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QuixoticSoul Multiple issues here.
Eh, I don't understand why people aren't more worried about Amazon. It has grown exceptionally large and powerful
Size alone, is not reason why I should be concerned about a company. It's whether or not they have competition in the marketplace. Even the best intentioned companies run the risk, if they have total control over the market, of sprouting bad people, based on the principle of absolute power, absolutely corrupts.
No person or company, is immune from this principle. This is why I favor government regulation, before problems develop. This is also a weird one, because the champion of less regulation, and free market economics, is making an exception, for the one company, that's run by the person who owns the paper that criticizes him.
and while its core business makes it so they don't have to abuse Chinese children to make a profit (but profit off those who do), their market clout leads to definite drop in competitiveness, etc. And their portion of the gig economy sounds remarkably shitty to be involved in.
Serious question: why do you think Amazon causes a drop in competitiveness? And let's look at Amazon's different businesses, or perhaps the primary businesses.
1. Online direct merchandizing: Amazon does have a very large chunk of the online direct merchandizing space (about 45% of the US market), but its competition has 65% of the market, for a total of about $215B for the competition.
So, it's not lack of competition. Take WalMart for instance, if I recall correctly, they are the biggest retailer in the US (online represents only 4% of total retail in the US). They decreed that anyone who wants to do business with WalMart, is not allowed to host their online platform on AWS.
2. AWS: AWS has a large chunk of the market, but it's not without competition. You have Microsoft Azure, SalesForce Cloud, IBM Cloud, Google Cloud, and these are just the big names. More than 1/3 of the market is small players as well.
There's a reason why AWS is preferred by some. Even former Microsoft execs, who launched their own post Microsoft ventures, switch to AWS, once on their own. It's not just about hosting servers, it's about the 50 or so products/services, AWS offers.
Perhaps this is not the right thread for it, but there's a lot more to AWS than hosting servers. The competition is trying to catch up, with Azure in the lead. Microsoft, this week, announced that they're de-emphasizing Windows, with the head of that division leaving, and the group split into two primary areas: AI and Cloud Services. That's going to fuel Azure's growth.
Even as an engineer, Amazon is a legendarily uncomfortable and unfriendly place to work.
What you're pointing to, is not unique to Amazon. It's what ails the entire tech industry in the US. It's called golden handcuffs. The model is simple. You join a company, get stock options, work 80 hours+ per week, cash out, and hang out at Starbucks.
To be fair to Starbucks, they did a 180 a couple of years ago. They still have the stock options, and large signup bonus, but they changed their review/promotion model to something that's working a lot better for people now. Across the pond, at Microsoft, the new model they've adopted is still as shitty as the previous model.
Plus, like, fuck AWS. Seriously.
See earlier comment
That said, Trump's trial seems personally motivated, and unlikely to succeed. That shit is stupid too.
The thing about Trump, is that he did not mention any of this in his tweets. He's been very consistent in either being ignorant, or lying. I would say the latter, because the tax issue has been explained to him in detail, yet he keeps repeating it.
In most of his previous tweets, he did not separate Amazon/Bezos/Washington Post. That much is clear. In his last tweet, he again mentioned the debunked tax myth, and the other debunked issue: use of the USPS services. That makes his intent clear. He's using the power of the office, to fight his "perceived" political rivals. I say perceived, because Bezos, has not been active politically, in support of a specific party. He does own the Washington Post, but he allows the paper to operate independently, as it should.
It's symptomatic of his narcissism and thin skin, because as a President, Amazon is a success story. He's been crowing about "his" stock market rally. In fact, Amazon alone, is responsible for whopping 12% of the market performance, since his inauguration. In addition, Amazon, is responsible for roughly 5% of employment gains, since his inauguration.
Now, as an individual, I have nothing but complaints about Amazon's presence in my area. I wrote about in SW, a while back, when Amazon started looking for a second headquarters. What I wrote was essentially a warning to cities budding for the Amazon HQ2, and what they should demand, before Amazon sets foot in. Essentially, what Seattle should have done, before Amazon added about an hour to everyone's daily commute.
So, it's not about going the partisan way, in criticizing Trump, it's about the bigger picture, something all of us should do, regardless of politics.
