the_greyd (u/the_greyd)

the_greyd commented on The End of Uber with Cory Doctorow thewaroncars.org/transcri... · Posted by u/walterbell

mchusma · 4 years ago

I couldnt really read this article due to the tone beyond the introduction where they talk about the business model.

They talk very dismissively about the whole thing, but I believe the business model was clear for Uber. Build a new transportation network to replace our current taxis, then other things, using technology. Once self driving cars are a reality, they have a strong position to be dominant.

Their real issues have been execution once (losing to doordash should have never happened) as well as the delay of self driving cars. Both started happening really once they ousted Travis.

The pandemic also hurt their core business dramatically.

the_greyd · 4 years ago

That's Cory's whole schtick - he critiques big corps. I follow him a bit and most times his analysis is good and other times he dismisses things that don't fit in his ideological viewpoint.

the_greyd commented on Nobody Pronounces the 'B' in 'Debt' merriam-webster.com/words... · Posted by u/alecst

sulam · 4 years ago

I was with you until tortoise. US English speaker here, but I have literally never heard anyone say “tor-toys”. I think I’d have a serious moment if I did. Is there some link you can throw our way to demonstrate the point? YouTube?

the_greyd · 4 years ago

As someone from India, "tor-toys" is what you would hear from most Indians. For most words of the kind, in india they would be pronounced in exactly the way that would make you remember the spelling of the word (since you are graded on that). I would bet that's the case with most non native speakers.

the_greyd commented on Mozilla publishes position paper on the EU Digital Identity Framework blog.mozilla.org/netpolic... · Posted by u/xoa

tasogare · 4 years ago

The common method to deal with avian influenza is killing all the livestock when one case is detected. Your comparison is scary and uncanny, but well aligned with how violent the pandemic has been handled by various governments.

the_greyd · 4 years ago

Overall I like yuval noah harrari's point about our systems, that liberal democracies and free market are based on the assumption that we have rational individuals making decisions in their self-interest. Which is not true at all, in today's day and age where misinformation and propaganda run rampant. You cannot rely on individual judgement to get us out of a pandemic. Same can be stated about climate change. I would say it's more alarming with climate change, since the consequences of our actions are stretched out in the far future (atleast when compared to covid). How the heck are we going to get people/companies/govt to get in line with what's needed for the survival of our species?

the_greyd commented on Mozilla publishes position paper on the EU Digital Identity Framework blog.mozilla.org/netpolic... · Posted by u/xoa

motohagiography · 4 years ago

The use cases for digital identity are almost all pernicious. Sure, you can use it for nice things like public services, except we do that today quite expansively without one, and why do we need biometric level proofs for that?

A government digital identity means that every informal transaction in the economy that uses it relies on the state as an inline broker. We can see this today with vax passports, where just this month you have to check-in with the government before you can enter a restaurant. (only temporary, surely) It's designed to manage people like livestock, and we all know that some pigs are more equal than others. Even vax passports and so-called "mandates," have exploited loopholes in our high trust societies and assumed formlessness as to avoid being challenged legally. Digital identity regimes will use the same indirect methods. This is their strategy.

Why do you need to prove your identity unless you there is some intent to prosecute you? Most of the value in the economy is based on people taking on transaction risk on behalf of others, so replacing it with digital identity will destroy degrees of economic freedom and opportunity for your kids and grandkids. Identity does not create opportunity, it limits it.

Civilization doesn't survive malicious institutions that turn inward against the people they serve, and I hope other technologists think seriously about identity and consider the consequences of it falling into the hands of an enemy or evil institution, because having worked in identity, I guarantee it will.

the_greyd · 4 years ago

You make a good point. In a state of pandemic, the population IS in some sense similar to livestock, bodies to be managed, since the virus has weaponized our bodies. Wouldn't you say?

the_greyd commented on Ask HN: What you up to? (Who doesn't want to be hired?) · Posted by u/capableweb

philangist · 4 years ago

I won the IPO lottery and I’m in the middle ground between rich enough to never work again but not quite rich enough for the yachts/mansions/private jets lifestyle. I haven’t worked in 6 months and I’m struggling to find a larger meaning to my life beyond getting yet another tech job. I’ve considered going to college for a math degree, moving to my parents home country, and joining the military (among many other options) over the last few months. Just feeling very aimless so I’ve started reading Russian literature and spending hours on Reddit every day.

27/M (today was my birthday :)

the_greyd · 4 years ago

College sounds fun! Do it!

the_greyd commented on The history of what we call work thenation.com/article/soc... · Posted by u/akakievich

wayoutthere · 4 years ago

The counter perspective is that some amount of degrowth will happen eventually. And in the west, decades of austerity have led to oppressive working conditions to the point people aren’t having children. We’re already seeing this effect on the workforce; my hypothesis is that much of the worker shortage is due to older workers dying from Covid or simply retiring and there aren’t enough millennials and Gen Z to fill the jobs at the bottom of the hierarchy after everyone shifts up.

We cannot continue increasing productivity exponentially forever, and likely not for a whole lot longer. We’re already seeing the system collapsing in on itself — the supply chain woes we’re seeing right now are IMO the result of over-optimization over the last 3 decades. Infinite growth assumes there’s an ample workforce. When birth rates are below replacement levels, that’s not a good assumption.

We need to take a mindset of “what is the most productive way to optimize the limited and shrinking resources we have” rather than “how do we keep productivity growing forever”. Otherwise unrest will grow, and it’s a lot easier to smash a broken system than it is to maintain one.

the_greyd · 4 years ago

Anyone interested in declining birth rates, just take a look at the statistics in South Korea. 42% of the women in their 30s are unmarried (https://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comments/pxotg9/over_42_o...). That's almost half! Our infinite growth systems will collapse, unless countries make it easier for women to raise a family.

the_greyd commented on What if remote work didn’t mean working from home? newyorker.com/culture/cul... · Posted by u/haakonhr

egypturnash · 4 years ago

This has been my life for years except without the “renting a place” part. I work in cafes. I work in parks. I work sitting on a bench taking shelter from the rain on my way to somewhere else. I work anywhere I have space to take my Wacom tablet out of my bag and plug it into my laptop, and the desire to spend more time working today.

I also work at home in my studio but getting away from the distractions of home is, as this article notes, important.

I thought “remote work” already meant this? I’ve been doing it for years, it’s one of the perks of being a freelance artist. Sometimes I’ve toyed with the idea of getting together with some friends and splitting the rent on a shared studio space but really I know I’d only show up a few days a month.

the_greyd · 4 years ago

Now that you can sit in inside spaces without a mask, I feel libraries and cafes are a real alternative for me! And this is me typing from a desk at a public library 10 minutes from my apartment. Can't express the amount of relief and joy I feel right now

the_greyd commented on Elementary OS 6 beta blog.elementary.io/elemen... · Posted by u/jamesponddotco

the_greyd · 4 years ago

Kudos to the team, they've done an amazing job with the elementary ecosystem, considering they are just a handful of people!

the_greyd commented on Let there be more biographies of failures commonreader.substack.com... · Posted by u/commons-tragedy

forgotmypw17 · 4 years ago

I think the important bit is to pay attention to what the successful do differently from common sense advice, not the bits that everyone follows. For example, Elon Musk's housing choices when traveling, Steve Jobs' higher education, Tesla's approaches to thinking.

the_greyd · 4 years ago

I don't think those are the defining factors of why they got famous or successful out of all the highly intelligent and hard working people out there. The fact that they got famous brings light to their ideas, which makes you think there's something special about them.

You'd be surprised to find many many many highly intelligent people out there with clever way of doing things, and I'd argue no less intelligent than elon musk or jobs or any other famous person. Our culture right now worships successfuly entrepreneurs as Gods with amazing brains who cracked the problem, but really it's more of luck and being at the right place at the right time.