I think this is the perfect counterpoint to all the articles over the last week about letting the government fail as long as tech keeps making money.
We only make money because a huge infrastructure of transport and a mass of non-sexy industry is there to support us. The tech industry is as the artists of old. We are a small number at the tip-top of a pyramid. Remove anything below us and we topple.
I cannot believe that any strain of "no government!!" libertarianism still lingers on in any outlet that supposedly is a place for smart people. I mean, come on, it's basic math people, it's not that hard to figure out. And anyway, it's been completely decimated by the likes of John Rawls in the academia. I'm befuddled to see that we still keep running into this though.
" I'm befuddled to see that we still keep running into this though."
Please be more specific... What is it that confuses you. The lack of wages for public service? Or the idea that people are standing up for their rights?
I apologize for my ignorance my communication skills are less than par. I do not understand your comment... Are you associating the recent partial govt shutdown to strike/rally? If so, please explain the correlations.
I was lamenting the fact that just today we've gone over a number of discussions in which people were defending a society without government, and other silly things (including the assertion that government shutdown is a good thing in any capacity). It's not a good thing. It should be very incredibly clear that it's not a good thing.
Fact: Many existing transit services originated as private companies.
Funding often came from business, retailer, and real-estate interests: increasing the availability of transportation increased the availability of employees, of shoppers, and the value of housing.
On a large scale, though transit companies are hugely capital intensive, require close coordination with other entities, and tend to have positive externalities which limit the ability to fund operations strictly out of farebox revenues.
A large number of non-BART commuters, employers, retailers, and others, are about to discover the value of the transit system, which moves over 370,000 riders daily.
Local governments != Federal government. The Federal government could be significantly castrated without too many problems for most people. Dysfunctional local government is what I'd lose sleep over.
There is a set of games where your opponent can threaten, "Unless you X, I will Y!" where both X and Y are undesirable for you.
It's perfectly reasonable in a one-off match to X, so long as it's less painful than Y.
In the iterated game, though, it seems weird to cave. If the game works, why wouldn't the opponent just play it over and over again, repeating Y or the threat of Y, increasing the pain indefinitely?
This seems like it applies to government shutdowns, strikes, and even some hostage situations.
Government shutdowns should lead to an agreement to keep the government open indefinitely, no-strike bonuses should comprise a meaningful portion of workers' wages after the first strike-induced labor/management negotiations.
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[ 4.0 ms ] story [ 33.1 ms ] threadWe only make money because a huge infrastructure of transport and a mass of non-sexy industry is there to support us. The tech industry is as the artists of old. We are a small number at the tip-top of a pyramid. Remove anything below us and we topple.
Out of sheer morbid curiosity, I really want to know more about this basic math you think supports your point.
Please be more specific... What is it that confuses you. The lack of wages for public service? Or the idea that people are standing up for their rights?
I apologize for my ignorance my communication skills are less than par. I do not understand your comment... Are you associating the recent partial govt shutdown to strike/rally? If so, please explain the correlations.
Fact: Many existing transit services originated as private companies.
Funding often came from business, retailer, and real-estate interests: increasing the availability of transportation increased the availability of employees, of shoppers, and the value of housing.
On a large scale, though transit companies are hugely capital intensive, require close coordination with other entities, and tend to have positive externalities which limit the ability to fund operations strictly out of farebox revenues.
A large number of non-BART commuters, employers, retailers, and others, are about to discover the value of the transit system, which moves over 370,000 riders daily.
http://sfcasualcarpool.com/
It's perfectly reasonable in a one-off match to X, so long as it's less painful than Y.
In the iterated game, though, it seems weird to cave. If the game works, why wouldn't the opponent just play it over and over again, repeating Y or the threat of Y, increasing the pain indefinitely?
This seems like it applies to government shutdowns, strikes, and even some hostage situations.
Government shutdowns should lead to an agreement to keep the government open indefinitely, no-strike bonuses should comprise a meaningful portion of workers' wages after the first strike-induced labor/management negotiations.