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Yeah, but how does one get a business loan, with real stuff at stake, when VCs are burning money like there’s no tomorrow? I especially dislike the way VC fun

Yeah, but how does one get a business loan, with real stuff at stake, when VCs are burning money like there’s no tomorrow? I especially dislike the way VC funded startups use VC dollars to effectively be a “loss leaders” for years to choke out the rest of the market. Who wants to risk their own capital or privately pooled funds against THAT?

0xDEAFBEAD 1y ago
>how does one get a business loan, with real stuff at stake Show them your finances and collateral to demonstrate that you'll be able to pay off the loan. >I especially dislike the way VC funded startups use VC dollars to effectively be a “loss leaders” for years to choke out the rest of the market. It's a fair point, but it's a point which does not apply to the industries we are discussing, which do not receive VC investment. I actually really like your point about Masayoshi Son-style investments which are just an attempt to entrench a monopoly. I'm no socialist, but if socialists called for identifying and taxing such investments, I wouldn't object. The trick is to distinguish between the WeWorks of the world, and the Boom Supersonic type companies which genuinely need gobs of capital for breakthrough innovation.
- galangalalgol 1y ago
  Wouldn't being aggressive about antitrust chill auch investments in the first place? Uber wouldn't have been so eager to overcome lyft if it knew that it would mean getting broken up or fined into unprofitability.
  - 0xDEAFBEAD 1y ago
    That's another approach. However, I think it's worth distinguishing if a company acquires market dominance because of merit, vs because it got a big infusion of cash. I somewhat dislike antitrust because it requires judgement calls on the part of regulators. I prefer simple, elegant rules. Just like in software development. Law should ideally be elegant, just like code.

0xDEAFBEAD 1y ago

>how does one get a business loan, with real stuff at stake Show them your finances and collateral to demonstrate that you'll be able to pay off the loan. >I especially dislike the way VC funded startups use VC dollars to effectively be a “loss leaders” for years to choke out the rest of the market. It's a fair point, but it's a point which does not apply to the industries we are discussing, which do not receive VC investment. I actually really like your point about Masayoshi Son-style investments which are just an attempt to entrench a monopoly. I'm no socialist, but if socialists called for identifying and taxing such investments, I wouldn't object. The trick is to distinguish between the WeWorks of the world, and the Boom Supersonic type companies which genuinely need gobs of capital for breakthrough innovation.

galangalalgol 1y ago
Wouldn't being aggressive about antitrust chill auch investments in the first place? Uber wouldn't have been so eager to overcome lyft if it knew that it would mean getting broken up or fined into unprofitability.
- 0xDEAFBEAD 1y ago
  That's another approach. However, I think it's worth distinguishing if a company acquires market dominance because of merit, vs because it got a big infusion of cash. I somewhat dislike antitrust because it requires judgement calls on the part of regulators. I prefer simple, elegant rules. Just like in software development. Law should ideally be elegant, just like code.