reading-at-work

12 ms·

61.
by reading-at-work 8y ago
I live in Oregon, and we do have mail-in ballots. Can confirm that it's great.
62.
by reading-at-work 8y ago
> I'd like to think that's not true Facebook insiders have admitted that it is. Mike Allen, Facebook's first president, said this in an interview: “The thought process was all about, ‘How do we consume as much of your time
63.
by reading-at-work 8y ago
"90 percent of Google+ user sessions are less than five seconds." Oof. Good on them for finally admitting it, but who knew the data would be even harsher than G+'s most vocal critics.
64.
by reading-at-work 8y ago
I agree, I came to NH from MA and was shocked at how nice the roads are in comparison. I'll never understand where MA tax money goes, because it clearly doesn't go to the roads.
65.
by reading-at-work 8y ago
Yeah, but it sounds like it would satisfy the concern of being able to replace the 3rd party API internally without the mobile apps having to change.
66.
by reading-at-work 8y ago
Reminds me of the old Xbox 360 "red ring of death" fix where you could just wrap the box in towels and leave it running for an hour to overheat it, then reboot and it would work again.
67.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
As far as the Scandinavian countries, I'd agree that they're operating well. However, like you said, they aren't socialist. They're strong market economies with social safety nets layered on top. They're also very h
68.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
I'd disagree that the USSR was the only "legitimate" attempt. And even accepting that premise I think it does still show a flaw in the system, which is that it was easily exploited by a despot to seize control. By allowing th
69.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
I see what you're saying, and you're right that foreign influence is a big factor, but I'd still argue that the failure of the USSR shows a major flaw in the system, and that is that it is easily exploited by despots. I made
70.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
Of course it was important, but I disagree that the system depended on it to maintain its very existence. If slavery didn't happen, the market still would have evolved around that fact. Capitalism would still exist, just with higher la
71.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
Maybe, maybe not. What's the big difference between cabs and Uber? Price and convenience. Uber and Lyft are successful because they fill a huge need in the market that the overregulated taxi industry couldn't (or wouldn't). I
72.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
There's hard data to support the drunk driving claim, too. It has been noticeably reduced in areas that allow Uber vs. those that don't.
73.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
I see what you're saying, and it's a fair point. I've never claimed capitalism is without its flaws. You say "people ignore the ugly history of capitalism but only want to talk about the ugly side of socialism," but
74.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
You can still formulate opinions based on facts instead of on sensationalist fear-mongering.
75.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
"Capitalism in America might not have even been possible without the extensive use of slave labor and the genocide of an entire continent of people" Rolling my eyes pretty hard at that one. Can you elaborate? Do you really think t
76.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
"knowing your driver has been working for 16 hours and still hasn't earned enough today to pay rent or pay for fuel?" See, that's the part I take issue with. That's pure assumption. Lots of my drivers have been coll
77.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
I agree that humans in general with unchecked power can become dictatorial maniacs. I disagree that the CEOs of ride-hailing companies specifically will become dictatorial maniacs. I think that kind of sensationalist language discredits the
78.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
Even if cabs and Uber rides were the same price, I'd still prefer Uber. Wouldn't you? That said, I doubt the VC money will dry up. Companies can operate in the red, sustained by VC money, for a long time before becoming profitable
79.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
"In a successful socialist state neither party elites or bureaucrats should exist." So to paraphrase, there has never been a successful socialist state.
80.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
Investment dollars aside, there's hard data to show that Uber and Lyft reduce drunk driving in any area where they operate, for one thing. It's a tangible addition to the general consensus that the apps are much better from a user
81.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
Sure, but in the context of this article it's just embellishment to whip up the reader's anger at the supposed injustice of Uber and Lyft. It doesn't contribute to any fact-based arguments and it shows the author as incredibl
82.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
Eh, maybe. But worst case scenario at a casino is you blow your life savings. Worst case on Facebook is you waste a few hours of your time being bored. Additionally, if we do introduce social media regulations (shudder) you can guarantee Fa
83.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
I'm genuinely curious, have you taken a cab lately? Can you honestly say you prefer that experience to what Uber or Lyft provides? I understand what that quote is saying, but I feel it's a false equivalency. There are already cars
84.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
"The reign of the all-powerful capitalist class has returned with a vengeance. The job conditions of working men and women, thrust backward, will not improve until they regain the militancy and rebuild the popular organizations that se
85.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
I'm not so sure Facebook is in the same category as vehicles, medical care and addictive carcinogens.
86.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
I also pine for the good ol' days of mom and pop stores being the primary retailers in the world, but the genie is out of the bottle and consumers have shown that they prefer the convenience and affordability of online shopping. Amazon
87.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
We're not to the point of nobody being able to compete with Amazon, though. Amazon is winning but other companies still exist and are fighting, so Amazon can't just raise prices arbitrarily and expect customers to not look elsewhe
88.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
You got downvoted but you're right. That's the whole point. Honor cultures exist in places where there is no strong, central justice system. It is a well-documented phenomenon throughout human history - ancient Japan and viking-ag
89.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
I laughed for an unreasonably long time at "it must make for a wild singles night"
90.
by reading-at-work 9y ago
Not sure if linking to reddit is frowned upon here, but there's a great subreddit called r/dailyprogrammer which has fun coding challenges ranging from beginner to difficult. I've found they are great for practice because the

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