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vitaminbandit

68 karma · joined December 13, 2016

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vitaminbandit··on Once a Model City, Hong Kong Is in Trouble
Absolutely adorable. Thank you for that.
vitaminbandit··on Once a Model City, Hong Kong Is in Trouble
This article takes an economic situation and tries to frame it as a political one. Hong Kongers don't care about the ideological differences between mainland China and HK, they care about the staggering inequality and loss of economic mobility in their once vibrant city.

Chinese money is flooding into Hong Kong and it's all being parked into real estate. This has sent real estate prices skyrocketing and far outside the reach of ordinary citizens. As a secondary effect, Hong Kong elites are now parking all their money into real estate with the expectation that the Chinese capital flight continues to drive up real estate prices. Real estate is the best investment available in Hong Kong right now. Bar none.

With all their capital tied up in real estate, the elites don't invest in startups or R&D. No increases in productivity, no new jobs, no gains for the average citizen in a city that grows more expensive by the day. This is why Hong Kong is in decline. This is why Hong Kongers takes to the streets. It's not a backlash towards conflicting political ideology, they just want the Chinese and their damn money out.

vitaminbandit··on Once a Model City, Hong Kong Is in Trouble
You know, just today I was thinking about how positively Rockefeller Center has impacted my life.
vitaminbandit··on Once a Model City, Hong Kong Is in Trouble
You heard it here first, non-Westeners. ZERO
vitaminbandit··on My own private basic income
Ah when all else fails, go for the ol' ad hominem.
vitaminbandit··on Ask HN: As an employee of a company, how do you assess its health?
And extremely fit people sometimes go on diets. But generally, someone on a diet isn't likely to be extremely fit.
vitaminbandit··on A Slow-Motion Trainwreck Facing the Meal-Kit Industry
Ok, so your product is a niche fitness meal plan rather than a traditional meal plan. Your primary objection to existing options was that "The food is very meh." You can see how that can be confusing.
vitaminbandit··on A Slow-Motion Trainwreck Facing the Meal-Kit Industry
Uh, what exactly is your competitive edge? You've framed the problem but haven't provided any details on how using customer data and preferences solves it.

Isn't the most accurate customer preference data the actual real-time decision that the customer makes at the time of order?

vitaminbandit··on Apple's decision on “tips” may undermine its prospects in China
Idiotic play by Apple.

First, Apple's losing market share in the Chinese smartphone market and it's not simply due to cheaper phones. Apple was/is primarily a status brand, but what's the status advantage in having an $800 iPhone vs an $800 Samsung? There isn't one and everyone is starting to recognizes that.

Second, WeChat runs everything in China. Every. Thing. It's your WhatsApp, your Skype, your Yelp, your OpenTable, your Venmo, etc. Every cent that Apple tries to take out of WeChat "tips" is not a cent that it's snatched from another faceless corporation, it's a cent out of the hands of individuals who rely on those tips. It's money leaving the hands of individuals and going into the largest market-cap company in the world. Is it a surprise that people are going to be pissed?

Apple should be careful not to overplay its hand. China has already banished major American companies (Google + Facebook) for not playing by its rules and it could easily position itself to do the same to Apple.

vitaminbandit··on Bitcoin Bubble
No, you can't send it because you wouldn't have enough to cover the transaction fee.
vitaminbandit··on A late workout shouldn’t hinder your sleep. It could even help
I don't buy it.

Exercise increases cortisol, cortisol increases wakefulness. Cortisol is, in fact, the very hormone that makes you wake up in the morning.

vitaminbandit··on What role did autism play in human evolution?
Don't romanticize what is a huge disability for a great many people. And you're not doing anyone any favors by mentioning the intelligence of chickens to make what you think is a point.
vitaminbandit··on [dead]
Very cool. What do you consult on?
vitaminbandit··on How Badly Must a C.E.O. Behave Before Pay Is Clawed Back?
Agreed. Should have been done by a paleontologist.
vitaminbandit··on Ask HN: Ex-Founder. Should I take lowball buyout offer?
What leverage do you have?
vitaminbandit··on Facebook employs hundreds of young Filipinos to remove offensive material
Who are they taking advantage of? The workers who make more than they would otherwise?

Or are they taking advantage of the Americans that they don't employ?

vitaminbandit··on Ask HN: What information to ask for when doing a contract?
Some people will only bill for invalid bug reports (wasting contractor's time). Others will allow X hours free support. Personally, I just charge as I normally would.
vitaminbandit··on Ask HN: What information to ask for when doing a contract?
Not directly answering your question, but giving you some general advice since this is your first contract:

1) Make the other party agree that all IP belongs to you until the final invoice is paid. This is often your only leverage should your client decide to stop paying you.

2) Send weekly updates VIA EMAIL to your client on what you've done. Do not do this over Slack or any other communications medium that they control. If they decide to revoke your access on Slack, you will no longer have access to those logs and no proof.

3) Set terms for post-contract support. Under no circumstances should you be providing unlimited free support after the contract is over.

vitaminbandit··on Too many prisons make people worse
> That's a logical fallacy (Simpson's Paradox). It could be the case that when you condition on each neighborhood, the per capita murder rate is lower than Britain's, but the overall per capita murder rate is higher.

One, phrase your statement properly. You intended to compare neighborhood to corresponding neighborhood between the two countries. Not "Britain's".

Two, as others have mentioned. You have no basis for invoking Simpson's Paradox.

> Explain how Simpson's Paradox works here. Explain how it can be mathematically possible for each state/city/etc to have a lower murder per capita than the national murder per capita. Use concrete numbers as examples.

Three, how does your example satisfy my comment?

Four, I know Simpson's Paradox. I also know the difference between knowing something and knowing the name of something.

vitaminbandit··on Too many prisons make people worse
Explain how Simpson's Paradox works here. Explain how it can be mathematically possible for each state/city/etc to have a lower murder per capita than the national murder per capita. Use concrete numbers as examples.

Spoiler: it isn't mathematically possible.

vitaminbandit··on Uber Is Using AI to Charge People as Much as Possible for a Ride
>> Thanks to complaints from Uber drivers, who were beginning to suspect that the ridesharing company was charging customers more with "upfront pricing" but not paying drivers more in turn

It sounds like they aren't paying "my peers" more. They're just charging more and taking a bigger cut.

vitaminbandit··on The Heroin Business Is Booming in America
I think you've made some excellent points, but you can't simultaneously deny the existence of negative societal externalities caused by individual drug use while acknowledging that the usage of drugs (including alcohol, tobacco, and excessive eating) imposes a cost onto society in the form of [just one example] increased healthcare spending.

I think my particular stance is that the war on drugs is a massive failure that props up prices, lowers quality, and destroys the lives of many young non-violent "offenders." This is probably quite similar to your position, but I think the primary difference is that I would not advocate lifting the prohibition against drugs like heroin, which can supposedly turn a person into an addict within a few sessions.

I think my position is ultimately something like this:

Should the state lock someone up for using heroin? No, it's their money and their body.

Should the state lock someone up for using heroin and then committing a crime? Yes, because of the crime.

Would the legalization of heroin cause an increase in number of people committing crimes? Yes, because of its addictive potential and the extremely difficult/potentially fatal withdrawals.

Whether or not that would actually be the case, I can't say.

vitaminbandit··on The Heroin Business Is Booming in America
While I [would like to] agree that people have the right to put whatever they want into their own bodies, we cannot deny that there are negative societal externalities caused by individual addictions. Everything ranging from something as abstract as an increase in national healthcare spending to something as palpable as coming home to find that your house has been burglarized by addicts.
vitaminbandit··on US teen died after drinking caffeine too quickly, coroner says
Caffeine is in just about every soda available. Kids start consuming it very young, whether the parents realize it or not.
vitaminbandit··on Ask HN: Can you use AI/ML to match software engineering resumes with jobs?
It already is largely automated. The vast majority of resumes received by large companies will never be read by a human.

https://www.themuse.com/advice/beat-the-robots-how-to-get-yo...

vitaminbandit··on Ask HN: Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
You've done great, man. Very admirable.
vitaminbandit··on Robinhood stock trading app confirms $110M raise at $1.3B valuation
>"Always invest what you cant afford to lose"

Is this a typo?

vitaminbandit··on Uber CEO Plays with Fire
I'm referring to OP's diagnosis of "Malignant Narcissism", not NPD.
vitaminbandit··on Uber CEO Plays with Fire
Did you just diagnose someone with a condition that isn't found in the DSM and then cite your own website as a source of evidence?
vitaminbandit··on Ask HN: I'm inheriting an incompetent dev team. What the hell do I do?
Looks like you're right. I didn't realize that most student don't get exposed to Big O until their first real algorithms course.
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