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> Why such a long queue?”...“Well,” sighs Marx, “Sometimes we’re out of oil, sometimes we don’t have I've been immersed in shortages for the past two years (tr

> Why such a long queue?”...“Well,” sighs Marx, “Sometimes we’re out of oil, sometimes we don’t have I've been immersed in shortages for the past two years (try to go buy a car for MSRP), why some UK paper is writing about some far away, long ago shortage I don't know (well actually I do know).

thriftwy 4y ago
Car market just shows you how quickly the consumer experience degrades in light of shortages. Where you were previously offered bonuses and free stuff, now they would be insincere about what's in stock, how many does is actually cost, distribute the best stuff cost-wise among inner circle, try to shave a random extra amount of money from you. As you can see you don't need any kind of especially corrupt souls once incentives are wrong.
logical_ferry 4y ago
There are a few differences between you having to wait and a Soviet having to wait for a car multiple years: * You most probably already have a car and just want a newer model. A Soviet citizen just had a bike. * Soviet citizen had one or two models they could choose from. You have a plethora, some of which are probably more readily available than others. Don't compare UK shortages with what the Eastern Bloc went through. They had people going to surgery without anesthesia. You'll manage with your existing car for a bit more.
- thriftwy 4y ago
  The difference is mostly quantitative. In USSR you could buy a car if you were willing to pay over MSRP (which was mandatory rather than recommended). Simply buy a new car used. Reselling your car immediately after purchase for a profit was a thing. Some people (occupations such as arctic coal miner) had financial means to do so easily. Other people (notably, engineers on non-management positions like most of HN readers today) would never realistically afford one. The choice was indeed very limited. But again, it is mostly a quantitative difference.
  - dullcrisp 4y ago
    You know they say, quantity has a quality of its own
  - number6 4y ago
    Sounds like graphic cards today
sefrost 4y ago
The article was published in 2006.
gtsop 4y ago
Why the downvotes I wonder? Ok let me try using something the soviets didn't have: gpu shortages!
davidgerard 4y ago
The jokes translate just fine. . Under Brexit, every family gets what they need. That's why Tesco puts a sign up that says "nobody needs groceries today." . What did Great Britain use to light its homes with before using candles? Electricity. . Q: Why is Brexit superior to Europe? A: Because it heroically overcomes problems that would not exist if we'd stayed in. . At a party meeting, a Conservative party officer is drilling a local worker. He asks him: “Fellow Briton, if you had two houses, would you give one to the Conservative Party?” The worker responds “Yes, definitely, fellow Briton, I would give one of my houses to the party!” Then he asks “Fellow Briton, if you had two cars, would you give one to the party?” Again, the worker says, “Yes, I would give one of my cars to the party!” Finally, the officer asks, “If you had two shirts, would you give one to the party?” “No!” The officer asks “But why? Why won’t you give one of your shirts to the party?” The worker says: “Because I HAVE two shirts!” . A schoolboy wrote in his weekly essay: “My cat just had seven kittens. They’re all Brexiters.” The following week, the boy wrote: “my cat’s kittens are all Remainers.” The teacher called him up and asked him to explain the sudden change. “Last week, you said they were all Brexiters!” The boy nodded. “They were, but this week they all opened their eyes.” . A man walks into Sainsbury's. He asks the shop assistant, “You don’t have any meat?” The assistant says, “No, here we don’t have any fish. The counter that doesn’t have any meat is across the store.” . A European fairy tale begins, "Once upon a time, there was...." A Brexit fairy tale begins, "Once we're through all of this, there will be...." . Great Britain is the most progressive country in the world. Life was already better yesterday than it's going to be tomorrow. .

thriftwy 4y ago

Car market just shows you how quickly the consumer experience degrades in light of shortages. Where you were previously offered bonuses and free stuff, now they would be insincere about what's in stock, how many does is actually cost, distribute the best stuff cost-wise among inner circle, try to shave a random extra amount of money from you. As you can see you don't need any kind of especially corrupt souls once incentives are wrong.

logical_ferry 4y ago

There are a few differences between you having to wait and a Soviet having to wait for a car multiple years: * You most probably already have a car and just want a newer model. A Soviet citizen just had a bike. * Soviet citizen had one or two models they could choose from. You have a plethora, some of which are probably more readily available than others. Don't compare UK shortages with what the Eastern Bloc went through. They had people going to surgery without anesthesia. You'll manage with your existing car for a bit more.

thriftwy 4y ago
The difference is mostly quantitative. In USSR you could buy a car if you were willing to pay over MSRP (which was mandatory rather than recommended). Simply buy a new car used. Reselling your car immediately after purchase for a profit was a thing. Some people (occupations such as arctic coal miner) had financial means to do so easily. Other people (notably, engineers on non-management positions like most of HN readers today) would never realistically afford one. The choice was indeed very limited. But again, it is mostly a quantitative difference.
- dullcrisp 4y ago
  You know they say, quantity has a quality of its own
- number6 4y ago
  Sounds like graphic cards today

sefrost 4y ago

The article was published in 2006.

gtsop 4y ago

Why the downvotes I wonder? Ok let me try using something the soviets didn't have: gpu shortages!

davidgerard 4y ago

The jokes translate just fine. . Under Brexit, every family gets what they need. That's why Tesco puts a sign up that says "nobody needs groceries today." . What did Great Britain use to light its homes with before using candles? Electricity. . Q: Why is Brexit superior to Europe? A: Because it heroically overcomes problems that would not exist if we'd stayed in. . At a party meeting, a Conservative party officer is drilling a local worker. He asks him: “Fellow Briton, if you had two houses, would you give one to the Conservative Party?” The worker responds “Yes, definitely, fellow Briton, I would give one of my houses to the party!” Then he asks “Fellow Briton, if you had two cars, would you give one to the party?” Again, the worker says, “Yes, I would give one of my cars to the party!” Finally, the officer asks, “If you had two shirts, would you give one to the party?” “No!” The officer asks “But why? Why won’t you give one of your shirts to the party?” The worker says: “Because I HAVE two shirts!” . A schoolboy wrote in his weekly essay: “My cat just had seven kittens. They’re all Brexiters.” The following week, the boy wrote: “my cat’s kittens are all Remainers.” The teacher called him up and asked him to explain the sudden change. “Last week, you said they were all Brexiters!” The boy nodded. “They were, but this week they all opened their eyes.” . A man walks into Sainsbury's. He asks the shop assistant, “You don’t have any meat?” The assistant says, “No, here we don’t have any fish. The counter that doesn’t have any meat is across the store.” . A European fairy tale begins, "Once upon a time, there was...." A Brexit fairy tale begins, "Once we're through all of this, there will be...." . Great Britain is the most progressive country in the world. Life was already better yesterday than it's going to be tomorrow. .