
Scooter mechanic, once homeless, says cheap rides now help him pay rent - CaliforniaKarl
https://www.sfchronicle.com/business/article/Scooter-mechanic-once-homeless-says-cheap-rides-13448873.php
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locklock
I feel like I've read this article plenty of times, just replace the scooter
company with a rideshare company or a delivery company or anything else from
the "gig economy." And after a few months or years, how many of these jobs
remain stable and well-paying, if they still exist at all? Of course it's good
that someone who was homeless is given a chance to reenter the workforce but
looking to these incredibly volatile startup/gig economy companies to provide
that seems like, after all the recent examples, a bad idea.

~~~
stevehawk
Well, this is the eternal debate between job and career, right? If a
government "creates jobs" by investing in infrastructure then it's the same
problem. When that road is paved or that park is built then those people face
the same dilemma. So we just hope that the economy itself keeps going in a
manner that we can have things cycle and people can switch jobs as needed.

~~~
mixmastamyk
It's a "stepping stone" job, not meant as a destination.

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PedroBatista
Didn't we saw the same narrative when Uber was trying to capture the market?

The emotional stories about a long lost relative found on Facebook?

The single mom who started writing a blog and thanks to the wonders of AdSense
she's rich?

and the small mom & pop store who found huge success with Groupon? ( How that
went out? eh?)

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skybrian
At this point, the prevailing mood is so negative that some positive stories
going against the grain seem useful, to help shade black-and-white thinking
with a bit of grey. Occasionally the actions of tech companies do have
positive effects.

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elemeno
Now that's got to be a Submarine Article, with the repeated mentions of one
company and the underlying narrative of Scooter companies being job providers.
Simultaneously a job ad and an attempt to sway public and/or local government
option in favour of scooter companies (or at the least, this scooter company)
remaining in SF.

Otherwise, it's hard to believe that 'person gets a blue collar job' is
something that an article would be written about...

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CPLX
Stop trying to make the word "submarine" happen. It's not going to happen.

[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18259355](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18259355)

~~~
PhasmaFelis
In your linked post, you seem to be saying "Everyone knows that positive
articles are usually PR, you don't need to point it out."

Everyone _doesn 't_ know that. _You_ know it because you were an ad exec.
Educating people who aren't yet sufficiently cynical about stealth advertising
is a valuable goal.

~~~
ubercow13
Yes, if anything they should be the one trying to spread the knowledge. The
fact that they are doing the opposite leads me to suspect their comments are
Submarine Comments of the PR industry.

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sandworm101
"The scooter technician gig didn’t exist a little more than a year ago. It’s
an example of how shifts in business models, social norms and consumer habits
spurred by startups can spawn new kinds of work, defying predictions that new
technologies will destroy more jobs than they create."

Ya... people riding scooters once drove expensive cars fixed by mechanics
earning far more than 22$/hour. Manpower is the only real cost in any
organization. So any new tech or business model that is cheaper than an old
system (ie scooters instead of taxis) almost certainly means someone somewhere
is earning less money than under the old scheme.

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Angostura
> It’s an example of how shifts in business models, social norms and consumer
> habits spurred by startups can spawn new kinds of work, defying predictions
> that new technologies will destroy more jobs than they create.

Hands up everyone who predicted that scooter companies would destroy jobs. No-
one? thought not.

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ConfusedDog
I like the idea, but there are a lot of issues apparently. I went to visit a
friend in Baltimore, and he told me rental scooters are being vandalized all
the time for no reason. I also read an article that the accident rate and ER
visits due to scooters went really high with this business. No idea if it's
the quality of the scooters or what.

I haven't tried one yet myself. I want to after this insurance season...

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tick_tock_tick
When they first showed up in SF people chucked dozens of em right into the
bay.

~~~
ConfusedDog
Those people are crazy... acting like territorial animals...

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JustSomeNobody
A shame $45K/year only "helps" him pay his rent.

Edit: Article says he paid in full.

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markovbot
>Forbidden

>You don't have permission to access /business/article/Scooter-mechanic-once-
homeless-says-cheap-rides-13448873.php on this server.

is anyone else getting this 403 error?

EDIT: Comment is at -1 now and i'm still getting the error. Could the
downvoters comment on why this comment is worthy of downvotes?

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jressey
Ironically, as a couple assholes buzzed by me today on the sidewalk in
Atlanta, I imagined one of the people running me over and the scooter company
fighting to eschew liability once I made a legal claim.

People are gonna die on these things and kill other people if they haven't
already. These scooters have no place in my city.

~~~
kinkrtyavimoodh
Would it be okay if they were required to drive in bike lanes? I think public
safety concerns such as the ones you raised are very important, but I feel
slightly baffled at what I perceive as an almost curmudgeonly, visceral
dislike for them :(

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linksnapzz
In many cities, two-wheeled vehicles are required to _not_ be on the sidewalk.
I'll bet parent is equally annoyed by being almost run down by bicyclists
while on the sidewalk....

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JoeAltmaier
All true. Bicycles can go 20mph, vs pedestrians' 2mph. Not a good fit.
Scooters have to be even worse (heavier, worse collisions).

~~~
C1sc0cat
Faster than that I have see bikes going more than 20 in London - and blasting
through junctions at a read light.

