4 ms·

Government works on law not on what makes sense, if the punishment you are describing is not in the law. they can't do it! and have to process all the filings.

TazeTSchnitzel 7y ago
Courts can sometimes see through such abuse, but only as far as the law can be reasonably interpreted.
joe_the_user 7y ago
Government works on law not on what makes sense, if the punishment you are describing is not in the law. they can't do it! and have to process all the filings. I think just about all legal systems have catch-all regulations that allow for fines for abuse. Moreover, law isn't actually mechanical rules like computer science - people who skirt the law systematically often find themselves facing serious legal problems and intention is a big consideration in some (but not all) regulations. "Obstruction of justice", "contempt of court" and so-forth are broad statutes that let courts lean on those abusing the system. etc. The actual problem, I'd note, is that courts and cities are much more hesitant to go after large, monied interests as compared small interests. A local crank doing what Uber, Airbnb or others do could go to jail, these companies just count their money.
- treeman79 7y ago
  A banker mailed a building brick by brick via post office. Was cheaper than standard shipping. https://www.ksl.com/article/32424611/vernal-bank-built-by-bricks-sent-through-the-mail-mdash-partly-true https://www.ksl.com/article/32424611/vernal-bank-built-by-br...
  - whatshisface 7y ago
    If the postage was appropriately priced for the size and weight of his packages then the USPS didn't lose anything from his clever plan.
    - kuzimoto 7y ago
      It looks like the post office priced postage at a loss of I think 21 cents per 50 pounds. Government lost about $20,000 to $30,000 annually.
    - Benjamin_Dobell 7y ago
      From the sibling link: > This massive shipment was noteworthy not only for its size, but also because it destroyed one of the Uintah Railway Company's trucks. The truck's brakes failed and it started coasting backwards after breaking a drive chain while struggling uphill, loaded with several thousand bricks. The truck then turned over and caught fire. The driver was not injured, but most of the bricks were lost. I imagine USPS pricing didn't account for that incident!
      - crooked-v 7y ago
        That one's completely the company's fault. If anything bricks should be much easier to balance across trucks than other collections of shipments, because the shipper knows they all weigh the same.
  - Mathnerd314 7y ago
    better link IMO, since it has sources instead of newsbite fluff: https://about.usps.com/who-we-are/postal-history/bank-of-vernal.pdf https://about.usps.com/who-we-are/postal-history/bank-of-ver...
    - trollied 7y ago
      Enjoyed reading that, thank you for the link.
username90 7y ago
> Government works on law not on what makes sense That is a very American sentiment, most governments doesn't consist of ~50% lawyers. For example in Sweden the government is full of union members from the working class, they have very different view of what role the government should have with respect to company abuse. The result is that basically all laws are worded in such a way that if any ambiguity exists it will disfavor private companies.

TazeTSchnitzel 7y ago

Courts can sometimes see through such abuse, but only as far as the law can be reasonably interpreted.

joe_the_user 7y ago

Government works on law not on what makes sense, if the punishment you are describing is not in the law. they can't do it! and have to process all the filings. I think just about all legal systems have catch-all regulations that allow for fines for abuse. Moreover, law isn't actually mechanical rules like computer science - people who skirt the law systematically often find themselves facing serious legal problems and intention is a big consideration in some (but not all) regulations. "Obstruction of justice", "contempt of court" and so-forth are broad statutes that let courts lean on those abusing the system. etc. The actual problem, I'd note, is that courts and cities are much more hesitant to go after large, monied interests as compared small interests. A local crank doing what Uber, Airbnb or others do could go to jail, these companies just count their money.

treeman79 7y ago
A banker mailed a building brick by brick via post office. Was cheaper than standard shipping. https://www.ksl.com/article/32424611/vernal-bank-built-by-bricks-sent-through-the-mail-mdash-partly-true https://www.ksl.com/article/32424611/vernal-bank-built-by-br...
- whatshisface 7y ago
  If the postage was appropriately priced for the size and weight of his packages then the USPS didn't lose anything from his clever plan.
  - kuzimoto 7y ago
    It looks like the post office priced postage at a loss of I think 21 cents per 50 pounds. Government lost about $20,000 to $30,000 annually.
  - Benjamin_Dobell 7y ago
    From the sibling link: > This massive shipment was noteworthy not only for its size, but also because it destroyed one of the Uintah Railway Company's trucks. The truck's brakes failed and it started coasting backwards after breaking a drive chain while struggling uphill, loaded with several thousand bricks. The truck then turned over and caught fire. The driver was not injured, but most of the bricks were lost. I imagine USPS pricing didn't account for that incident!
    - crooked-v 7y ago
      That one's completely the company's fault. If anything bricks should be much easier to balance across trucks than other collections of shipments, because the shipper knows they all weigh the same.
- Mathnerd314 7y ago
  better link IMO, since it has sources instead of newsbite fluff: https://about.usps.com/who-we-are/postal-history/bank-of-vernal.pdf https://about.usps.com/who-we-are/postal-history/bank-of-ver...
  - trollied 7y ago
    Enjoyed reading that, thank you for the link.

username90 7y ago

> Government works on law not on what makes sense That is a very American sentiment, most governments doesn't consist of ~50% lawyers. For example in Sweden the government is full of union members from the working class, they have very different view of what role the government should have with respect to company abuse. The result is that basically all laws are worded in such a way that if any ambiguity exists it will disfavor private companies.