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    Sam BiddleSam Biddle
    7/22/15 5:00pm

    I’m gonna write this here before some idiot can:

    “REALLY GAWKER? YOU’RE GONNA LECTURE SOMEONE ON JOURNALISTIC ETHICS THIS WEEK? REALLY???? REALLY???? I POOP AND PEE MYSELF”

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      PeteRRSam Biddle
      7/22/15 5:03pm

      Way to take the fun out of it, dude. [sad trombone]

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      ╰(　´◔　ω　◔ `)╯< Woke and BokeSam Biddle
      7/22/15 5:03pm

      I was just going to ask how your day was and how you’re holding up, but I guess you need a new diaper.

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    JohninLASam Biddle
    7/22/15 5:12pm

    This pales in comparison to another business writer transparently shilling for Big Macadamia:

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      crouching tigerJohninLA
      7/22/15 6:08pm

      Yes, if Macadamia was a company, and not a commodity with a lot of sellers, this would make sense.

      Troll harder. If you’re stuck for ideas, I suggest criticizing Gizmodo for their product reviews.

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      JohninLAcrouching tiger
      7/22/15 6:12pm
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    dothedewSam Biddle
    7/22/15 5:09pm

    Thank you Ashton Kutcher (from Iowa and CA) and Kate Upton (from MI and FL and probably CA) for weighing in on issues of importance to New Yorkers. Our mayor will surely take your constructive feedback with the seriousness it deserves.

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      stacyinbeandothedew
      7/22/15 5:13pm

      He did! They just announced they caved on the cap.

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      dothedewstacyinbean
      7/22/15 5:15pm

      Once again, my sincerest thanks to Ashton and Kate. NYers owe you one.

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    SoapBoxcarWillieSam Biddle
    7/22/15 6:00pm

    Is it really shilling if she’s a user of the service, and is concerned about its future in NYC? There has been overwhelming support from many in the outer boroughs, because there really is a shortage of cabs that green cabs don’t seem to fully address. This seems very different than Pepsi shilling against the soda ban, which was a stupid idea surrounded by more stupidity on both sides of the debate. I also question whether or not it’s really astroturfing, as there is real grassroots support among pretty much every NYC-dweller I know. Granted, I also question how serious the mayor and city council were about implementing the cap, or if it’s just something they pretended to try to do to appease the taxi overlords (who, despite their large but shrinking fortunes, simply can’t match the $41+ billion behemoth that is Uber, nor its legion of powerful/influential fans and investors.

    Uber has plenty of issues to address regarding the way it classifies and pays its drivers—while Uber drivers have characteristics of both employees and independent contractors, I think many/most state governments will classify their drivers as employees, since usually the default is to assume that someone is an employee unless they squarely meet all the elements of an independent contractor. They also need to have better “hiring” standards—I would recommend a federal background check and fingerprinting, possibly even a DNA test to make sure they’re not a suspect in an open investigation (this is something Uber should want to do as a company to assure its riders of their safety). The market is actually taking care of the liability insurance problem, offering policies that allow for operation as a ride-sharing car (although I’m not aware of the pricing) without invalidating your policy.

    I often wonder why Uber doesn’t get more involved with the creation of insurance and other products and services that its drivers need (with the exception of that possibly icky car financing program they did with Santander), and perhaps its because it has to maintain as much of an arms length relationship as possible to be able to claim that its drivers are independent contractors. However, it would be great if they were able to use their considerable buying power to offer affordable healthcare to their drivers (or maybe those that drive over a certain amount of hours per week). Perhaps the answer here is to create a 3rd class of employee, as the new sharing economy is creating jobs that don’t fit neatly into the employee or independent contractor buckets. Although under the new NLRB rules, wouldn’t it also be very easy for the drivers (even if they’re independent contractors) to start some sort of guild or union, and they could collectively bargain with Uber?

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      Carstaps porzinthonySoapBoxcarWillie
      7/22/15 7:54pm

      Every “job” fits in one of the buckets. Either you’re an employee or not. What’s confusing you is that Uber is trying to make a business on the backs of people they exert control over but claim they aren’t responsible for. It’s called regulatory arbitrage and its not a technical innovation

      The innovation is in the app, and the use of a surge pricing algorithm to determine prices. These are somehwat innovative but not that much since they couldn’t patent them. So the algorithm, which supposedly aids in price discovery. Is a trade secret.

      The other innovation is their ability to charge a percentage of the fare rather than a flat fee, even though they have no marginal costs. They shouldn’t be able to do this, as someone else can undercut them on price by taking a small percentage or charging a flat fee. Or even a more accurate algorithm. But Uber tries to prevent that. By controlling the drivers by requiring them to take calls, so they can’t drive for Uber or Lyft at the same time, and choosing the better fares.

      It’s not like livery cabs didn’t exist in the outer boroughs before Uber came along.

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      ghostandgoblinSoapBoxcarWillie
      7/22/15 9:40pm

      I often wonder why Uber doesn’t get more involved with the creation of insurance and other products and services that its drivers need (with the exception of that possibly icky car financing program they did with Santander)

      Because Uber is an utterly immoral company run by scumbags. Their business model is literally offloading all risk and costs onto others while sucking up rents for themselves. They’re evil. The idea that they will start springing for DNA tests or insurance is utterly laughable.

      It’s why I don’t use ‘em.

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    #NotAllYzermanSam Biddle
    7/22/15 5:10pm

    Whatever, you guys. Uber’s awesome. Traditional yellow cabs are expensive, terrible, equally-street cluttering, and *are more than likely bribing De Blasio’s corrupt ass with a shit ton of money*.

    (*Disclaimer- I base this off of absolutely nothing.)

    TL;DR STOP MAKING ME FEEL BAD ABOUT $3.00 CAB RIDES YOU SAVAGES, THE TIGERS SUCK CANT I ENJOY ONE THING

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      Armageddon T. Thunderbird#NotAllYzerman
      7/22/15 5:22pm

      Maybe a TL:DR isn’t needed after such a short comment.

      TL;DR FART NOISES.

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      ToLiveNDieInNJ#NotAllYzerman
      7/22/15 5:24pm

      You can base it off this :)

      http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/18/nyr…

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    Armageddon T. ThunderbirdSam Biddle
    7/22/15 5:14pm

    This is exactly why I only get my news from poorly mimeographed newsletters typed in remote cabins by bearded recluses seated under a bare light bulb and in front of a rusty typewriter.

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      KomradKickassArmageddon T. Thunderbird
      7/22/15 5:21pm

      Most hipsters just came reading that.

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      Armageddon T. ThunderbirdKomradKickass
      7/22/15 5:31pm

      Original Hipster.

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    Cam/ronSam Biddle
    7/22/15 5:07pm

    “This isn’t a conservative or liberal debate it’s about politicians representing their personal interests and not their community.”

    Say what? Politicians tend to favor anything or anyone who boost their chances of fatter campaign contributions and better chances of re-election? I HAD NO IDEA.


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      DerrenceWashingtonsAnalLubeCam/ron
      7/22/15 5:19pm

      Yup. Hard-hitting opinions from gritty, tough, experienced journalists like Sam Biddle. We’re lucky to have him fighting for us.

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      Cam/ronDerrenceWashingtonsAnalLube
      7/22/15 5:20pm

      I was poking fun at Ashton K’s tweet.

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    Andrew MochulskySam Biddle
    7/22/15 5:53pm

    Apart from Sam Biddle’s desperate nonsense, worth noting: this CNBC lady lives in Manhattan. She’s concerned about outer borough taxi availability in the same sense that she’s concerned about seaweed-harvesting rights in Tuvalu: she’s not, unless she sees a huge payday from Tuvaulu’s seaweed lobby in her future.

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      RobNYCAndrew Mochulsky
      7/23/15 4:24pm

      She’s just using the same schtick Uber used in their tv ads. Won’t someone please think of the sad outerboro people?

      As a bridge and tunnel scum person myself, I’ve been getting by on car services.

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    Vitamin VSam Biddle
    7/22/15 5:09pm

    Uber is hitting this ad campaign HARD. The commercials are all over broadcast TV and Hulu. I’m kinda sick of hearing it. Anyhow, yeah, journalism is dead. Everyone is shilling for someone nowadays. I don’t bother watching the “news” anymore. If it doesn’t happen in the general vicinity of where I’m standing it basically hasn’t happened.

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      ╰(　´◔　ω　◔ `)╯< Woke and BokeSam Biddle
      7/22/15 5:15pm

      Wow. They’re lobbying hard.

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