World News Random, Random

[Suliso]

500,000 bicycle parking places is not enough so the Dutch will invest in 100,000 more

https://nltimes.nl/2020/11/27/100000-bi ... n-stations

[ti-amie]

500,000 bicycle parking places is not enough so the Dutch will invest in 100,000 more

https://nltimes.nl/2020/11/27/100000-bi ... n-stations

I think what this needs in the US, especially in large cities, is a huge buy in from the public. You have this in the Netherlands (again House Hunters International knowledge) where many US citizens relocating are stunned by how almost no one uses cars.

[Suliso]

US is maybe far away and different, but it's very illustrative to compare Netherlands with Belgium. Very similar people and geography, but cycling much less in Belgium due to inferior infrastructure.

Actually majority of those cyclists do own cars too, but are not using for short distances or where train very convenient.

[ponchi101]

About Bezos.
Just to be clear. My position is: he has done NOTHING wrong. He had one brilliant idea 30 years ago, and he has pioneered an entire section of an economy that is now booming around the world. Amazon has helped in some aspects: they are very much one factor why inflation in the USA has been kept in check for three decades, as they truly keep down prices (Wal Mart too).
But it does not mean these new economic models do not come without consequences, mainly, a severe drop in employment of good paying jobs. These guys are simply a real-life version of MONOPOLY (the game) in which, as we all know, eventually one player gets such momentum he gains everything. I know there is an economic theory for this (I read it years ago, but I can't find it) but it seems that nobody has ever read it.
So, Amazon needs to be broken up. It happened to Standard oil and the world kept spinning. The Rockefellers continued being super rich, a more diverse industry fueled the growth of the 20th century, and everybody was better off.
It is not such a complicated thing to see.

[ponchi101]

US is maybe far away and different, but it's very illustrative to compare Netherlands with Belgium. Very similar people and geography, but cycling much less in Belgium due to inferior infrastructure.

Actually majority of those cyclists do own cars too, but are not using for short distances or where train very convenient.

It is one of the things that can be done, in very short time, at almost no cost (just drop taxes on bicycles) that can help in so many ways: Climate Change, public health, and simple infrastructure.
Here: a lot of people use bikes. Bogota has almost 2,000 Miles of bike paths, and still, some companies do not allow their employees to go to work on bikes because it looks unprofessional (it is the sole reason I have been told).
I have to buy one. Instead of using public transport.

[Suliso]

Bogota I imagine is a lot more challenging due to climate and hills. We don't cycle as much here (people use public transport a lot) but there is infrastructure. I would cycle to work if I didn't live so far. We have showers and locker rooms available so you can change to business attire if needed.

[ponchi101]

Actually, Bogota is GREAT for bicycles. We are in mountains but the city is in a flat valley in between two ridges. You do not have any Tour De France hills. Then, temperature is always pleasant: a super hot day will be 22C°, early morning and late afternoon (when you pedal to and from work) will be around 12C°. No issues.
The only thing is the rain. It rains a lot, but every single bike shop will sell you a full fledge rain suit for those occasions. Carry it in your backpack and you are set.

[Suliso]

Actually, Bogota is GREAT for bicycles. We are in mountains but the city is in a flat valley in between two ridges. You do not have any Tour De France hills. Then, temperature is always pleasant: a super hot day will be 22C°, early morning and late afternoon (when you pedal to and from work) will be around 12C°. No issues.
The only thing is the rain. It rains a lot, but every single bike shop will sell you a full fledge rain suit for those occasions. Carry it in your backpack and you are set.

I'm clearly not familiar with Colombian geography... Is Cali also like this? Mom's cousin is married to a Colombian guy. He comes from Cali, but I've never asked him this.

[ponchi101]

Cali is a stove turned on to MAX. It is almost at sea level, close to the coast, and surrounded by jungle. Of the three main cities (Bog, Medellin and Cali) it is the hottest one.

[JazzNU]

By now, anything that relates to Amazon (not the jungle), belongs in World News.
Jeff Bezos could give all Amazon workers $105,000 and still be as rich as pre-Covid

Snippet from inside that article:
"Earlier this year, TLE revealed that the world’s ten richest men have added more than $132 billion to their combined net worth this year, despite the devastating impact of the coronavirus crisis on the global economy."

Yep. Sounds right.

I get what they are trying to do with this kind of article, but why is it ALWAYS Jeff Bezos like he's the only multi-billionaire around? I feel like it's gotten out of hand. You find me even half the number of "let me spend his money to prove a point" articles in this vein about Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Ellison, Steve Ballmer, Larry Page, Sergey Brin, and the rest of the them. Don't like Bezos? That's fine. And I hope those complaining about him aren't using Amazon (spoiler alert: most are Prime members) . But seriously, at this point, there's so much piling in on him so often it's making people tune out potentially valid points being made.

Amazon break up - I personally think that could be disastrous depending on how it is done and would have many unintended consequences as some key factors about Amazon's operations tend to get overlooked that would probably get trampled in a split. I don't find Standard Oil a good comparison. Also, for these reasons, I think this is mostly a National/US News story, not a World News story.

[ponchi101]

I think they always pick Bezos because he is the richest one. The sole reason.
I put it in world news because by now Amazon is not an American company. They are all around the world. They recently opened in Colombia, and will continue to expand.

[Suliso]

It's also because he treats his employees badly compared to others in tech and is not much into philanthropy. Google is supposedly a great place to work, Amazon not so much. Of course to a large extent because Google doesn't employ simple workers.

[JazzNU]

Given the internet has felt the need to tell me on an almost daily basis for the last month how freaking wealthy Elon Musk is by surpassing Bezos as the richest man, he can be in line for the firing squad to me. And his philanthropy is nothing to write home about.

I'm not arguing that Amazon isn't a multinational company, all of the ones related to the men I listed are. But the lion's share of their business is in the US along with their headquarters, and the issues you're talking about, the ones related in particular to breaking it up, they are very much rooted in the fallout it would have in the US.

I do think the skill level of workers is a big issue @suliso. With almost all the tech companies. Add the lower skilled workers into the equation, i.e. Uber, Lyft, Instacart, criticism increases. By all accounts, working for Amazon corporate in Seattle is not that dissimilar from working with other tech companies. I didn't list the Waltons, but not sure why they are escaping people's ire all of a sudden. Daddy Walton held onto a dollar almost as tight as Getty. Their philanthropy has always been minimal.

And that's all I mean really. There are other billionaires worthy of attention and criticism. Most stories in the last few years seems hyper focused on Bezos. He's the only one I remember donating money to something, then have the amount given criticized, and then people wonder why he's not compelled to give more publicly. Keep hammering it as Bezos, Bezos, and just Bezos, especially when everyone loves them their Amazon and Amazon Prime, and people are going to care as much about the point that is trying to be made as they care about that their iPhones being made at Foxconn.

[ti-amie]

I don't get the piling on Bezos either. He's no different than any other ultra wealthy man past or present. I think what they hate is that if people want something they go to Amazon without a second thought. I'm trying to break that habit but since I'm not wealthy I shop by price. Usually it's cheaper on Amazon.

Musk, on the other hand, is one level above a grifter. And yet he's escaped most criticism.

Do you think Bezos owning the WaPo has anything to do with it?

[ponchi101]

He is the most recognizable, and his company is the most recognizable. I think it is simply that.
It is the sole thing that these people suffer from: they can't win in that aspect. If you don't give money, you are a bastard that owns half the world and does nothing (Bezos, Zuckerberg, Musk). If you are indeed heavily involved in philanthropy, you are trying to implant chips in people (Gates) or are the eldest of The Elders of Zion (Zoros).
They can't win.