeling also. If this isn't a case of the pot calling the kettle black I don't know what is. The Federal government is one of the worst offenders at being careless with personal data and of using it for political purposes when it suits them. I'm not defending Uber here, but this is just grandstanding by Frankin.
OTOH, Frankenstein is the chair of the committee whose job is to oversee these matters. Perhaps the Senate Intelligence committee would be the analogous thing for government surveillance: http://www.intelligence.senate.gov/memberscurrent.html
Re: Senator Al Franken's Letter to Uber [pdf]
#83Earlier quoted context omitted.
I don't think the condescending tone is necessary—there are actually about ten million links if you spell organization correctly. https://www.google.com/search?q=%22People%2C+Organisation%2C... EDIT: Removed quotes.
While the condescending tone is unnecessary, logicallee is right. There are actually zero links, Google just removes the quotes and shows results for that. None of them seem to have all the words together or the acronym. Just random occurrences of words on the page, and it's predominantly military documents.
That's because the military are actually really good at doing systems engineering, because it's all about writing requirements specifications, managing acquisitions and testing for delivery against requirements which is the military's bread and butter. Most of my experience in this area has been workign for ex-military people. NASA are also really good at it, and they publish a handbook on it which is very good:
(warning: 8.1MB PDF) http://foiaelibrary.gsfc.nasa.gov/_assets/doclibBidder/tech_...
They may not refer to the acronym "POSTED" exactly, but said acronym is what I learned and I thought highlighted the scope of what a system covers, specifically that it is not just the equipment i.e.: software. In the NASA SE Handbook, page 3 says the following, which essentially maps across to what I described:
"A “system” is a construct or collection of different elements that together produce results not obtainable by the elements alone. The elements, or parts, can include people, hardware, software, facilities, policies, and documents; that is, all things required to produce system-level results."
Re: Senator Al Franken's Letter to Uber [pdf]
#84I dislike Al Franken's politics greatly, but I think it's every bit his right to use the bully pulpit this way (I mean this sincerely). If Uber did track a journalist it is reprehensible. But how Uber could benefit from answering this fishing expedition? If I were Uber I'd simply stonewall. They are under no legal compunction to answer, and virtually no answer would help them.
I imagine this is just a courtesy; if they decline to answer, then the committee can issue a subpoena and compel them to. Here's a nice white paper on Congress's subpoena power: http://www.mayerbrown.com/files/Publication/ec1203b2-a787-44...
Fascinating! So the letter is probably a veiled threat. I hope the Senate has better things to do with its time, though a debate of much stronger privacy laws would be a healthy outcome of this mess.
Re: Senator Al Franken's Letter to Uber [pdf]
#85Yes--the Boober made some asinine statements. Let him dig his way out of his utter foolishness. Now to Uber. I was shocked what they expect you to buy and drive in order to become a Uber Driver. Nothing less than a 2008 vechicle? And the list of acceptabe cars? After insurance it just dosen't add up--unless your sleeping in you car, or your in a brand spanking new market. In all reality, maybe he said these things ju…
Do you have a link to the original 'boober' transcript? Haven't been able to find one, context is everything so I'd rather have the full backstory before making any assumptions.
It took about 30 seconds of Googling to turn up a link to the GQ interview where this was originally reported.
http://www.gq.com/news-politics/newsmakers/201403/uber-cab-c...
Re: Senator Al Franken's Letter to Uber [pdf]
#86Wow. I'm interested in seeing how Uber responds to this. I had no idea that Al Franken was now the chairman of the privacy subcommittee. For those not in the United States, Al Franken used to be a popular comedian on the show Saturday Night Live. His biggest hit was this character Stuart Smalley: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYPc-dPVbow
Re: Senator Al Franken's Letter to Uber [pdf]
#87Wow. I'm interested in seeing how Uber responds to this. I had no idea that Al Franken was now the chairman of the privacy subcommittee. For those not in the United States, Al Franken used to be a popular comedian on the show Saturday Night Live. His biggest hit was this character Stuart Smalley: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYPc-dPVbow
Outgoing chairman. Democrats lost control of the senate.
Re: Senator Al Franken's Letter to Uber [pdf]
#88He's a goddamn hypocritical moron.
Re: Senator Al Franken's Letter to Uber [pdf]
#89Why is everyone so surprised that Uber is tracking information about their users, or that employees have access to that information. I just think it's incredibly naive to think that they wouldn't use it in any way possible.
"I'm shocked you're shocked" is just fancy-grade despair.
Re: Senator Al Franken's Letter to Uber [pdf]
#90Earlier quoted context omitted.
I get that people sometimes say stupid things after two or three glasses of wine. And I get that blabbing about something is different from actually doing it. But this was egregiously beyond the boundaries of basic ethics and societal values, and a company executive should know better. So you may think it's overblown, but I'd like Uber to feel that this is not OK, so it got me to finally install the Lyft app which I'…
So you may think it's overblown I think it's the most absurd thing I've ever heard. I don't know if you read Sarah's actual article, but it reads as if this guy called her up and told her that he was going to murder her children. It is that sentiment, not facts about what actually happened, that has carried this "story" so far. She is exploiting others' fears about stalking and sexism for her own personal gain. IMO,…
It's not "exploiting others' fears" when there is actual evidence that Uber has tracked journalists and other high profile figures, and top execs have brashly threatened to spend millions investigating journalists' personal lives. This is disgusting.