Another proposed step on Seattle's road to serfdom, courtesy of Seattle city council member Kshama Sawant.
Notice, what is really going on here is that more efficient services, such as Uber, are taking business away from traditional taxis and Sawant wants to "protect" the traditional taxi business by her mad takeover proposal. She also, btw, wants "the people" to takeover Boeing.
And Amazon, too.
ReplyDeleteJust the same old road....
ReplyDelete1) Companies make a deal with government, essentially regulation for market protection or even requiring people to purchase the product or service.
2a) New companies surface with new business models that escape the regulation and can offer lower prices.
and/or
2b) Government demands services that cost more than the companies are allowed to charge or people will pay.
3) Government takes over the industry because the free market failed.
Technically most big cities run the taxi industry but in a more of a fascist sense. The taxi medallion system basically gives the market big taxi companies while the small guys and gypsy cabs are typically shut out if not outright harassed by the government thugs in blue. I wonder how long until someone in Seattle gets pissed at a city hall meeting.
ReplyDeleteWoman, could you please take your Communism somewhere else? I hear North Korea has an opening for you.
ReplyDeleteAccording to wikipedia, there are 9 members on the council. I see lots of headlines about Sawant, but are the citizens in danger of her getting her way? Also, I found this surprising:
ReplyDeleteAs of September 28, 2010, Councilmembers Sally Bagshaw, Richard Conlin, Nick Licata and Mike O'Brien earn $117,533.52 annually. Councilmembers who were re-elected in 2011, Tim Burgess, Sally J. Clark, Jean Godden, Bruce Harrell, and Tom Rasmussen, will earn an annual salary of $119,976.48, effective January 1, 2012. Their salary will remain at this level through December 31, 2015.
Among the nation's 40 largest cities, only Los Angeles pays its council more — $149,000, according to a survey by The Seattle Times. Seattle ranks 23rd in population, according to the Census Bureau.
I don't think "earn" is the correct verb there.
Delete"I don't think "earn" is the correct verb there."
DeleteAgreed. "Theft" is the word I'm looking for.
I think that Seattle [directly] taking over taxis in the city is a great idea. Just make sure that Ms. Sawant is appointed as chairman of the taxis oversight committee or to the taxi board. Make her the person responsible for them. Like Mentcken said, "Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want, and deserve to get it good and hard." Seattle deserves it, good and hard.
ReplyDelete