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Why is it okay to break the rules in the tech world but if you do it in the NYC subway, it's cheating. Entrepreneurship is all about breaking the rules, making

Why is it okay to break the rules in the tech world but if you do it in the NYC subway, it's cheating. Entrepreneurship is all about breaking the rules, making your own way and making things happen. The guy probably didn't have a lot set up for him in life, so instead of feeling sorry for himself, he put on his shoes, grabbed his box of candy and made it happen. Just because he's exercising his entrepreneurial spirit by doing something that's not as sexy as programming the next facebook/twitter/social "disruption" doesn't mean his attitude shouldn't be applauded. Give the guy some credit.

ImprovedSilence 15y ago
Agreed, it's better than pushin crack.
- ImprovedSilence 15y ago
  so much downvote hate these days. Quoted from the article itself: "He started selling candy in order to get out of the "hood," he says." Growing in the hood, with that kind of entrepreneurial spirit, I give him mad moral props for resorting to selling candy on the subway instead of drugs on the street. For any of you entrepreneurial types out there, I challenge you to read 50 Cent's book "From Pieces to Weight", and tell me that if you were born in the hood, and had the same aspiring drive, you wouldn't resort to selling drugs.
  - sliverstorm 15y ago
    Actually, a surprising portion of HN seems to approve of drugs. Selling heroin- fighting the good fight. Selling candy on the subway- criminal.
comicjk 15y ago
He isn't breaking convention, he's just breaking the law. That law exists for a good reason - because being stuck in a confined space with a bunch of salesmen is intolerable. Does your tech startup break the law? If so, please call your local precinct and wait for the police to arrive.
- joelrunyon 15y ago
  How many startups are currently facing legal action? Do you really want to know the answer to this question? Tons of startups are breaking the law either intentionally or purposely trying to disrupt it. I think we've established long ago that something being "legal" or "illegal" doesn't necessarily mean it's "right" or "wrong."
  - rhizome 15y ago
    Tons of startups are breaking the law either intentionally I challenge you to supply three examples.
    - a3camero 15y ago
      I don't know about "breaking the law intentionally" but here are some examples of things startups have done that other people have thought were illegal. In some of the cases people have thought that so strongly that they've filed lawsuits. Groupon selling coupons for alcohol in Massachusetts: http://articles.boston.com/2011-03-18/business/29351154_1_groupon-spokeswoman-groupon-com-daily-deal-website http://articles.boston.com/2011-03-18/business/29351154_1_gr... (here are some other suits: http://www.portfolio.com/business-news/2011/03/29/groupon-faces-multiple-lawsuits-over-daily-deal-offers-advertising/ http://www.portfolio.com/business-news/2011/03/29/groupon-fa...) Facebook not living up to privacy promises: http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20111129-710865.html http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20111129-710865.html YouTube/Google not paying royalties/failing to control copyright infringement: http://paidcontent.org/article/419-music-publishers-settle-with-youtube-as-other-defendants-fight-on/ http://paidcontent.org/article/419-music-publishers-settle-w... AirBNB's operations in New York: http://www.betabeat.com/2011/05/31/airbnb-takes-manhattan-with-2k-bookings-a-night-but-many-listings-may-be-illegal/ http://www.betabeat.com/2011/05/31/airbnb-takes-manhattan-wi...
      - untog 15y ago
        If I remember correctly, Uber is also facing legal action about the legality of their car service.
jorgecastillo 15y ago
>Entrepreneurship is all about breaking the rules, making your own way and making things happen. Braking the rules is ok, braking the laws is not. So if I understand, you would consider the people, that are in the drug business, as entrepreneurs? Illegal activities are highly profitable, precisely because most people, will not participate in them, and this distorts the market.
- burgerbrain 15y ago
  Why exactly is breaking the laws not ok in the general case? And in this particular case, why isn't it ok? He is clearly providing a service that the people are demanding.
  - RockyMcNuts 15y ago
    Have you been on the subway when a peddler, beggar, dance troupe comes through with a loud spiel? It's more like the subway version of spam. Clearly lots of people are demanding spam, right? He's providing a service that a few people* are demanding, and most people find annoying. Plus evading sales tax, creating litter, reducing rent from the legit concessionnaire, etc. If that's OK, why stop there, why shouldn't I set up a candy stand in the movie theater? *the ones who take up one seat for each butt-cheek
    - burgerbrain 15y ago
      Having commuted on the subway at one point in my life, yes. That has happened to me hundreds of times. Usually I ignored them, other times I wanted some candy and purchased it.
      - RockyMcNuts 15y ago
        well, as Emerson said, good men must not obey laws too well (probably talking about slavery). In this case, I think there are valid reasons for the law. Just because something is a fact of life doesn't mean it's desirable.
    - 15y ago
gerggerg 15y ago
I don't think it's bad to break the rules in either case. He's just not an entrepreneur, and this article proposes nothing truly interesting. He's selling shit on the subway. He didn't come up with a new and interesting way to sell shit. He's just selling shit. Panhandling. The only reason he can make a profit is because it's illegal and people are nice. He's taking advantage of both. Is it better than selling crack? Without the slightest doubt. But thats a terrible metric with which to judge your surroundings.
- burgerbrain 15y ago
  Are restaurant owners not entrepreneurs? If not, that is an overly restrictive definition. "He didn't come up with a new and interesting way to sell shit." He identified an untapped location/population, and acted on it. How is that not finding a new way to "sell shit"?
  - gerggerg 15y ago
    Untapped? Selling candy to nice people in an uncomfortable situation is an untapped market?
    - burgerbrain 15y ago
      People are buying aren't they? And I reject the suggestion that he is somehow pressuring people into buying, if you've ever been on a subway that is rather implausible.
      - jrockway 15y ago
        Some people are deathly afraid of people talking to them in public, especially if they are from a different social class. I've had people try to sell me candy on the L before. I said, "no thanks" and that was that. I imagine this is the end result of 99.99999% of interactions between people on public transportation. (Someone stole my shoes once after he asked to read my newspaper and I gave it to him. That's the 0.000001% case :)
      - 15y ago

ImprovedSilence 15y ago

Agreed, it's better than pushin crack.

ImprovedSilence 15y ago
so much downvote hate these days. Quoted from the article itself: "He started selling candy in order to get out of the "hood," he says." Growing in the hood, with that kind of entrepreneurial spirit, I give him mad moral props for resorting to selling candy on the subway instead of drugs on the street. For any of you entrepreneurial types out there, I challenge you to read 50 Cent's book "From Pieces to Weight", and tell me that if you were born in the hood, and had the same aspiring drive, you wouldn't resort to selling drugs.
- sliverstorm 15y ago
  Actually, a surprising portion of HN seems to approve of drugs. Selling heroin- fighting the good fight. Selling candy on the subway- criminal.

comicjk 15y ago

He isn't breaking convention, he's just breaking the law. That law exists for a good reason - because being stuck in a confined space with a bunch of salesmen is intolerable. Does your tech startup break the law? If so, please call your local precinct and wait for the police to arrive.

joelrunyon 15y ago
How many startups are currently facing legal action? Do you really want to know the answer to this question? Tons of startups are breaking the law either intentionally or purposely trying to disrupt it. I think we've established long ago that something being "legal" or "illegal" doesn't necessarily mean it's "right" or "wrong."
- rhizome 15y ago
  Tons of startups are breaking the law either intentionally I challenge you to supply three examples.
  - a3camero 15y ago
    I don't know about "breaking the law intentionally" but here are some examples of things startups have done that other people have thought were illegal. In some of the cases people have thought that so strongly that they've filed lawsuits. Groupon selling coupons for alcohol in Massachusetts: http://articles.boston.com/2011-03-18/business/29351154_1_groupon-spokeswoman-groupon-com-daily-deal-website http://articles.boston.com/2011-03-18/business/29351154_1_gr... (here are some other suits: http://www.portfolio.com/business-news/2011/03/29/groupon-faces-multiple-lawsuits-over-daily-deal-offers-advertising/ http://www.portfolio.com/business-news/2011/03/29/groupon-fa...) Facebook not living up to privacy promises: http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20111129-710865.html http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20111129-710865.html YouTube/Google not paying royalties/failing to control copyright infringement: http://paidcontent.org/article/419-music-publishers-settle-with-youtube-as-other-defendants-fight-on/ http://paidcontent.org/article/419-music-publishers-settle-w... AirBNB's operations in New York: http://www.betabeat.com/2011/05/31/airbnb-takes-manhattan-with-2k-bookings-a-night-but-many-listings-may-be-illegal/ http://www.betabeat.com/2011/05/31/airbnb-takes-manhattan-wi...
    - untog 15y ago
      If I remember correctly, Uber is also facing legal action about the legality of their car service.

jorgecastillo 15y ago

>Entrepreneurship is all about breaking the rules, making your own way and making things happen. Braking the rules is ok, braking the laws is not. So if I understand, you would consider the people, that are in the drug business, as entrepreneurs? Illegal activities are highly profitable, precisely because most people, will not participate in them, and this distorts the market.

burgerbrain 15y ago
Why exactly is breaking the laws not ok in the general case? And in this particular case, why isn't it ok? He is clearly providing a service that the people are demanding.
- RockyMcNuts 15y ago
  Have you been on the subway when a peddler, beggar, dance troupe comes through with a loud spiel? It's more like the subway version of spam. Clearly lots of people are demanding spam, right? He's providing a service that a few people* are demanding, and most people find annoying. Plus evading sales tax, creating litter, reducing rent from the legit concessionnaire, etc. If that's OK, why stop there, why shouldn't I set up a candy stand in the movie theater? *the ones who take up one seat for each butt-cheek
  - burgerbrain 15y ago
    Having commuted on the subway at one point in my life, yes. That has happened to me hundreds of times. Usually I ignored them, other times I wanted some candy and purchased it.
    - RockyMcNuts 15y ago
      well, as Emerson said, good men must not obey laws too well (probably talking about slavery). In this case, I think there are valid reasons for the law. Just because something is a fact of life doesn't mean it's desirable.
  - 15y ago

gerggerg 15y ago

I don't think it's bad to break the rules in either case. He's just not an entrepreneur, and this article proposes nothing truly interesting. He's selling shit on the subway. He didn't come up with a new and interesting way to sell shit. He's just selling shit. Panhandling. The only reason he can make a profit is because it's illegal and people are nice. He's taking advantage of both. Is it better than selling crack? Without the slightest doubt. But thats a terrible metric with which to judge your surroundings.

burgerbrain 15y ago
Are restaurant owners not entrepreneurs? If not, that is an overly restrictive definition. "He didn't come up with a new and interesting way to sell shit." He identified an untapped location/population, and acted on it. How is that not finding a new way to "sell shit"?
- gerggerg 15y ago
  Untapped? Selling candy to nice people in an uncomfortable situation is an untapped market?
  - burgerbrain 15y ago
    People are buying aren't they? And I reject the suggestion that he is somehow pressuring people into buying, if you've ever been on a subway that is rather implausible.
    - jrockway 15y ago
      Some people are deathly afraid of people talking to them in public, especially if they are from a different social class. I've had people try to sell me candy on the L before. I said, "no thanks" and that was that. I imagine this is the end result of 99.99999% of interactions between people on public transportation. (Someone stole my shoes once after he asked to read my newspaper and I gave it to him. That's the 0.000001% case :)
    - 15y ago