"Uber Just Stuck a Knife in the Republican Party’s Heart"

[applegrove]

Uber Just Stuck a Knife in the Republican Party’s Heart

by Jonathan Chait at NY Magazine

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2014/11/uber-just-stuck-a-knife-in-the-gops-heart.html

"SNIP......................


This weekend, Uber CEO Travis Kalanick appeared at a dinner in New York and, in a few words, fatally undercut the premise of the Republican Party’s economic philosophy. Kalanick told reporters that Obamacare had been a crucial element in his firm’s success. “It’s huge," he said, according to BuzzFeed. “The democratization of those types of benefits allow people to have more flexible ways to make a living. They don’t have to be working for The Man.”

The destructive power of this blunt statement works in two ways. The first, of course, is that it rebuts the Republican indictment of Obamacare, opposition to which is a matter of holy writ within the party. Of all the grounds for Republican hatred of Obamacare, the most deeply held is the belief that it amounts to onerous regulation that holds back capitalistic dynamism. That belief is not only foundational on the right, but nebulous enough that, even as conservative predictions about Obamacare’s cost and functionality obviously fail, the deeper suspicion that it is invisibly rotting away the foundations of capitalism can linger without any real evidence.

Advocates of health-care reform always insisted that the law would enable entrepreneurship rather than inhibit it. By eliminating the need for workers to secure insurance through employer-based coverage, they are free to switch into more productive work or to start up their own firm and obtain individual insurance. In 2010, Nancy Pelosi explained that the law would enable people to pursue whatever work best suited their talents. “Think of an economy where people could be an artist or a photographer or, eh, a writer without worrying about keeping their day job in order to have health insurance,” she said, “or that people could start a business and be entrepreneurial and take risk but not [be] job-locked because a child has asthma or someone in the family is bipolar.”

Conservatives subjected this quote — often just the truncated first half of it — to endless mockery. But Pelosi was completely correct about this. Indeed, as BuzzFeed also reported last month, Obamacare has played a major role in enabling the sharing economy, which relies on the kind of flexible labor force that is hard to generate without a functional individual insurance market.





.......................SNIP"

[ucrdem]

1. Wow. The story on NPR this evening was completely different:

Uber Executive Lashes Out At Journalists After Negative Publicity

November 18, 2014 4:58 PM ET - Laura Sydell - All Things Considered

In the latest flap involving the ride sharing company Uber, an executive is apologizing after saying the company should spy on unfriendly reporters. Uber is a hit with customers, but has clashed with competitors, regulators and some journalists.

http://www.npr.org/2014/11/18/365015988/uber-executive-lashes-out-at-journalists-after-negative-publicity

hmm...

[JaneyVee]

2. That's because its a different story.

[applegrove]

3. Don't you think it is good to know that futurist companies like Uber find the ACA important?

And necessary.

[ucrdem]

5. Yes and I recced the post . . .

I just find it strange that NPR (and others it appears) are running this rather unflattering parallel piece at the same time, about the same dinner it appears, though a different exec. You follow?

[applegrove]

6. Yes. Thanks for explaining a bit more. Both stories are important.

[jeff47]

4. Translation: Uber desperately seeks to distract everyone

from what their executives have been saying and doing.

[FSogol]

9. Translation: Uber is a Libertarian company that profits by skirting

safety regulations that the rest of their industry (commercial transportation) is obliged to follow. Who gives a toss that they are a shiny new phone-app based service. Their CEO is a total shithead. That he likes the ACA only proves the broken clock or blind squirrel theory.

[MADem]

15. I'm reccing this thread for this post--that's a good and accurate breakdown of the nuts/bolts of the

issue. Of course, the ACA utility can translate to more benign business ventures, but UBER is not one of them, IMO.

[Travelman]

28. Amen, brother.

I don't care if the guy is a libertarian or a Republican or if he the biggest Democrat ever to walk the earth. The guy is a serious asshole who apparently has a serious woman-hating problem, and company is a big problem, AFAIC.

I'm just waiting for the first real high-profile case of someone dying in an Uber car that is driven by someone who is not properly insured and/or the car has some major safety issue, or the supposedly safe Uber driver rapes some woman or something like that. It's bound to happen, and when the victim or the victim's family has no recourse, will the same people blindly cheer and clap their hands and say "Yay! He likes Obama's signature legislation, so that makes him a great guy!" or will they suddenly fall silent?

[Ampersand Unicode]

42. Startup bros are the worst

The guy is a serious asshole who apparently has a serious woman-hating problem

What Silicon Valley CEO these days doesn't? Except for the serious codeheads like Zuckerberg who can't even talk to girls (let alone any people, apparently), and the dead stoner pseudo-progressive Jobs who had a major crush on Joan Baez, aren't all these digital hipsters basically just MRA/PUA types with programming experience?

Especially the gamer-guys. Fuck the gamer-guys. Seriously, fuck them and all their testosterone-infused GTA "glory." Woop-de-do, you scored 50 extra points for raping a Sim. Now wipe the Cheetos off your ill-fitting Minecraft T-shirt and get a real job.

[Ikonoklast]

48. It's already happened.

When you accept money from a passenger to ride in your car, you are not a "ride-sharing" do-gooder, you are operating a livery service for profit. The vast majority of automobile insurance policies expressly forbid commercial operation of a private vehicle and will not cover you, your vehicle, or your passenger if it is operating an unlicensed taxi service.

Uber is skirting the law and leaving its drivers completely liable as exactly none of them are required to have a commercial insurance policy covering their business.


Six-year old girl killed in crosswalk by Uber driver:

http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2014/01/28/uber-wrongful-death-lawsuit/4959127/

Uber driver smashes passenger's head with hammer:

http://www.sfgate.com/crime/article/Uber-driver-accused-of-hammer-attack-on-San-5783495.php


Uber states that they carry a one million dollar insurance policy in case of an accident, except for one thing...the disclaimer you accept when taking a ride says that none of that is valid, you get killed while riding in an Uber vehicle screw you, you have zero recourse.




Libertarianism at its best....you're on your own, too bad you were stupid and got yourself hurt by one of our employees.



From: https://www.uber.com/legal/usa/terms

YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT UBER DOES NOT PROVIDE TRANSPORTATION OR LOGISTICS SERVICES OR FUNCTION AS A TRANSPORTATION CARRIER.

UBER'S SERVICES MAY BE USED BY YOU TO REQUEST AND SCHEDULE TRANSPORTATION OR LOGISTICS SERVICES WITH THIRD PARTY PROVIDERS, BUT YOU AGREE THAT UBER HAS NO RESPONSIBILITY OR LIABILITY TO YOU RELATED TO ANY TRANSPORTATION OR LOGISTICS PROVIDED TO YOU BY THIRD PARTY PROVIDERS THROUGH THE USE OF THE SERVICES OTHER THAN AS EXPRESSLY SET FORTH IN THESE TERMS.

UBER DOES NOT GUARANTEE THE SUITABILITY, SAFETY OR ABILITY OF THIRD PARTY PROVIDERS. IT IS SOLELY YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO DETERMINE IF A THIRD PARTY PROVIDER WILL MEET YOUR NEEDS AND EXPECTATIONS.

UBER WILL NOT PARTICIPATE IN DISPUTES BETWEEN YOU AND A THIRD PARTY PROVIDER. BY USING THE SERVICES, YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU MAY BE EXPOSED TO SITUATIONS INVOLVING THIRD PARTY PROVIDERS THAT ARE POTENTIALLY UNSAFE, OFFENSIVE, HARMFUL TO MINORS, OR OTHERWISE OBJECTIONABLE, AND THAT USE OF THIRD PARTY PROVIDERS ARRANGED OR SCHEDULED USING THE SERVICES IS AT YOUR OWN RISK AND JUDGMENT. UBER SHALL NOT HAVE ANY LIABILITY ARISING FROM OR IN ANY WAY RELATED TO YOUR TRANSACTIONS OR RELATIONSHIP WITH THIRD PARTY PROVIDERS.

[uhnope]

37. But his point is still 100% true

so many people were tied down to jobs they didn't want because it gave them medical insurance. Now they don't have those constraints. The ACA is a major boon to basic freedom in the USA

[ffr]

39. You got that right. Passengers are not insured when riding UBER.

And any state or country that regulates such industries in the name of 'public safety' should be fighting to insist that if UBER is going to compete, that they do so fairly...UBER drivers can only carry personal insurance, which DOES NOT cover commercially transported passengers.

UBER is organized cyber crime. They operate illegally in the transportation capacity, because it's cheaper to operate that way and pay fines for their arrested drivers, than it is to carry commercial insurance and fall under the regulations of regional public safety guidelines.

[onehandle]

7. Uber is the preferred transportation of wealthy tech geeks.

Who have been praising them for a long time, until recently when they have been revealed to be ruthless shitheads.

The blog nerds are quiet now.

So meh...

[Brickbat]

8. "They don’t have to be working for The Man.”

Pretty big words for a company built on netting more than a billion in funding and paying shit wages.

[Baitball Blogger]

10. Uber? Would it be THIS Uber?

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-airport-sues-uber-20141118-story.html

Because, if it is the same Uber the timing of the lawsuit might suggest retaliation. The Orlando Airport Authority is composed of at least one individual that I know of that is very tied to the GOP.

Uber may have benefited from the Expressway turning a blind eye, until it was no longer politically feasible. That's how Republicans in power roll.

[mopinko]

11. meh. uber is getting sued all over.

traffic was bad in chi this morning, due to 2 big fires. their rates went up to 5 times normal.
lots of folks dont like them here. that isnt gonna help matters.

[DBoon]

13. interesting how a free market works in practice

If you charge higher prices because of a catastrophic event, people hate you. There are some deeply rooted ethics involved in helping out in bad times, not ripping people off because you can take advantage of their misery.

Funny how these guys are so cluelessly self centered they can't figure this out

[mopinko]

29. that's a big money maker for them.

when you take a taxi, it costs x/mile. when you call uber at high demand times it is x times whatever they can get.
rates in downtown are routinely doubled.

[Ampersand Unicode]

43. The libertarian nerd has no code of ethics.

No empathy or social awareness either. The pope might wanna rethink that whole nerds-are-awesome thing.

These are the same callous douche bags who fap at the altar of Doctors Paul père et fils. No rules for me, only for you. Classic narcissists, all of them.

[Upward]

49. Everyone Loves the Principals of Supply and Demand

Until it's their turn to meet the demand of a supplier with the advantage.

[calimary]

12. Let's hope so! This assumes, however, that there's a heart anywhere in there to stab.

Which hasn't been confirmed in the least!

[Starry Messenger]

14. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

I'm literally gasping with laughter. Who writes this shit?

Uber's CEO is a free market gasbag. His VP just threatened journalists for saying things he hates about the company.

Latest Uber shitfest? Driver tells customer she deserved cancer. And that's just from today.

This is desperate straw-clutching from a company that is mired in shit.

[Kath1]

51. Thank you!

That says it all.

"This is desperate straw-clutching from a company that is mired in shit." - Yes, it is.

[Fuddnik]

16. Kalanick is otherwise a total shithead.

And Uber is one totally fucked up company to work for.

They lie about everything. Their rate structure is great for Uber and customers, but really screw their drivers. They tell customers not to tip drivers, that it's already included in the shitty fares, but it's not. They're not receptive to any suggestions from the drivers on how to improve service, or things or point out things that don't work.

Pretty much all taxi companies are encouraging their drivers (independent contractors) to sign up for ACA.

Fuck Uber.

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

19. I know a number of black car drivers and they love Uber

Before Uber they were often idle for extended periods between airport trips and now they can fill that downtime with Uber fares.

They say the only real problem is working Friday and Saturday nights when they have to deal with asshole club-goers which isn't really the demographic they usually have to deal with.

[Upward]

50. I'm a Black Car Driver and Ditching Uber

It's great when the demand is there. About 20% of the time you can match what you're making on scheduled runs.

Most of the time, there's not enough business to easily match it without driving around wasting gas. And even then you'll get enough business to go maybe 50% over what you're making on scheduled runs.

It's that 20% when Uber business is dead that you realize you could be better using that time, productively, doing something else. And getting out of the car for exercise is one of them.

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

52. May I ask where?

These guys are all in Orange County, so I guess they have a lot of tourists to cater to.

[Mojorabbit]

23. I use them all the time

Most drivers tell me they really enjoy working for themselves.. Most are in between jobs or augmenting salaries but some do it full time. They get 80 percent of the fare(per drivers). It is a much better experience than the misery that is taxi service in Orlando. Since my husband passed in Dec they have been a lifesaver for me as I do not drive because I have MS and my reflexes are too slow. I use them several times a week.

[Fuddnik]

24. I was one of the first Uber drivers in Tampa.

I was there 3 months. When it first started it was great. Then they cut their rates (our wages) twice. Our expenses remained the same. but they claimed we would make up the difference in volume. Translation: handle twice the fares, double your expenses, for the same money.

We used to get a contact number for clients on the call. Then, they instituted a generic number for both the passenger and driver to contact each other. It didn't work on either end. When I pointed it out to them, they just explained how it was supposed to work, and never addressed the fact that it didn't work...at all. They tell passengers that the tip is included. IT'S NOT!!! And tips are a MAJOR part of a taxi drivers wage. Just like a server in a restaurant.

They have an arbitrary rating system for drivers, with no way to protest a bad rating, and they expect you to provide beverages (at your expense) to riders.

Sure, I drove my own car, a hybrid, and got much better mileage than I did in a leased Crown Vic taxi, and I didn't have to pay a lease, but they lowered rates so low, that you can't make any money.

Now I work for myself, by appointment, for personal clients and I'm much better off.

Fuck Uber!

I repeat, Fuck Uber!

[JI7]

17. it has allowed many people who wanted to start their own business to do so

[deurbano]

18. I didn't know what Uber was until it was mentioned in the stories about Dr. Spencer.

But it seems popular among high school students here in San Francisco. My son and his friends have taken them a couple of times recently when public transportation would have taken too long. Our side of town doesn't get a lot of cabs. Are they safe?

[jeff47]

21. No, they're not safe.

They claim to do background checks on their drivers....and then it turns out they somehow miss minor things like felony convictions.

This story about a driver in LA being arrested also covers a lot of other incidents.

[frazzled]

20. As they threaten to smear female journalist who wrote a critical article

Uber executive Emil Michael made the remarks Friday at a private dinner in New York City, which a Buzzfeed editor attended. From the Buzzfeed report penned by editor-in-chief Ben Smith:

Over dinner, he outlined the notion of spending “a million dollars” to hire four top opposition researchers and four journalists. That team could, he said, help Uber fight back against the press — they’d look into “your personal lives, your families,” and give the media a taste of its own medicine.
Michael specifically suggested investigating journalist Sarah Lacy, the editor of tech website PandoDaily who has written several critical articles about the company, according to the report. He referenced one column Lacy wrote explaining why she decided to delete the Uber app from her phone:

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/emil-michael-suggests-smearing-journalists-critical-of-uber

[lonestarnot]

22. Uber hates women and its workers. Fuck uber.

[librechik]

25. ...and then we never heard another word about it

just saying this denunciation of Republican lies will not get into the echo chamber because Obama.

[nichomachus]

26. Here's my problem with Uber

If you ask any capitalist why they make big bucks, they'll tell you that it's because they take big risks. However, the scumbags who run Uber have found a way to insulate themselves from all risk, while raking in hundreds of millions of dollars.

If your driver beats you to a bloody pulp -- as happened in San Francisco recently -- they're not responsible. You have to sue the driver, who I'm guessing doesn't have very deep pockets.

If a driver is racing to a call and kills a little girl standing on a sidewalk, Uber is not responsible.

If you're a woman and a driver, wo knows your address and phone number, starts harrassing or stalking you, Uber is not reponsible.

Uber is basically the same as hitchhiking, except that you have to pay and the driver and Uber have all your personal information. All of the risk has been shifted to the consumer and all of the money is being shifted to the Uber executives -- who are pretty much corporatist shitheads, as we've seen.

[ProfessorPlum]

27. Most people on this thread are getting distracted by uber

But the point made is the most important: imagine a world where you didn't have to be an employee of a medium to large business to feel (relatively) safe to take financial risks, knowing that you'd be (somewhat) covered if a health issue arose?

_that's_ the most important part of this story. And of any story that refers to universal health care. Just imagine if people didn't _have_ to be employees to take care of their health. They could say take this job and shove it and walk right out the door and try something else new.

It's why truly universal coverage, like a single payer system, will ultimately free us all up to pursue and do things on our own. Imagine covering everyone and lowering health care costs to the point where people don't have to take out huge liability coverage for themselves. Kids would be allowed to engage in activities where they might break a bone sometimes, and it wouldn't be the end of the world.

Several forces push us into a society of wage slavery, but healthcare coverage is one of the biggest ones. Insurance slavery is just as real as wage slavery. And the ACA has done a lot to free people up that way. Single payer would do even more!!

[Ampersand Unicode]

44. Health insurance isn't a panacea for "creative freedom"

It's why truly universal coverage, like a single payer system, will ultimately free us all up to pursue and do things on our own.

You still need a job in order to afford stuff. You can't exactly go out and buy a shit ton of crafting supplies or a DSLR to pursue your dreams of photography if you don't have a job to pay rent and buy food.

Most people don't get to pursue their dreams of writing a novel or painting a masterpiece, because they need money for food and shelter. A GMI (guaranteed minimum income) is not going to happen here. Nor is "guaranteed" shelter or food, let alone a guaranteed job, or guaranteed anything, because we suck. FDR is dead; so is the New Deal, and the poets are deader than Robin Williams. Taxes aren't exactly going to pay street musicians or artists a living wage and give them a place to live and food to eat so they can paint murals or take pictures or write stories. We don't have a WPA and never will again.

I agree that health insurance leaves people stuck in shitty jobs they would leave in a heartbeat if they didn't have to worry about getting sick or hurt and not being able to afford treatment costs, but it's not the only reason people work those shitty jobs. Shitty as those jobs might be, for most people it's the only thing that stands between them and the cold streets -- and it gives them a sense of purpose, a reason to get up in the morning and have a fixed schedule of duties and responsibilities. I don't understand the people who say that the ACA allowed them to quit their job and devote their lifetime to flipping houses. With no salary, how is it they have a house of their own to go home to at the end of the day? Or are they still relying on at least one person's income, i.e. they're married and there aren't a lot of college-age singletons quitting their $8/hr Starbucks jobs to hitchhike across Europe thanks to ACA?

I'm confused. The new "Freelancing 2.0" is "uber"-cutthroat and pays peanuts, so how is it that people are even able to afford premiums being a hack for Uber or a "mechanical Turk" for Amazon?

[ProfessorPlum]

46. Ok Kreskin

In addition to wage slavery, there is also health care slavery. Universal health care would end health care slavery. We'd still have to work on wage slavery. That's my point.

[ProfessorPlum]

47. Also, Uber has left itself open to competition

Lots of people want to work at a company like uber, just not get screwed. Imagine now a company comes along with uber's basic game plan, but that doesn't screw its workers quite so badly. They can now compete with uber for the better employees. See? without having to worry about health care, both employees and employers ar emore free to compete and create better situations and increase economic activity.

[alarimer]

30. Uber is not good for working people either.

In fact they suck all around.

[mmonk]

31. It's similar to points I have tried to make

for single payer. Can anyone think of a greater economic stimulus that frees both individuals and corporations in the US to be creative, expand opportunities, allow for higher wages since healthcare costs will no longer be a factor, etcetera.

[ProfessorPlum]

32. exactly right

tying health care to employment (and only certain kinds of employment) is a dumb system that strangles growth, creativity, and ultimately freedom.

[applegrove]

33. Plus it is small business that creates all the jobs. The big businesses do not.

[IronLionZion]

41. Single payer really is the pro-business plan

since it is the lowest cost for employers

[KamaAina]

34. That's funny. Uber is as Republican as a company can possibly be.

Except maybe Koch Industries.

Here's a picture of Mr. Kalanick:

[okieinpain]

35. great post. n/t.

[11 Bravo]

36. The Republican party has a heart? This should be in "Breaking News"!

[uhnope]

38. his point is still 100% true, no matter what we think of Uber

so many people were tied down to jobs they didn't want because it gave them medical insurance. Now they don't have those constraints. The ACA is a major boon to basic freedom in the USA

[leanforward]

40. Am I missing something?

The CEO's point is right on. This thread seems to attack the messenger for his business model. His point, to me, is right on. In those states where the ACA is accepted, the talent (employee) can now go to the need (employer) without fear of losing healthcare.

[redruddyred]

45. it's sad that it's buzzfeed which is carrying this story.

but, yes, doing the right thing is often also the most sensible thing.