Octopus Overlords

I still get free shipping . It's just that now they use ox and cart.

Smoove_B wrote: Mon Nov 05, 2018 8:00 pm Contrast that to an article from last week about the overworked USPS carriers:

"Customers demanding six-day-a-week mail delivery and Amazon demanding seven-day-a-week delivery. I feel like I work for Amazon because the physical toll that the job takes on my body is mostly related to packages, and my lack of time off is mostly due to Amazon because of the Amazon Sundays... I feel like my life depends on Amazon."

That whining employee should soon get all the time off he or she wants once Trump gets his way, and the USPS stops milking their greatest cash cow because Trump does not believe in bilateral winning. Amazon is continually expanding their own delivery fleet and I bet it's just a matter of time before the entire USPS gets outsourced to Amazon.

Hypothetically, I can start my own Amazon delivery fleet as Amazon is financing private operators to up 3-10 vans as subcontractors for Amazon delivery, with logos and shirts and everything. Not that I have the capital.

One of our logistics companies did Amazon deliveries for a while. Their rules made doing so profitably very difficult.

https://twitter.com/JamesVGrimaldi/stat ... 7435454469

HQ2 in New York City!

Because housing costs there weren't high enough.

So relieved it's not Boston. The economy is already overheated here. Housing is scarce and expensive, all modes of transportation are overburdened, labor is in short supply. There are already 3,000 Amazon employees here; we did not need 50,000 more.

All I've read about the winners is that Lawn Guyland will be underwater in 30 years, and Crystal City is a hollowed-out place that can use a reason to exist.

Shocking no one...

Amazon Snags $2 Billion in Bribes and Tax Credits From New York and Virginia

Amazon says it will invest $5 billion and create more than 50,000 jobs across the two new locations, with at least 25,000 employees at each of its new corporate campuses, to be located in Virginia's Crystal City and New York's Long Island City. Nashville wins a consolation prize: a new supply chain and logistics center that promises 5,000 jobs in exchange for $102 million in economic incentives.

In New York, Amazon will receive $1.2 billion in refundable tax credits through a state-level economic development program and a cash grant of $325 million that's tied to the construction of new buildings at the Long Island City location over the next 10 years. In Virginia, the state is ponying up $573 million in tax breaks tied to the creation of 25,000 jobs, and the city of Arlington will provide a cash grant of $23 million over 15 years funded by an existing tax on hotel rooms.

Yes, the numbers are staggering—New York state's pledge of $1.52 billion for 25,000 jobs works out to more than $60,000 in taxpayer support per new job created—but Amazon appears to have selected New York and the D.C. area based on more than just how many zeroes local officials agreed to put on the giant cardboard check.

Ingenious...

HQ2: How Amazon Made Governments Do Their Bidding for Free

The Amazon HQ2 search was not about HQ2: it was market research.

The mayors and governors and councilmen and commissioners and local developers of America handed priceless information about their plans, investments, and reserve prices to Jeff Bezos for free.

What could Amazon do with this data?

For starters, Amazon now knows exactly what each area is willing to pay for a shot at some sweet tech investment. This gives the company a nice, fat Rolodex for the next time it needs to open a suite. And we can be sure they'll be jonesing for more treats on the next round.

There is a competition angle as well. Think about what Amazon does. It is an e-commerce company, responsible for almost half of all online retail in the US. This means it is also a logistics company, and may soon specialize further in innovative transport methods. It is a cloud computing provider, powering some 40 percent of application workloads with its global server network. And it is a consumer product company in its own right, offering branded merchandise, gadgets, media, and even credit as part of its sprawling empire.

Amazon is now privy to information about where different municipalities are going to direct investment and infrastructure in the near future. The company can exploit this information.

Use your imagination. Maybe Amazon just happens to purchase a new fulfillment center right around a soon-to-be-developed locale which would see increased demand for Amazon products. Maybe it simply decides to squat on land for a while, knowing that it will soon be smack dab in a hive of activity. A new brick-and-mortar store? They'll have the option. Or maybe knowing where news roads will be built will make it easier for Amazon to plan transit routes. There's profit to be extracted from this data that you and I could not even conceive.

I look forward to the new news roads.

Meh. Cities knew what they were getting themselves into and they thought the ends might be worth the price. Shrug.

Oh no, cities vie for Amazon's favour, and omg, now amazon has all this info. Nefarious!

It's not that I don't agree with the basic premise that Amazon gathered valuable info from cities who just handed it over for free, I just don't see the villainy. Even if they never intended to ever open another HQ and lied about it. Cities are run by grown ups and those grown ups should be weighing the pros and cons of their actions, including what it means if they hand over all this info and don't get the new HQ, because the majority of cities aren't going to get it even if Amazon was completely on the up and up about a new HQ.

If Amazon did this intentionally, that's clever. If it puts the cities or Amazon's competitors at a disadvantage, well cities should have freakin' thought of that before they handed over the keys to the kingdom.

Any article that tells me bad stuff is afoot and then tells me to "imagine all the ways this is bad" tends to get a pass from me. Don't talk in sweeping, general terms and then trail off hoping the reader will think the absolute worst thing ever and then attribute it to the situation. That happens all the time in political articles and it's maddening. Give me real, concrete reasons to support your thesis, or gtfo. That's basic journalism. Not doing that is lazy, dishonest journalism.

There absolutely is data to be mined in the treasure trove handed to Amazon. Data mining is practically technological magic in what you can get out of even basic data. Detailed data is worth it's weight in gold (ok, maybe not the data, but the servers weight!), as advertisers already know. Data mining isn't the devil, although it can feel like sorcery when you are the target of it.

None of what I've said depends on me liking Amazon as a corporation or disliking Amazon as a corporation. And that's with me being suspicious of big companies actions as my default viewpoint.

It may not be a foul on Amazon's part, but it certainly exposes city leaders for the short-term thinking, easily manipulated minor leaguers they are.

I don't condone Amazon duping city leaders, but our laws allow some seriously shady psychological shit in the name of advertising and sales and everyone seems to be pretty ok with that.

If the public can legally be targeted with borderline duplicitous practices, I'm not letting cities off the hook because they got hoodwinked.

Buyer freaking beware, assholes.

So yeah, city leaders make mistakes like the rest of us, and there are consequences. Corporations may not be the enemy, but believe they're your friends at your peril.

I didn't know city planning was such a top-secret business. Bezos just saved himself the effort of looking it up online or attending boring city council meetings.

Jeff V wrote: Wed Nov 14, 2018 10:18 am I didn't know city planning was such a top-secret business. Bezos just saved himself the effort of looking it up online or attending boring city council meetings.

Furthermore, he drove the planning process forward (at least here) by spurring local officials to identify large parcels for future development and evaluate what mix of public and private improvements will make them feasible, and even to cooperate across town boundaries. We already knew that greater Boston needs housing and transit investment. Now we have more specific ideas about how much and where. It wasn't wasted effort.

LawBeefaroni wrote: Wed Nov 14, 2018 9:10 am It may not be a foul on Amazon's part, but it certainly exposes city leaders for the short-term thinking, easily manipulated minor leaguers they are.

Jokes on them too - getting folks in and out of Long Island City and Arlington is *PAINFUL*. Guess they'll just have to get around to building a shadowrun style arcology soon.

Moliere wrote: Tue Nov 13, 2018 8:11 pm Shocking no one...

Amazon Snags $2 Billion in Bribes and Tax Credits From New York and Virginia

Looks like New Yorkers still like this deal, even with some of the bad recent press:

By 56 to 36 percent New Yorkers approve of the recently announced deal between Amazon and New York which grants up to $3 billion in state and city incentives to Amazon in return for the online retailer locating its corporate offices in Queens where it is projected to generate 25,000 jobs, according to a new Siena College poll of New York State registered voters released today. Eighty-five percent of voters say it is either very (60 percent) or somewhat (25 percent) important that New York State strive to count every single New Yorker in the 2020 Census. Equal percentages, 44 percent support and 44 percent oppose broadening the current sports betting law to allow for online sports betting.

“Even as Amazon is said to be reexamining the deal with New York to locate in Queens, by twenty points New York voters approve of the deal,” said Siena College Research Institute director, Don Levy. “Upstate voters are evenly divided but suburban voters strongly approve and in New York City, where some local activists have voiced opposition, voters approve of the deal by 23 points.

link

Defiant wrote: Tue Feb 12, 2019 3:04 pm

Moliere wrote: Tue Nov 13, 2018 8:11 pm Shocking no one...

Amazon Snags $2 Billion in Bribes and Tax Credits From New York and Virginia

Looks like New Yorkers still like this deal, even with some of the bad recent press:

By 56 to 36 percent New Yorkers approve of the recently announced deal between Amazon and New York which grants up to $3 billion in state and city incentives to Amazon in return for the online retailer locating its corporate offices in Queens where it is projected to generate 25,000 jobs, according to a new Siena College poll of New York State registered voters released today. Eighty-five percent of voters say it is either very (60 percent) or somewhat (25 percent) important that New York State strive to count every single New Yorker in the 2020 Census. Equal percentages, 44 percent support and 44 percent oppose broadening the current sports betting law to allow for online sports betting.

“Even as Amazon is said to be reexamining the deal with New York to locate in Queens, by twenty points New York voters approve of the deal,” said Siena College Research Institute director, Don Levy. “Upstate voters are evenly divided but suburban voters strongly approve and in New York City, where some local activists have voiced opposition, voters approve of the deal by 23 points.

link

Aaaannd, it's dead.

And ugly.

Economics lesson for AOC

Amazon didn’t need the subsidies. It just wants it. But isn’t this just an example of the rich getting richer? It is, by $3 billion. But you know who else would have gotten richer? Every New Yorker, by $27 billion. Of course, there are only 20 million New Yorkers, so it really comes out to only around $1,350. If I offered you $1,350, but it meant that a very, very wealthy man who doesn’t need the money would also get rich, would you take that? I’m sure within Amazon they tell employees, “Guys, we had a great quarter, and you’re all going to get a raise,” and some socially conscious employees say, “Wait a minute, if we had a great quarter, and I’m getting a raise, does Jeff Bezos also benefit?” Indeed, he does. “Then I reject my raise.” Yeah, right.
...
Here’s how the math works: We get 25,000 employees. They’re making an average of $150,000 each. That’s $400 million. There’ll probably be more employees than that, and they’re probably going to get paid more than that. It’s a great deal. You’re getting richer too. Is Amazon getting richer? Yeah. That’s fine. You’re getting richer.
...
The most important number is $27 billion. It’s more than a billion dollars a year for 25 years. Don’t you want those billions? We’re going to help Long Island City. If you’re against this Amazon deal, you’re against the billion dollars a year for the rest of us. This is the rest of us versus the activists and, perhaps, one very vocal member of Congress who’s from the neighboring district from Long Island City.

If you were wondering, this site was not even in Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s district. It was in Carolyn Maloney’s district. Maloney has been in office for 26 years. She was steamrolled by the more impassioned Ocasio-Cortez, who has been in office for 43 days. My message to Maloney, who is pro-Amazon but didn’t do anything about it, is about a communications overhaul. I would tell her: Get a new communications director or, better yet, a whole new media staff.

The best responses are from people like AOC talking about where they can "spend" the 3B instead of "giving" it to Amazon.

The better argument would be that the tax subsidies led to immediate revenue elsewhere. So the $3 billion isn't lost.

Remember, we're dealing with situations where companies promise but don't deliver and still keep the subsidies. Taking $3 billion from government to make $27 billion for certain private people is a problem. Too often the public and government bear the cost without benefit.

Yeah, both sides try to simplify it far too much into a sound bite.

That said the quoted gibberish from Moliere's quoted article is gibberish.

Separately, have we already forgotten the complete deception of city governments by Amazon to collect marketing data and provide it to Amazon for free, just on the vague idea that maybe, someday, they might thrown some business their way (new HQ location)? It wouldn't surprise me in the least to find out they *never* intended to locate their HQ there.

And related to that, Amazon is dangling billions in front of Quebec. I wonder if Quebec is going to embarrass itself fawning all over Amazon. Let's watch.

Amazon really has gone to hell. I have company coming tomorrow, and need to have coffee on hand. My pot, a Senseo, uses pods. Those pods aren't sold in any stores anywhere around here anymore, so I ordered them from Amazon on Monday.

It was due to be delivered yesterday. I checked UPS yesterday morning, and they reported that they hadn't received the package. I contacted Amazon early enough to solve the problem, but they insisted that it was on time and would be delivered by evening. When 8PM rolled around, I contacted them again. They insisted this time that it would be delivered today. They then offered me free shipping on my next order (I already have Prime. I already get free shipping.) This morning I check the UPS tracking. No updates. They still don't have the package. I check Amazon.

The order has been set for refund, not shipped. I check my email. No explanation. I check the refund. 2-4 days before the refund comes in and I can even reorder (I paid with Amazon credits, not out of pocket.) So at the earliest, I can reorder Monday or Tuesday to get it here by the end of next week. A week after my friends have come and gone.

And all they had to do was pay attention to what I asked them yesterday morning when I told them that the package wasn't with UPS.

GAH!

Update:

Ordered: 3/25. Should have shipped sooner, but they held it due to an item I ordered the next day in order ship them together. Set to arrive: 3/29.

Yesterday morning:

UPS - we don't have your package.
Amazon - UPS has your package. It will be delivered on time.

Yesterday evening:

UPS - we don't have your package.
Amazon - UPS has your package. It will be delivered tomorrow.
Amazon - (two minutes later, same person) UPS has your package. It will be delivered by April 2nd.

This morning:

UPS - we don't have your package.
Amazon (website) - Your package is returning to Amazon because of one of the following reasons: Damaged in-transit, carrier could not locate your address, or refused by the recipient.
Amazon (rep) - your item is still on the way, but we've refunded it for the inconvenience. You're getting it for free because we suck! Rejoice!
Me - There still isn't any tracking information. The site says it's being returned.
Amazon (rep) - ...
Amazon (rep) - Hey, your package was lost in transit. Tell you what, wait 2-4 days for the refund, and we'll make your 3-day shipping into overnight shipping at no extra charge!
Me - It was ordered for use tomorrow.
Amazon (rep) - Do you want the free shipping?
Me - ...

Oh, and they offered me a $5 credit. Usable only on items shipped and sold by Amazon (which is nothing in my order.)

Blackhawk wrote: Sat Mar 30, 2019 11:35 am Update:

Ordered: 3/25. Should have shipped sooner, but they held it due to an item I ordered the next day in order ship them together. Set to arrive: 3/29.

Yesterday morning:

UPS - we don't have your package.
Amazon - UPS has your package. It will be delivered on time.

Yesterday evening:

UPS - we don't have your package.
Amazon - UPS has your package. It will be delivered tomorrow.
Amazon - (two minutes later, same person) UPS has your package. It will be delivered by April 2nd.

This morning:

UPS - we don't have your package.
Amazon (website) - Your package is returning to Amazon because of one of the following reasons: Damaged in-transit, carrier could not locate your address, or refused by the recipient.
Amazon (rep) - your item is still on the way, but we've refunded it for the inconvenience. You're getting it for free because we suck! Rejoice!
Me - There still isn't any tracking information. The site says it's being returned.
Amazon (rep) - ...
Amazon (rep) - Hey, your package was lost in transit. Tell you what, wait 2-4 days for the refund, and we'll make your 3-day shipping into overnight shipping at no extra charge!
Me - It was ordered for use tomorrow.
Amazon (rep) - Do you want the free shipping?
Me - ...

UPS, huh? You haven't lived until you spend some time in AMZL-US hell. Or "your package has been delivered and your locker code is: null".

It's amazing how much left-hand- doesn't-know-what-right-is-doing goes on at Amazon.

Also, it's a little bit more work but you can make perfectly good coffee with regular old ground beans on a stovetop.

Good solution in a pinch at least.

Indeed, I recommend keeping an AeroPress Coffee/Espresso Maker on hand for such contingencies. It makes outstanding French press coffee from regular ground beans, and you don't have to pay through the nose for proprietary pods and such. It's incredibly simple and easy to use and clean, and only costs $30. You can probably buy one from a local B&M retail store, too (I know Target usually sells 'em).

i'll take a look at that, possibly for sometime in the future (online, though - no Target anywhere around here.)

Anonymous Bosch wrote:Indeed, I recommend keeping an AeroPress Coffee/Espresso Maker on hand for such contingencies. It makes outstanding French press coffee from regular ground beans, and you don't have to pay through the nose for proprietary pods and such. It's incredibly simple and easy to use and clean, and only costs $30. You can probably buy one from a local B&M retail store, too (I know Target usually sells 'em).

This is exactly what I use daily. You can grab a Bed Bath and Beyond coupon to save a bit. If you use good coffee with a burr grinder it can produce one of my favorite cups of coffee that is reminiscent of a high-end Americano. They do wear out, but placing a coffee filter on the plunger reaffirms the seal for a good year longer or more. I rinse off and reuse the filters for at least a few days before replacing and doing that makes the pack that comes with it last a long time.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

Blackhawk wrote: Sat Mar 30, 2019 4:38 pm i'll take a look at that, possibly for sometime in the future (online, though - no Target anywhere around here.)

You don't even need that, just kettle or a pot and ladle. Cowboy coffee.

LawBeefaroni wrote: Sat Mar 30, 2019 7:07 pm

Blackhawk wrote: Sat Mar 30, 2019 4:38 pm i'll take a look at that, possibly for sometime in the future (online, though - no Target anywhere around here.)

You don't even need that, just kettle or a pot and ladle. Cowboy coffee.

Nonsense. I have extensive experience with cowboy coffee. If I go out and grab a handful of driveway gravel and toss it in the pot, then it would count.

It isn't cowboy coffee is you aren't straining the rocks out with your teeth while you drink it.

Well, I wishlisted an aeropress. It looks from the videos that I've seen like it uses a lot of coffee grounds per cup, though, which would increase the effective cost quite a bit.

Blackhawk wrote: Sat Mar 30, 2019 7:20 pm Well, I wishlisted an aeropress. It looks from the videos that I've seen like it uses a lot of coffee grounds per cup, though, which would increase the effective cost quite a bit.

The Aeropress is discussed in this coffee thread. It does use a lot of grounds for the amount of coffee you get. Still cheaper than pods.

You can get refillable pods if you want to save money that way.

I have a cold brewer carafe in my kitchen cabinet. I may give it another try if I ever dig it up.

Kasey Chang wrote:You can get refillable pods if you want to save money that way.

They are also a good way to reduce the ridiculous amount of waste generated by one-use pods.

I may look into which ones are actually functional.

Blackhawk wrote: Sat Mar 30, 2019 11:35 am Update:

Ordered: 3/25. Should have shipped sooner, but they held it due to an item I ordered the next day in order ship them together. Set to arrive: 3/29.

Yesterday morning:

UPS - we don't have your package.
Amazon - UPS has your package. It will be delivered on time.

Yesterday evening:

UPS - we don't have your package.
Amazon - UPS has your package. It will be delivered tomorrow.
Amazon - (two minutes later, same person) UPS has your package. It will be delivered by April 2nd.

This morning:

UPS - we don't have your package.
Amazon (website) - Your package is returning to Amazon because of one of the following reasons: Damaged in-transit, carrier could not locate your address, or refused by the recipient.
Amazon (rep) - your item is still on the way, but we've refunded it for the inconvenience. You're getting it for free because we suck! Rejoice!
Me - There still isn't any tracking information. The site says it's being returned.
Amazon (rep) - ...
Amazon (rep) - Hey, your package was lost in transit. Tell you what, wait 2-4 days for the refund, and we'll make your 3-day shipping into overnight shipping at no extra charge!
Me - It was ordered for use tomorrow.
Amazon (rep) - Do you want the free shipping?
Me - ...

I just went through this and more earlier this month.

The first time I ordered. They cancelled my order as "out of stock, unavailable" on the day it was supposed to arrive. (This was through the marketplace so Amazon is not directly to blame. However, because the order was cancelled (not by me) I couldn't even leave negative feedback on the seller)

The second time I went through exactly what you did purchasing directly from Amazon. I had to escalate three times in a chat session to find out what was going on and basically to get the order cancelled so I could order a third time. It took three days to get the charges cleared. When they canceled the order they did not place it again and offer overnight the new order. They said they would comp my account with a $20 gift card for the inconvenience (which mostly would have gone to overnight shipping costs). They did not.

Also the price of the order went up on all three orders.

All it means for me, really, is that now I weigh shopping around in to my purchases. My time was worth one stop shopping at Amazon assuming their prices and simplicity were all that mattered but if their reliability is in question, then price and simplicity become part of a three factor decision making.

Blackhawk wrote: Sat Mar 30, 2019 7:12 pm

LawBeefaroni wrote: Sat Mar 30, 2019 7:07 pm

Blackhawk wrote: Sat Mar 30, 2019 4:38 pm i'll take a look at that, possibly for sometime in the future (online, though - no Target anywhere around here.)

You don't even need that, just kettle or a pot and ladle. Cowboy coffee.

Nonsense. I have extensive experience with cowboy coffee. If I go out and grab a handful of driveway gravel and toss it in the pot, then it would count.

It isn't cowboy coffee is you aren't straining the rocks out with your teeth while you drink it.

or you could always consult Rowan Atkinson:


[youtube][/youtube]

Amazon's delivery quality is certainly getting tossed aside.

I hope you can find a person at Amazon to report that to. That is completely unacceptable.