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How Europe is killing makers and micro-entrepreneurs

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Re: How Europe is killing makers and micro-entrepreneurs

#921

Post by dragochat »

philipallstar wrote: post #287
dragochat wrote: post #120

Earlier quoted context omitted.

all people are somewhat corrupt or incompentent. that's why it only makes sense so think in broader terms, and a broader level regulatory capture absolutely exists. the problem is that to solve regulatory capture in the EU parts of governments would have so go to war against corporations on the part of SMBs. but... governments in Europe de facto don't even recognize the right to exist of SMBs, basically _nothin_ of t…

It seems odd to blame lobbying (which you could also "rule of the universe" out of existence by saying everyone lobbies to some extent) when you seem to actually be blaming EU governments for being so hostile to SMBs.

govs are hostile to SMBs as a result of lobbying

Re: How Europe is killing makers and micro-entrepreneurs

#922

Post by teiferer »

tsss wrote: post #889
teiferer wrote: post #370

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a success of the upper class to pit the middle class against the lower class and the immigrants. As long as people on one "side" complain that there is too much foreign culture and they'll all be replaced and/raped and the other "side" sees the racists as their main enemy, the rich have an easy time.

Immigration is a separate problem.

It should be a separate topic, yes. But calling it a "problem" is already the framing that pits locals against immigrants, distracting from what's really keeping people down. In fact, immigration is a solution to lots of actual problems. (For example demography and lack of economi growth.)

Re: How Europe is killing makers and micro-entrepreneurs

#924

Post by bitcharmer »

snowpid wrote: post #509

This thread at worst is a negative example of HN. The blog post is reasonable and constructive, the petition is reasonable, the EU 's packaging law is bad executed on this part (other parts are good like forbidding PFAS on food packages, you cant imagine, this was aloud!) but whuge amout of people (or are these bots?) freak out up to stupid conspiracy theories that EU politics want to beg down small companies with pa…

[dead]

Re: How Europe is killing makers and micro-entrepreneurs

#925

Post by antonvs »

Option #1 seems simplest.

Option #3 discriminates against individuals who sell direct, without using a marketplace.

A possible option #4 is: establish EU-wide rules that can optionally be applied to cross-border transactions. I.e. a seller could choose to follow the EU-wide rules when selling into another country. This doesn't require countries to change their own internal rules.

Re: How Europe is killing makers and micro-entrepreneurs

#926

Post by teiferer »

ShadowOfThePit wrote: post #815
teiferer wrote: post #767

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you look at what I responded to then you see that it was about every country having their own rules. "More EU" would mean harmonizing them in the sense that they are all the same and you'd have a single regulatory body. I don't see how less EU would make this particular problem any easier. It would certainly give you an even harder time to deal with 20+ states that all impose import bureaucracy. That's exactly wha…

What about the argument of these regulations not existing in the first place were it not for the EU?

You think without EU there would be no regulations and everything would be free for all? You must be young or don't remember pre-EU times.

In CS terms, the EU turned an O(n^2) problem, bilateral agreements, into an O(n) problem, everybody trying to get their view into a single body. The advantages should be obvious to anybody knowing O notation.

Again, not to say EU doesn't have problems. But dismantling the EU is not the solution. Improving it is.

Re: How Europe is killing makers and micro-entrepreneurs

#927

Post by psychoslave »

izacus wrote: post #826
RandomLensman wrote: post #408

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Has such a system ever existed anywhere? How would citizens even have the time?

Funny how this questioning of democracy never shows up in topics about USA, UK or any other country - it's always EU that gets assaulted by sudden political theorists despite mirroring pretty much every other democracy on the planet.

UK is a monarchy. It’s actually in the name: United Kingdom. Democracy added as decorum on top of it is not there to change the principle of inequality that is deeply engraved in its underlying core.

USA is definitely described as a mix of plutocracy, kleptocracy, and oligarchy in many sources.

Not sure where this idea that the critics should be exclusive to Europe. TFA is about Europe, so comments will target more specifically EU, but that’s all.

https://parliamentnews.co.uk/is-the-uk-a-constitutional-mona...

https://josricardomartins.substack.com/p/is-the-us-a-democra... https://www.citizenscount.org/news/united-states-democracy-r... https://cirsd.org/horizon-article/democracy-or-plutocracy-am... https://foreignpolicy.com/2025/03/25/america-kleptocracy-tru... https://www.hks.harvard.edu/faculty-research/policycast/olig...

Re: How Europe is killing makers and micro-entrepreneurs

#928

Post by germandiago »

Grombobulous wrote: post #869
germandiago wrote: post #768

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> "my marginal tax rate seems really high since I have a very high income" You can read my comment above. If it was only that... it is way more than that. But hey, a high income is not a reason to overtax over 50% to anyone. That is crazy just based on the idea of "because they earn more" IMHO.

I don’t think your comment above did your argument a lot of favors. ~50% taxation rate is not even a particularly uncommon tax rate for top earners. Basically every developed country has that. From 1932 to 1981 the top federal tax rate in the United States was over 60%, peaking above 90%.

Rape and murder is not uncommon either and I think we can agree it is not something desirable.

Re: How Europe is killing makers and micro-entrepreneurs

#929

Post by psychoslave »

dvdkon wrote: post #866
psychoslave wrote: post #382

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is no such a thing as "representative democracy", that’s antinomic bullshit throw at people to lower it down to powerless populace. Either citizens have the power, exercise it continuously in practice and are supplied with everything it takes to assume that role properly with all the duties it implies, or there is no democracy beyond empty words.

Congratulations, you've redefined democracy to mean something very different to the dictionary and colloquial definitions. That's not very useful though, unless your goal is to confuse people.

Yes, as sure as the dictionary and the colloquial definitions were first altered by propaganda. War is peace, Freedom Is Slavery. Ignorance Is Strength. Democracy is delegation.
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