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It's the same in NYC and Boston. If you can afford a medallion you have enough money to not be a taxi driver.

Honestly, I'm not convinced Uber's fast-and-loose approach is a bad thing. We view disruption as a good thing when it ousts an exploitative private entity -- why is it any different for the government?



> private entity > why is it any different for the government?

For the record, I don't think the medallion system is good or right or fair - it's not. Just pointing out that there are distinctions here and willfully ignoring them would be foolish.


I'm not sure I understand your post -- I'm asking why people view Uber as evil for trying to disrupt industries that are protected by the government but not when a company tries to disrupt private industry.


> I'm asking why people view Uber as evil for trying to disrupt industries that are protected by the government

That's not why people see Uber as evil. It's because they see Uber as brazenly disregarding the laws of their communities, treating their employees badly (including drivers), exploiting people who need rides in bad weather, and competing unfairly.


It is because of the idea that the government is here for public good, because they're not self-interested, whereas private industries are there because of their greed and self-interest, and they harm their customers whenever they can. In reality, nobody would eat at a government-run restaurant when they have an option to eat at private ones, and nobody would buy a government-designed cell phone when they can buy Android/iPhone. Yet government regulation of transportation, healthcare, and education is the right thing, because they are so much less important than our dinners and phones, and we can afford bureaucratic inefficiencies in these industries, right?




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