Only fellow cabbies will understand that adding a mere part of one additional shift is enough to upset your personal schedule, because that is what is happening to me since I took over YC 478. Since my night driver calls off on Mondays, my brief insertion in the cab impacts my entire week, requiring more sleep, and most importantly for what you are reading, a day to two day delay in composition and publication. I tell passengers and others that I don't have time to drive taxi, that I am too busy but since it is my sole income source for the moment, here I am, and continuing until I am somewhere else. Of course that means the ending of this blog but I never meant it to be a personal version of an expanding universe. I have had enough of the taxi world. I am ready for another planet.
Uber Driver Report Continued
About 3 weeks ago my Uber friend called me back, again on a Saturday night. While I find it all interesting, it is difficult to take down notes while negotiating a taxi and make money doing it. He did want me to say that his inspection took place immediately, finding my report about delays erroneous. He did say that he remained without a valid for-hire license. What is interesting about this is that I got my permanent renewal license last week, meaning it took about 3 weeks total to process all of the paperwork, check out my background and issuing my license. Why then is it taking 5 or more months (if not an entire year) for Uber and Lyft to finish their for-hire license processing? I have alerted the City regulatory authorities. We will see how they respond, or not. My friend did report that his minimum Uber fare translates down to $2.45 per trip, which means if he gets 5 minimum fares in one hour he nets $12.25 cents. Of course the usual Seattle taxi minimum is $5.00, equaling times five fares into $25.00, meaning Uber drivers are making half of what I do.
Another part of that slow Uber processing are the background checks. Per the incident in Kalamazoo, Michigan, it means that even if the guy's record had not been clean, how quickly would they have had known? Months, years? What clearly Uber and Lyft appears to be doing is putting drivers on the streets before they know they are qualified to be there. Does this mean that every Uber and Lyft driver is an unanswered question? I will let you answer that.
BYG No More
Yellow, once known as the BYG (Broadway-Yellow-Greytop) Co-op, is now known as Yellow Fleet. This is a new legal definition.
To Tow or Not
When a friend's broken down Yellow Cab was left sitting at the train station, I discovered a new, unbeknown reality: drivers must now pay for their own tow and deduct the cost from their lease. Two potential problems with this, especially if you don't have a credit card. One, you must have the cash on hand, and two, a simple tow within Seattle is okay but what happens if, after a long fare, say to Portland, Oregon, your taxi breaks down? The driver would have to pay for a $500-1000. or more tow. This arrangement has to be given more thought. At the very least everyone should be receiving a fleet-wide notification.
Also this sounds like a new contractual agreement. Something needs to be put into writing.
Puget Sound Dispatching Direct Depositing
A new arrangement PSD is beginning March 1st is having our processed charges deposited directly into our back accounts. Two important questions. Can a driver, uncomfortable with giving out personal info, opt out? The other is what happens if PSD somehow loses your deposit, with your bank never receiving the transaction? What is the PSD backup plan? It would make sense to ensure that some safeguards are in place.
Last Tuesday Meeting With Teamsters 117
Last Tuesday I met with Teamsters officials about their opposition to HB 2733, a bill that might have lowered taxi insurance rates state-wide. They said it it was a matter of not lessening local authority.
One area I think we have some disagreement is the Seattle mayor's recent Uber decisions. Teamsters said Mayor Murray saved the local taxi industry by getting Uber to drop their state-wide referendum drive switching regulatory authority from the City of Seattle and King Country to the State of Washington. It is difficult to see how what once was a limit of 250 Uber cars to what is now estimated to be 10-14 thousand Uber operators as a victory for local taxi? If you needed to understand just why Yellow has dissolved into its present state, you have your answer.
One strong positive was the reopening of lines of communication and cooperation. This will be necessary if and when we, the drivers and single owners of the Seattle and King County taxi industry form some version of taxi union/taxi trade association. Teamsters support and backing and experience will be essential toward our ultimate success.
I Saw It
When coming back from Mexico, I saw the new Yellow taxi lot at 107th and Meyers Way South from the air as we made our final landing approach. It was hard to miss, all those bright yellow cars.
New Call Center
They are getting better. Yes, small mistakes at times do occur but they are eager to get it right. Clearly they are taking a "crash-course" in everything taxi. I can tell they are quickly learning both the taxi good and the bad. Good luck and best wishes to them.
Poverty
The older gentleman waved to me from his apartment building doorway. "I am hungry," he said, wanting to go to a restaurant at 12th S. and S. Jackson. He asked how much and I told him a million dollars but finally agreed to five dollars. Arriving, he tightly gripped his 20 dollars bill, not letting it go until I gave him his fifteen dollars in change. I showed him my wallet and he made a snatching motion. We both smiled. Poverty! and the human condition.
Concerning Taxi, Is Everything Backward?
When I took over YC 478, I bought new set of snow tires for the winter season. Instead of having them installed by the tire shop, I had the Yellow shop put them on. Well I am shocked to report that I was told, when taking 478 in to have the tires rotated and getting an alignment, that the tires were put on backward, causing some unnecessary tread wear. I have yet to determine whether my warranty has been destroyed by the mistake. Why is always the question. Why did the simple become something far different? Nothing like taxi is all I can say.
Tow Truck Sharks Swimming in Seattle
Sunday I got this call to the 1400 block of Alaskan Way (the waterfront) and found these distressed folks (visiting from Moses Lake) who just had their car towed away. Having parked in front of the Seattle Antique Market, they failed to heed the signs that Gary's Westside Towing would haul their car away. An important note is that Seattle's Puget Sound waterfront is both a popular tourist destination and undergoing many construction projects thus limiting parking. People like the country bumpkins I took to the tow yard have no idea about the predatory towing environment prevalent in Seattle over the past 30 years, shocked to discover that Westside Towing would, could and can charge them $435.00 for their errant parking violation. Listening to their pleading over the telephone, I was outraged by what I was hearing. The towing dispatcher even told them, in a fit of anger, that fine, they could wait until Monday to pick up their car. I called 911 and requested that the SPD meet us at the tow yard. First told that this was a "civil matter," I was put on hold, then amazingly the police non-emergency officer hung up on me. All this was complicated by the fact they didn't have a credit card with them to pay the outrageous fee, never thinking that something like this could happen to them.
Long and short of all this is that I had to take them to a Western Union office where they waited for the money to be wired. Once they had the cash in hand they called me back and I took them back once again to the tow yard. I told them to file a complaint with the City of Seattle. What appears to be true is that multiple cars were towed at about the same time Sunday afternoon. Something about this doesn't appear to be right. Are they using spotters to call the towing company? Are the signs not clearly displayed? Is this tow truck ballet occurring every weekend? I personally will contact the City of Seattle and tell them to check it out. Somebody has to take some responsibility for this. This is no way to treat Seattle visitors. Even if the tourist dumbbells are parking in the wrong places, how is this response reasonable? Is this how this so-called famously liberal city treats the innocent, because, believe me, if you had met the two sisters and their children, that is how you would have described them, as innocents. Criminals? The only thing criminal is how they were treated. The tow truck dispatcher told me they were operating totally within legal parameters. I believe him but that still doesn't make right and just and moral, taking advantage of simple mistakes. Where is the malice is all I can say?
Tuesday, February 23, 2016
Wednesday, February 17, 2016
Arriving In "Strangeville"----No Place I Want To Be
I always hate ending up in Strangeville" even though all the signs say I am actually somewhere in Seattle but I know that can't be true. You won't find Strangeville on any map because its boundaries are mobile, ever moving yet omnipresent. And what is frustrating is the complete lack of warning that you somehow made that fatal turn into unfriendly environs, instantaneously finding myself in my own private and personal "Twilight Zone". What isn't a mystery is not knowing that I am there, always too aware---the jangling keys to this invisible city rattling in my head, my cab having entered a web entangling body and mind. "I am trapped, I am trapped," and do what I will, I can't get out. Stepping on the accelerator and flying down Aurora not doing any good, the entire city transformed into a greater metropolitan Strangeville. It is a helpless feeling.
It was Saturday afternoon, about 3:10 PM, and I was elated, coming back downtown after a fourth airport run of the day. Knowing the Portland train was scheduled for sometime between 3:30-4:00 PM I was focused upon King Street Station when I was offered a Beacon Hill bell. Accepting it, the 4100 block of 15th Avenue South, I noted the commentary that "their cellphone was dying and they would meet me in front." This somewhat cryptic message alerted me to the possibility that this fare might turn out bad and it did, never finding anyone despite searching both the front and alley. And of course no one answered my telephone calls. What bothered me was wasting time better used getting to the train.
After throwing away ten minutes I resolved to head for the train only to get another call, close by but on a "confusing" part of 25th South that was just off Cheasty Blvd South, a lovely wood-lined street running behind the Jefferson Golf Course. Upon my arrival I found my passenger waiting, an older gentleman holding a walker on his way back home to the Center Park housing complex.. Heading south down S. Andover I ran directly into the street I needed but requiring an odd maneuver which, alerted to oncoming traffic, I quickly turned north, avoided all the raging cars but nearly damaging one of my new tires. This is when I knew beyond any doubt I was in Strangeville. And once getting him to his building it was confirmed because he had only $3.00 for a seven dollar fare. "I had to give my doctor $200.00 today," he said in explanation. His debit card declined. Yes, yes, not-so-lovely Strangeville, blowing my entire hour for three bucks!
If needing further confirmation, I got it when the next call, a $57.00 HopeLink run, was a no-show. Like too many of these, the client never showed up for their appointment , and of course the company (Yellow, etc.) are never told.
After that disappointment I decided to head up north and fill up 478 at the Arco AM-PM featuring $1.75.09 per gallon gasoline. After that I languished for another hour, getting a nine dollar fare, all adding up to 12 dollars for three anguished hours. What I have found is, is that no fun is allowed in Strangeville, a very Calvinist community, your head in some kind of mobile stockade.
And how did I finally escape? Not sure other than I grimly proceeded forward, pushing against the invisible envelope until finally breaking free. I knew I was back in Seattle after this happened while sitting second up on the Pier 69/Victoria Clipper stand.
A young woman comes out the door but instead of getting into the first taxi, she steps aside. Then an older woman comes out and asks the driver,"Can you take a card?" and jumps in his cab. Then the other passenger, someone I thought wasn't taking a cab that night, walks ups to me and asks me if I know where the Sea-Tac La Quinta is? Answering in the affirmative, off we go, a pleasant conversation ensues, becoming one of those fares where, if wanting to take it further, the possibility appeared to be there. Anyway, it was a good fare and a nice interaction, Strangeville now far behind in the rear view mirror. But why did she not get into the first cab? I think I know the answer. Wherever that cabbie was heading, it was to Strangeville and no place else. God help him!
And that, my friends, is a destination I wouldn't wish upon anyone, even an Uber driver! Who need the heartbreak and anguish? Not anyone I know, that 's for sure!
It was Saturday afternoon, about 3:10 PM, and I was elated, coming back downtown after a fourth airport run of the day. Knowing the Portland train was scheduled for sometime between 3:30-4:00 PM I was focused upon King Street Station when I was offered a Beacon Hill bell. Accepting it, the 4100 block of 15th Avenue South, I noted the commentary that "their cellphone was dying and they would meet me in front." This somewhat cryptic message alerted me to the possibility that this fare might turn out bad and it did, never finding anyone despite searching both the front and alley. And of course no one answered my telephone calls. What bothered me was wasting time better used getting to the train.
After throwing away ten minutes I resolved to head for the train only to get another call, close by but on a "confusing" part of 25th South that was just off Cheasty Blvd South, a lovely wood-lined street running behind the Jefferson Golf Course. Upon my arrival I found my passenger waiting, an older gentleman holding a walker on his way back home to the Center Park housing complex.. Heading south down S. Andover I ran directly into the street I needed but requiring an odd maneuver which, alerted to oncoming traffic, I quickly turned north, avoided all the raging cars but nearly damaging one of my new tires. This is when I knew beyond any doubt I was in Strangeville. And once getting him to his building it was confirmed because he had only $3.00 for a seven dollar fare. "I had to give my doctor $200.00 today," he said in explanation. His debit card declined. Yes, yes, not-so-lovely Strangeville, blowing my entire hour for three bucks!
If needing further confirmation, I got it when the next call, a $57.00 HopeLink run, was a no-show. Like too many of these, the client never showed up for their appointment , and of course the company (Yellow, etc.) are never told.
After that disappointment I decided to head up north and fill up 478 at the Arco AM-PM featuring $1.75.09 per gallon gasoline. After that I languished for another hour, getting a nine dollar fare, all adding up to 12 dollars for three anguished hours. What I have found is, is that no fun is allowed in Strangeville, a very Calvinist community, your head in some kind of mobile stockade.
And how did I finally escape? Not sure other than I grimly proceeded forward, pushing against the invisible envelope until finally breaking free. I knew I was back in Seattle after this happened while sitting second up on the Pier 69/Victoria Clipper stand.
A young woman comes out the door but instead of getting into the first taxi, she steps aside. Then an older woman comes out and asks the driver,"Can you take a card?" and jumps in his cab. Then the other passenger, someone I thought wasn't taking a cab that night, walks ups to me and asks me if I know where the Sea-Tac La Quinta is? Answering in the affirmative, off we go, a pleasant conversation ensues, becoming one of those fares where, if wanting to take it further, the possibility appeared to be there. Anyway, it was a good fare and a nice interaction, Strangeville now far behind in the rear view mirror. But why did she not get into the first cab? I think I know the answer. Wherever that cabbie was heading, it was to Strangeville and no place else. God help him!
And that, my friends, is a destination I wouldn't wish upon anyone, even an Uber driver! Who need the heartbreak and anguish? Not anyone I know, that 's for sure!
Tuesday, February 9, 2016
The Demise Of "Little Fish": Yellow Dispatch Changes Colors To A Desert Hue
As the old 74 South Hudson Street cab lot was dismantled, and ultimately, moving to both South 128th Street (Puget Sound Dispatch offices) and the new Yellow Co-op (BYG) lot at South 107th and South Meyers Way, the question upon everyone's lips was just when would PSD transfer its dispatch operations to its new location? Upon my return from Mexico, I found out the answer.
Las Vegas, Nevada is the new location, meaning ninety percent of dispatch personnel was layed-off, dispatch in total minus Hopelink and school-run operations shifted to a Las Vegas call-center that has been dispatching for San Francisco Yellow for the past eight months. Ostensibly the justification for this shocking development (months in the planning) was the failure of dispatch call takers to properly do their job despite a recent two dollar per hour pay raise. While there can be no argument that dispatch held some serious problems, I never saw it as something completely broken, efficient management and communication correcting very resolvable issues.
Do I think it was necessary to do something as dramatic as what was decided upon? No, but it speaks to me what I see as a pervasive panic overtaking both Yellow and the American taxi industry on the whole. Having slept-walked for decades, the taxi industry has suddenly awakened to a newer and scarier reality. Like the sleepy-heads they are, instead of giving themselves time to fully awaken they are walking into walls and bruising their noses. Ouch!
But if you are puzzled by the posting title I will explain, which might also add credence to the PSD position that it was necessary to toss the louts out on their heads. The weekend prior to my Mexico trip I was belled-in to an early morning fare at 2401 2nd Avenue, which is a sushi restaurant. The passenger name provided to me was "Little Fish." When I got there a big, burly gentleman conducting some kind of "street business" took offense when I called out for Mister Little Fish. "Rufus," he growled, "my name is Rufus!" Calling dispatch, the then night supervisor told me the name change had been put out as a kind of joke. That I didn't find this funny goes, as is said, without saying, and neither did Rufus. In short, too many of the now dismissed call takers were simply incorrigible, doing anything they wanted. While missing friends like Jeffery and Fred, all I can say is that collectively, what happened to them is their own fault. Little fish indeed! Stupid! Working along that line of thinking, they must have thought they were "big fish" in their small dispatcher sea. Now, surprise, surprise to have suddenly found themselves flopping helplessly upon a wooden pier, waiting to be filleted. Such is reality when you think a professional task is some kind of game. It just isn't and never will be.
And what about the new Las Vegas crew? Well, the jury is definitely out. Already we are seeing omitted telephone numbers and short tempers. Why? Two plausible reasons could be, one, knowing nothing about the city of Seattle and King county and its streets, addresses, etc. And two, none of them have ever driven a cab, meaning they have no conception of who they are talking to and our inherent reality. As I always say, it takes five years for someone to become an actual cabbie and not just some mystified person driving with a meter and top-light. I think it will ultimately work out for the best but by nature I am inherently optimistic. Or again, maybe I am just delusional, just like every other garden variety cabbie. Funny I never noticed that my bedroom walls are padded. Gonna have to think about just why that is!
Las Vegas, Nevada is the new location, meaning ninety percent of dispatch personnel was layed-off, dispatch in total minus Hopelink and school-run operations shifted to a Las Vegas call-center that has been dispatching for San Francisco Yellow for the past eight months. Ostensibly the justification for this shocking development (months in the planning) was the failure of dispatch call takers to properly do their job despite a recent two dollar per hour pay raise. While there can be no argument that dispatch held some serious problems, I never saw it as something completely broken, efficient management and communication correcting very resolvable issues.
Do I think it was necessary to do something as dramatic as what was decided upon? No, but it speaks to me what I see as a pervasive panic overtaking both Yellow and the American taxi industry on the whole. Having slept-walked for decades, the taxi industry has suddenly awakened to a newer and scarier reality. Like the sleepy-heads they are, instead of giving themselves time to fully awaken they are walking into walls and bruising their noses. Ouch!
But if you are puzzled by the posting title I will explain, which might also add credence to the PSD position that it was necessary to toss the louts out on their heads. The weekend prior to my Mexico trip I was belled-in to an early morning fare at 2401 2nd Avenue, which is a sushi restaurant. The passenger name provided to me was "Little Fish." When I got there a big, burly gentleman conducting some kind of "street business" took offense when I called out for Mister Little Fish. "Rufus," he growled, "my name is Rufus!" Calling dispatch, the then night supervisor told me the name change had been put out as a kind of joke. That I didn't find this funny goes, as is said, without saying, and neither did Rufus. In short, too many of the now dismissed call takers were simply incorrigible, doing anything they wanted. While missing friends like Jeffery and Fred, all I can say is that collectively, what happened to them is their own fault. Little fish indeed! Stupid! Working along that line of thinking, they must have thought they were "big fish" in their small dispatcher sea. Now, surprise, surprise to have suddenly found themselves flopping helplessly upon a wooden pier, waiting to be filleted. Such is reality when you think a professional task is some kind of game. It just isn't and never will be.
And what about the new Las Vegas crew? Well, the jury is definitely out. Already we are seeing omitted telephone numbers and short tempers. Why? Two plausible reasons could be, one, knowing nothing about the city of Seattle and King county and its streets, addresses, etc. And two, none of them have ever driven a cab, meaning they have no conception of who they are talking to and our inherent reality. As I always say, it takes five years for someone to become an actual cabbie and not just some mystified person driving with a meter and top-light. I think it will ultimately work out for the best but by nature I am inherently optimistic. Or again, maybe I am just delusional, just like every other garden variety cabbie. Funny I never noticed that my bedroom walls are padded. Gonna have to think about just why that is!
Tuesday, February 2, 2016
Carelessness Or Simple Lack Of Comprehension?---Analysis February 2016
As many of you know, I began my taxi journey way back in the autumn of 1987, and if I had to use one word to describe what I have seen overall, it is "mess," as "in a mess" or "it's a complete mess," the kind of mess you would see splattered upon your kitchen floor if you tripped while taking the freshly baked lasagna from the oven to the dining room table. Splat! your nice shiny linoleum floor now covered with red sauce and creamy ricotta. "Oh my god!" your waiting family would exclaim, "What a mess you've made of our dinner! Which of course pretty sums up what I have witnessed from everyone involved all these too many years, creating an untenable mess and expecting someone else to clean it up.
Another way of portraying our shared dilemma, and how we got there, is I think best represented by Pieter Bruegel's great painting from the year 1568, "The Blind Leading the Blind." Based upon Biblical New Testament book passages from Luke 6:39-42 and Matthew 15:10-20, it is a very moving picture of six blind men stumbling over each other, the lead walker having fallen over a small wall. Not knowing it was part of the permanent collection in the Mueso Nazionale di Capodimonte in Naples, I too had stumbled upon it in November 2002, happy to have encountered such a terrific painting.
And that is essentially what I have witnessed since 1987--- a succession of City, County, Port, State officials and elected representatives bumping and colliding into all and anyone concerned with taxi and the various motorized passenger transportation companies in Seattle and the state of Washington. While Bruegel's painting is beautiful, what has been happening is anything but, a confused feral menagerie kicking and biting and shouting and screaming down the bureaucratic aisles. That anything has been gained and achieved in any direction is a major miracle. Functional? What could that mean? Functional in this context simply does not exist. Using my favorite term again, it is a mess!
Just how did this dysfunctional tradition begin? What are its roots? If it is carelessness, then why are the people entrusted with the public good irresponsible, not interested in carrying out assigned tasks? If that has occurred, which I believe I have seen in action, for instance the blotched creation of the Seattle & King County Taxi Advisory Commission, it appears to be a matter of having little to no respect for the individuals served.
But for the most part, what I see is, not carelessness as the primary cause but instead, more precisely, a complete lack of real and cognitive comprehension regarding what they are doing, and why they are supposed to be doing it. As many who have read my blog over the past five years, examples of incompetence from both the regulators and the business operators is seemingly endless, the mistakes an unabated river flowing and flooding over commonsense. Originally my intention with this essay was to list yet another series of stupid and destructive issues and decisions plaguing us, but really, what is the point, with one crisis being replaced by yet another blunder.
Again, most importantly, why can't the parties involved see that they have failed to functionally operate in their appointed sphere of operation? Do they have invisible blind folds preventing them from moving forward, bias, not reason dictating and controlling their internal decision making processes? Whatever it is, the cat or dog (or whatever animal you choose) is biting its own tail and going round and round and round the governmental and taxi (or flat-rate & TNC) tree. What has been passing as functional and operational is obviously not working. How can we make the people involved think and see?
If I had Darwin's ghost standing next to me, I would ask him why is it taking so long for the human animal to understand what is directly in front of its nose? I am afraid he would respond that it is all a matter of evolution, that we simply must wait for this animal to evolve, to develop more completely another part of the brain. Unfortunately, we who are alive now, in real time, don't have the luxury to watch the decades and centuries slowly past. By that juncture we will have all reached our natural ends. While death is a kind of final summation, it is not the required answer. We need a better response, and quickly, before our expiration is untimely and unnecessary, beyond and past all resolutions; true comprehension required now, and forever.
Adios from San Miguel de Allende
Sad to say that in less than 48 hours I will be leaving what has been a pleasant stay. Yesterday the temperature was nearly 80 degrees F., and today's early morning heat suggests that it will be even hotter. Again, especially for those unfamiliar with Mexico, or are just inexperienced travelers, San Miguel and area is an excellent place to begin. Sunday we embarked on a two bus journey to view the "pena de Bernal (rock of Bernal)" located in the small town of San Sebastain Bernal. The monolith, 65 million years old and 1, 421 feet high, is the largest freestanding rock in the world. This natural tower is just one of many good reasons to come here.
Another reason of course are the area thermal springs. Each morning we board a local bus (fare about 75 cents) and travel early to the La Gruta spa, a very non-pretentious hot springs where paying a mere $7.00 (120 pesos) at today's exchange rates allows one to soak the entire day (7:00 AM-5:00 PM). Check out the cave or grotto and splash around in the misty pool. I guarantee you will love it!
After the baths, take the about one kilometer walk to the village of Atotonilco and visit the most amazing Sanctuary (church) of Atotoncilco. The interior wall and ceiling paintings are unmatched anywhere. Art lovers will be pleased. And now, since you are hungry, eat some delicious tacos made with freshly made tortillas from the local stalls. They will cost you between 10-15 pesos. Viva Mexico!
Again, adios, amigos!
Another way of portraying our shared dilemma, and how we got there, is I think best represented by Pieter Bruegel's great painting from the year 1568, "The Blind Leading the Blind." Based upon Biblical New Testament book passages from Luke 6:39-42 and Matthew 15:10-20, it is a very moving picture of six blind men stumbling over each other, the lead walker having fallen over a small wall. Not knowing it was part of the permanent collection in the Mueso Nazionale di Capodimonte in Naples, I too had stumbled upon it in November 2002, happy to have encountered such a terrific painting.
And that is essentially what I have witnessed since 1987--- a succession of City, County, Port, State officials and elected representatives bumping and colliding into all and anyone concerned with taxi and the various motorized passenger transportation companies in Seattle and the state of Washington. While Bruegel's painting is beautiful, what has been happening is anything but, a confused feral menagerie kicking and biting and shouting and screaming down the bureaucratic aisles. That anything has been gained and achieved in any direction is a major miracle. Functional? What could that mean? Functional in this context simply does not exist. Using my favorite term again, it is a mess!
Just how did this dysfunctional tradition begin? What are its roots? If it is carelessness, then why are the people entrusted with the public good irresponsible, not interested in carrying out assigned tasks? If that has occurred, which I believe I have seen in action, for instance the blotched creation of the Seattle & King County Taxi Advisory Commission, it appears to be a matter of having little to no respect for the individuals served.
But for the most part, what I see is, not carelessness as the primary cause but instead, more precisely, a complete lack of real and cognitive comprehension regarding what they are doing, and why they are supposed to be doing it. As many who have read my blog over the past five years, examples of incompetence from both the regulators and the business operators is seemingly endless, the mistakes an unabated river flowing and flooding over commonsense. Originally my intention with this essay was to list yet another series of stupid and destructive issues and decisions plaguing us, but really, what is the point, with one crisis being replaced by yet another blunder.
Again, most importantly, why can't the parties involved see that they have failed to functionally operate in their appointed sphere of operation? Do they have invisible blind folds preventing them from moving forward, bias, not reason dictating and controlling their internal decision making processes? Whatever it is, the cat or dog (or whatever animal you choose) is biting its own tail and going round and round and round the governmental and taxi (or flat-rate & TNC) tree. What has been passing as functional and operational is obviously not working. How can we make the people involved think and see?
If I had Darwin's ghost standing next to me, I would ask him why is it taking so long for the human animal to understand what is directly in front of its nose? I am afraid he would respond that it is all a matter of evolution, that we simply must wait for this animal to evolve, to develop more completely another part of the brain. Unfortunately, we who are alive now, in real time, don't have the luxury to watch the decades and centuries slowly past. By that juncture we will have all reached our natural ends. While death is a kind of final summation, it is not the required answer. We need a better response, and quickly, before our expiration is untimely and unnecessary, beyond and past all resolutions; true comprehension required now, and forever.
Adios from San Miguel de Allende
Sad to say that in less than 48 hours I will be leaving what has been a pleasant stay. Yesterday the temperature was nearly 80 degrees F., and today's early morning heat suggests that it will be even hotter. Again, especially for those unfamiliar with Mexico, or are just inexperienced travelers, San Miguel and area is an excellent place to begin. Sunday we embarked on a two bus journey to view the "pena de Bernal (rock of Bernal)" located in the small town of San Sebastain Bernal. The monolith, 65 million years old and 1, 421 feet high, is the largest freestanding rock in the world. This natural tower is just one of many good reasons to come here.
Another reason of course are the area thermal springs. Each morning we board a local bus (fare about 75 cents) and travel early to the La Gruta spa, a very non-pretentious hot springs where paying a mere $7.00 (120 pesos) at today's exchange rates allows one to soak the entire day (7:00 AM-5:00 PM). Check out the cave or grotto and splash around in the misty pool. I guarantee you will love it!
After the baths, take the about one kilometer walk to the village of Atotonilco and visit the most amazing Sanctuary (church) of Atotoncilco. The interior wall and ceiling paintings are unmatched anywhere. Art lovers will be pleased. And now, since you are hungry, eat some delicious tacos made with freshly made tortillas from the local stalls. They will cost you between 10-15 pesos. Viva Mexico!
Again, adios, amigos!
Wednesday, January 27, 2016
More Uber & Lyft---The Story Has Only Become Stranger
Before I continue my examination of what King County and the City of Seattle is permitting the TNC (Uber and Lyft) industry to do, I first must greet you once again from the sunny environs that is San Miguel de Allende. Today we ( I am here with "she-who-can't-be-named") walked alongside a desert river, napping on a sandbank on a 75 degree F. afternoon. Prior to that we soaked in a thermal hot springs, the healing minerals telling me yet again that taxi driving is doing very little toward enhancing my physical health, hot water quickly addressing a sore and battered and fatigued body.
There are many Americans living here in San Miguel and area. Last night dinner cost us $8.00 including tip. There are many good reasons to make San Miguel and other parts of Mexico your permanent residence. If circumstances allow I plan on living a least one full year in Mexico City. I love that crazy, overcrowded city. Very exciting place. Saint Petersburg, Russia is another city I would enjoy living in. Maybe someday I'll ask Putin for a personal invitation. I am sure he would be very accommodating. I believe he is still hosting the American gentleman who caused a small stir in that once secretive world of cyber-spying and listening in upon your neighbors.
In my last posting I said that Uber (and also Lyft) were paying for their driver's (theoretical independent contractors) for-hire licenses. This point and others were confirmed by an email I received from King County's current Licensing Manager for KC's Records & Licensing Division, sum and part of King County's Department of Executive Services. If he doesn't know, no one does. The following quotes, I swear upon a stack of taxi regulations, are verbatim and completely accurate.
For those new to our local industry, King County serves as the City of Seattle's partner, jointly administrating licensing services for taxis, flat-rate for-hires; and now, the TNC (Uber and Lyft) companies. Some of what he said explained why my friend has not received his required "for-hire" driving license even though many months have now passed since his first moment behind the Uber wheel. What I found astonishing is that King County and the City of Seattle have, for unknown reasons, parcelled out some of their administrative duties to the TNC industry itself. This direct quote confirms this---"the burden of administrating the testing, training and background checking fall upon the TNC."
To me, and it might seem that way to you too, sounding like the proverbial "putting the fox in charge of the hen house." Now I cannot say for sure that King County and the City of Seattle have totally abrogated their regulatory responsibilities to Uber and Lyft but given my friend's situation, there appears to be a suggestion of poor oversight. Just who is paying attention to all of the finer details?
And concerning for-hire fees, another quote addresses this issue---"To the driver, they are still subject to the same requirements as if they visit our office for licensing except for payment of the fees which are covered by the TNC they are on-board with. It is a different fee structure but fees are paid by the TNC." One thing absent from this is any mention of driver reimbursement to Uber or Lyft. Again I would suggest that this might put in question the separation that must exist in this type of vendor/independent operator arrangement.
What interests me, and I hope intrigues you, is just how did this kind of new and unique regulatory arrangement come into existence? We in the taxi industry certainly do not hold this kind of freedom. Also please understand that Uber and Lyft are new entrants into the transportation sector, with no previous operational track record proving they are capable and reliable partners. Just how they earned this kind of trust is a mystery; and something worthy of an answer.
One question I have concerns TNC insurance coverage. Is the TNC driver covered even though they do not have a legal for-hire license, all the while operating thousands of passenger-carrying miles without one? If I was driving for either Uber or Lyft I would seek clarification ASAP. There is also some question, due to classification, on who holds ultimate regulatory jurisdiction over TNC companies. Is the responsibility local, or is it held by the State of Washington?
I predict that this potential bureaucratic "can of worms" will explode into a gigantic controversy if and when a serious accident occurs. The lawyers might certainly have fun figuring this all out. Could it even come to where we have the State Attorney General defending private companies in a court of law? That is too bizarre of a situation to comprehend! But given what I have been discovering, I am beginning to believe anything might be true. Many politicians, City, County, State composed in part of what we now see manifested in front of us today. You may have heard that "too many cooks spoil the broth." Just who wrote this confounding recipe?
And again I wonder why the local media outlets haven't been more interested in this wild tale. Just how did this all come about? I know an answer exists. The only question is, just who will answer it? Again, is this only the beginning of the story, with many chapters yet to be reported? Maybe.
Adios, amigos. Stay dry!
There are many Americans living here in San Miguel and area. Last night dinner cost us $8.00 including tip. There are many good reasons to make San Miguel and other parts of Mexico your permanent residence. If circumstances allow I plan on living a least one full year in Mexico City. I love that crazy, overcrowded city. Very exciting place. Saint Petersburg, Russia is another city I would enjoy living in. Maybe someday I'll ask Putin for a personal invitation. I am sure he would be very accommodating. I believe he is still hosting the American gentleman who caused a small stir in that once secretive world of cyber-spying and listening in upon your neighbors.
In my last posting I said that Uber (and also Lyft) were paying for their driver's (theoretical independent contractors) for-hire licenses. This point and others were confirmed by an email I received from King County's current Licensing Manager for KC's Records & Licensing Division, sum and part of King County's Department of Executive Services. If he doesn't know, no one does. The following quotes, I swear upon a stack of taxi regulations, are verbatim and completely accurate.
For those new to our local industry, King County serves as the City of Seattle's partner, jointly administrating licensing services for taxis, flat-rate for-hires; and now, the TNC (Uber and Lyft) companies. Some of what he said explained why my friend has not received his required "for-hire" driving license even though many months have now passed since his first moment behind the Uber wheel. What I found astonishing is that King County and the City of Seattle have, for unknown reasons, parcelled out some of their administrative duties to the TNC industry itself. This direct quote confirms this---"the burden of administrating the testing, training and background checking fall upon the TNC."
To me, and it might seem that way to you too, sounding like the proverbial "putting the fox in charge of the hen house." Now I cannot say for sure that King County and the City of Seattle have totally abrogated their regulatory responsibilities to Uber and Lyft but given my friend's situation, there appears to be a suggestion of poor oversight. Just who is paying attention to all of the finer details?
And concerning for-hire fees, another quote addresses this issue---"To the driver, they are still subject to the same requirements as if they visit our office for licensing except for payment of the fees which are covered by the TNC they are on-board with. It is a different fee structure but fees are paid by the TNC." One thing absent from this is any mention of driver reimbursement to Uber or Lyft. Again I would suggest that this might put in question the separation that must exist in this type of vendor/independent operator arrangement.
What interests me, and I hope intrigues you, is just how did this kind of new and unique regulatory arrangement come into existence? We in the taxi industry certainly do not hold this kind of freedom. Also please understand that Uber and Lyft are new entrants into the transportation sector, with no previous operational track record proving they are capable and reliable partners. Just how they earned this kind of trust is a mystery; and something worthy of an answer.
One question I have concerns TNC insurance coverage. Is the TNC driver covered even though they do not have a legal for-hire license, all the while operating thousands of passenger-carrying miles without one? If I was driving for either Uber or Lyft I would seek clarification ASAP. There is also some question, due to classification, on who holds ultimate regulatory jurisdiction over TNC companies. Is the responsibility local, or is it held by the State of Washington?
I predict that this potential bureaucratic "can of worms" will explode into a gigantic controversy if and when a serious accident occurs. The lawyers might certainly have fun figuring this all out. Could it even come to where we have the State Attorney General defending private companies in a court of law? That is too bizarre of a situation to comprehend! But given what I have been discovering, I am beginning to believe anything might be true. Many politicians, City, County, State composed in part of what we now see manifested in front of us today. You may have heard that "too many cooks spoil the broth." Just who wrote this confounding recipe?
And again I wonder why the local media outlets haven't been more interested in this wild tale. Just how did this all come about? I know an answer exists. The only question is, just who will answer it? Again, is this only the beginning of the story, with many chapters yet to be reported? Maybe.
Adios, amigos. Stay dry!
Wednesday, January 20, 2016
Uber Expose! TNC Driver Reveals All to Taxi Reporter
Saturday night I talked with an old taxi colleague about his Uber experiences. Having left Yellow out of disgust after struggling to make a living, he is now driving under both Uber's and Lyft's transportation banners. A faithful reader of this blog, he called me because he thought he could be helpful with both demystifying and penetrating Uber's official opaque persona as only an insider could. While it would be a journalistic stretch to say he presented unlocked secrets from Uber's hidden vaults, what he told me was clarifying, confirming much of what I suspected.
When preparing (in my mind) to write this particular entry, I thought it would have been fun to have a sensational headline or heading, something akin to perhaps modern newspaper's most famous front page headline dating from April 15th, 1983, the New York Post's "Headless Body In Topless Bar," something that made copy editor Vincent Mussetto a celebrity, and worthy of of a New York Times obituary. Mussetto died this past June 2015. One heading I thought appropriate was "Naked Uber Operators Drive Uncovered," which, while somewhat accurate, is still misleading. The National Enquirer I am not. While there could be, or are nude TNC drivers, I have yet to personally see one, and if I did, I would quickly avert my eyes, having seen enough of life already, I don't want to see any more than I have to.
But yes, what I was told is truly both revelatory and alarming, especially when it seems that the City Of Seattle and King County are allowing Uber and Lyft drivers to pilot their vehicles minus for-hire licenses and inspected cars. I say this because my colleague said his for-hire driving license had been expired for a month prior to signing up for Uber, and even now, months later, he has yet to receive either his new for-hire license or his vehicle certification. While this appears to be due to a Seattle/KC processing backlog, it seems that Uber and Lyft are letting their "independent business operators" to drive before they are officially vetted and processed. I believe this explains the various media reports as to why some current TNC drivers have later been found to have a criminal history that went unnoticed. Part of Seattle/King County's for-hire licensing process is a FBI background/personal history check. If you are forcing thousands of new TNC drivers into an already burdened system, you are going to have what is happening to my acquaintance, months' long delay confirming all personal details. Can you imagine what will happen if any of these new TNC drivers have a serious accident before it is officially known they can legally operate? At this point this can only seen as a mutual failure, a failed collaboration between private sector and local government. It is impossible that Seattle/KC licensing doesn't know this is occurring. They are the ones advancing the applications and paperwork forward, so if they don't know, then the question is, why not? As usual, there appears to be a double-standard, one for taxis and one for everyone else.
When I took over YC 478, I had to confirm my transference of ownership, insurance, etc before I could legally operate, placing it on the road under my possession. In other words, common-sense safeguards were in place protecting the passenger public. That this kind of public guarantee is even temporarily short- circuiting on Uber/Lyft's behalf, is scary. Again, why do I have to certify everything is legal and proper before moving an inch down the roadway while TNC operators appear to be able to drive untold thousands of miles without official and known sanction? If this is true, it is both dangerous and crazy.
As known previously, Uber does provide a million dollars in insurance coverage. Both my colleague and a local insurance broker confirmed this, saying that the coverage kicks in only after accepting an app-generated (dispatched) call. In between, your car is only covered by your private carrier, which forbids commercial activity. Any operation by TNC drivers minus app-dispatched calls is strictly taboo, it just can't be done. But clearly many TNC drivers have taken advantage of their new familiarity, with many potential customers completely unaware of the risk involved. If Uber and Lyft haven't already instituted a policy instantly de-authorizing anyone operating independently of the app, it should be done immediately. It also brings into question just what kind independent monitoring Uber and Lyft are doing. Are they operating their multi-billion dollar operations solely on trust? Difficult to believe that can be true
Interestingly, my colleague feels that Uber/Lyft are less moral than the taxi industry, which says much about a degeneration of trust between company and operator. He said that they are definitely the "Evil Empire." His comment backs up what another taxi buddy told me recently after I surprisingly found him back in an Orange Cab, this after seeing him six months ago driving his own Uber car. When asking why he switched back to taxi, he said, "Uber are cheaters!" As we were side by side at a traffic signal, our conversation was interrupted by the light changing, preventing any further elaboration. I'll just take his word for it. Just as my conversation Saturday night confirms, there is something "rotten in TNC Denmark." I do wonder if the Port of Seattle commissioners fully understand this when considering all of Sea-Tac transportation options. I certainly hope so, is all I can say.
I end by sharing a poem by the British writer Robert Graves (1895-1985), which all writers, especially this one, me, can identify with. And you might be interested in knowing that next week's entry will originate from San Miguel del Allende, Mexico. Since I have been back, I have driving extra shifts, covering at times for Tom and Raymond when they call off 478. It has been rough upon my 62 year old body. I am more than ready to soak in San Miguel's local thermal mineral springs. My poor back! Adios until next week.
The Reader Over My Shoulder
You, reading over my shoulder, peering beneath
My writing arm---I suddenly feel your breath
Hot on my hand or my nape,
So interrupt my theme, scratching these few
Words on the margin for you, namely you,
Too-human shape fixed in that shape:---
All the saying of things against myself
And for myself I have well done myself.
What now, old enemy, shall you do
But quote and underline, thrusting yourself
Against me, as ambassador of myself,
In damned confusion of myself and you?
For you in strutting, you in sycophancy,
Having played too long this other self of me,
Doubling the part of judge and patron,
With that of creaking grind-stone to my wit.
Know me, have done: I am a proud spirit
And you for ever clay. Have done.
When preparing (in my mind) to write this particular entry, I thought it would have been fun to have a sensational headline or heading, something akin to perhaps modern newspaper's most famous front page headline dating from April 15th, 1983, the New York Post's "Headless Body In Topless Bar," something that made copy editor Vincent Mussetto a celebrity, and worthy of of a New York Times obituary. Mussetto died this past June 2015. One heading I thought appropriate was "Naked Uber Operators Drive Uncovered," which, while somewhat accurate, is still misleading. The National Enquirer I am not. While there could be, or are nude TNC drivers, I have yet to personally see one, and if I did, I would quickly avert my eyes, having seen enough of life already, I don't want to see any more than I have to.
But yes, what I was told is truly both revelatory and alarming, especially when it seems that the City Of Seattle and King County are allowing Uber and Lyft drivers to pilot their vehicles minus for-hire licenses and inspected cars. I say this because my colleague said his for-hire driving license had been expired for a month prior to signing up for Uber, and even now, months later, he has yet to receive either his new for-hire license or his vehicle certification. While this appears to be due to a Seattle/KC processing backlog, it seems that Uber and Lyft are letting their "independent business operators" to drive before they are officially vetted and processed. I believe this explains the various media reports as to why some current TNC drivers have later been found to have a criminal history that went unnoticed. Part of Seattle/King County's for-hire licensing process is a FBI background/personal history check. If you are forcing thousands of new TNC drivers into an already burdened system, you are going to have what is happening to my acquaintance, months' long delay confirming all personal details. Can you imagine what will happen if any of these new TNC drivers have a serious accident before it is officially known they can legally operate? At this point this can only seen as a mutual failure, a failed collaboration between private sector and local government. It is impossible that Seattle/KC licensing doesn't know this is occurring. They are the ones advancing the applications and paperwork forward, so if they don't know, then the question is, why not? As usual, there appears to be a double-standard, one for taxis and one for everyone else.
When I took over YC 478, I had to confirm my transference of ownership, insurance, etc before I could legally operate, placing it on the road under my possession. In other words, common-sense safeguards were in place protecting the passenger public. That this kind of public guarantee is even temporarily short- circuiting on Uber/Lyft's behalf, is scary. Again, why do I have to certify everything is legal and proper before moving an inch down the roadway while TNC operators appear to be able to drive untold thousands of miles without official and known sanction? If this is true, it is both dangerous and crazy.
As known previously, Uber does provide a million dollars in insurance coverage. Both my colleague and a local insurance broker confirmed this, saying that the coverage kicks in only after accepting an app-generated (dispatched) call. In between, your car is only covered by your private carrier, which forbids commercial activity. Any operation by TNC drivers minus app-dispatched calls is strictly taboo, it just can't be done. But clearly many TNC drivers have taken advantage of their new familiarity, with many potential customers completely unaware of the risk involved. If Uber and Lyft haven't already instituted a policy instantly de-authorizing anyone operating independently of the app, it should be done immediately. It also brings into question just what kind independent monitoring Uber and Lyft are doing. Are they operating their multi-billion dollar operations solely on trust? Difficult to believe that can be true
Interestingly, my colleague feels that Uber/Lyft are less moral than the taxi industry, which says much about a degeneration of trust between company and operator. He said that they are definitely the "Evil Empire." His comment backs up what another taxi buddy told me recently after I surprisingly found him back in an Orange Cab, this after seeing him six months ago driving his own Uber car. When asking why he switched back to taxi, he said, "Uber are cheaters!" As we were side by side at a traffic signal, our conversation was interrupted by the light changing, preventing any further elaboration. I'll just take his word for it. Just as my conversation Saturday night confirms, there is something "rotten in TNC Denmark." I do wonder if the Port of Seattle commissioners fully understand this when considering all of Sea-Tac transportation options. I certainly hope so, is all I can say.
I end by sharing a poem by the British writer Robert Graves (1895-1985), which all writers, especially this one, me, can identify with. And you might be interested in knowing that next week's entry will originate from San Miguel del Allende, Mexico. Since I have been back, I have driving extra shifts, covering at times for Tom and Raymond when they call off 478. It has been rough upon my 62 year old body. I am more than ready to soak in San Miguel's local thermal mineral springs. My poor back! Adios until next week.
The Reader Over My Shoulder
You, reading over my shoulder, peering beneath
My writing arm---I suddenly feel your breath
Hot on my hand or my nape,
So interrupt my theme, scratching these few
Words on the margin for you, namely you,
Too-human shape fixed in that shape:---
All the saying of things against myself
And for myself I have well done myself.
What now, old enemy, shall you do
But quote and underline, thrusting yourself
Against me, as ambassador of myself,
In damned confusion of myself and you?
For you in strutting, you in sycophancy,
Having played too long this other self of me,
Doubling the part of judge and patron,
With that of creaking grind-stone to my wit.
Know me, have done: I am a proud spirit
And you for ever clay. Have done.
Friday, January 15, 2016
14 White Shirts
Doing the laundry this week I counted 14 white shirts, all of them a legacy from when Seattle/King County required all taxi drivers to emulate your favorite waiter by wearing black pants and white button down shirts. In fact my white shirt inventory probably numbers over 25 shirts, including many short sleeved shirts for Seattle's sunnier days. But since the big compromise local industry made with Seattle Mayor Ed Murray, we can now wear any shirt type or color we might desire, along with the slacks of your choice. And what did Murray receive in trade for this stylistic compromise?
Why 14,000 Uber operators translating into a potential permanent crippling of the local taxi industry. If it sounds like a pretty stupid trade-off, you are correct. How dumb are all of us Seattle cabbies? Look at that dog pacing down the street or the cat lounging on a porch---all much smarter than the average local cabbie. The only thing we have common with these superior creatures is that they too don't need uniforms conducting their usual business. So if you think not wearing a white shirt is a grand achievement, think again. You are wrong!
White shirts, no shirts, it is all pathetic, our local industry caught with its black pants down! If you don't believe it, you should have attended Tuesday's Port of Seattle Commission meeting where speaker after humbled speaker begged for forgiveness, seeking official clemency and relief. Yes, yes they said, we know we have been bad, and are bad, but please, let us continue our airport tasks, we all promise to do better, so much better.
Mixed in with that was bleating from the opposition, "We are better than they are. Let us prove it, sharing in the riches! Please, please!" Yes, it was quite a performance from the majority of participants. If I had been sitting on the commissioner's side of the room, what would have been my honest assessment? Heaven help us! My God! Heaven help us! Or something like that.
The history here is year after year I heard complaints concerning white shirts, resentful for being unfairly forced to wear obviously clean shirts; that it just wasn't reasonable or respectful the way we are treated by Seattle's regulators. What this lament always communicated to me was the taxi industry's congenital inability to either focus upon or comprehend our real issues. And look where that attitude has taken us. Disaster! Taking us to are own death and destruction and numbing paralysis. Think this is hyperbole? It isn't.
This morning I was greeted by a text stating that the deposed dispatch manager, the same individual rumored to have given his wife our package fares, is also responsible for the previous manager's death from a heroin overdose. And that one of BYG's (Yellow Co-op) senior managers is in part responsible for the 1994 Rwandan genocide. I must point out that the person in question is from Ethiopia. Another question about this is simple geography. To get to Rwanda, depending on routes taken, you have to cross over countries as various as South Sudan, Kenya and Uganda. I remember Bill Clinton once taking responsibility for the Rwanda mass murder but he is not a taxi driver though he has certainly at times acted like one. Hey brother Bill, ready to jump in the back seat?
In short I have had enough of the kind of nonsense passing as "business-as-usual" in the taxi industry. This upcoming weekend I will again witness too many driver's simple inability to move cars forward at the train or boat. It never ends but look at the bright side, everyone! This weekend you can wear your replica Seahawk jersey and cheer on your football heroes. Rah Rah! Go team Go! Watch all those cabbies fumble the taxi ball! Hurrah! Hurrah! Oh hell! we just scored a touchdown for the other team! How in the world did we manage that!? Yes that's right, just how did we do it? Utter madness, my taxi friends, utter madness! That is the explanation.
Two haiku regarding "white."
The winter leeks
have been washed white---
how cold it is!
Basho (1644-1694)
Before the white chrysanthemum
the scissors hesitate
a moment.
Buson (1716-1783)
I love the inherent silence contained in these poems. No noise. Only beauty in the stilled moment.
Why 14,000 Uber operators translating into a potential permanent crippling of the local taxi industry. If it sounds like a pretty stupid trade-off, you are correct. How dumb are all of us Seattle cabbies? Look at that dog pacing down the street or the cat lounging on a porch---all much smarter than the average local cabbie. The only thing we have common with these superior creatures is that they too don't need uniforms conducting their usual business. So if you think not wearing a white shirt is a grand achievement, think again. You are wrong!
White shirts, no shirts, it is all pathetic, our local industry caught with its black pants down! If you don't believe it, you should have attended Tuesday's Port of Seattle Commission meeting where speaker after humbled speaker begged for forgiveness, seeking official clemency and relief. Yes, yes they said, we know we have been bad, and are bad, but please, let us continue our airport tasks, we all promise to do better, so much better.
Mixed in with that was bleating from the opposition, "We are better than they are. Let us prove it, sharing in the riches! Please, please!" Yes, it was quite a performance from the majority of participants. If I had been sitting on the commissioner's side of the room, what would have been my honest assessment? Heaven help us! My God! Heaven help us! Or something like that.
The history here is year after year I heard complaints concerning white shirts, resentful for being unfairly forced to wear obviously clean shirts; that it just wasn't reasonable or respectful the way we are treated by Seattle's regulators. What this lament always communicated to me was the taxi industry's congenital inability to either focus upon or comprehend our real issues. And look where that attitude has taken us. Disaster! Taking us to are own death and destruction and numbing paralysis. Think this is hyperbole? It isn't.
This morning I was greeted by a text stating that the deposed dispatch manager, the same individual rumored to have given his wife our package fares, is also responsible for the previous manager's death from a heroin overdose. And that one of BYG's (Yellow Co-op) senior managers is in part responsible for the 1994 Rwandan genocide. I must point out that the person in question is from Ethiopia. Another question about this is simple geography. To get to Rwanda, depending on routes taken, you have to cross over countries as various as South Sudan, Kenya and Uganda. I remember Bill Clinton once taking responsibility for the Rwanda mass murder but he is not a taxi driver though he has certainly at times acted like one. Hey brother Bill, ready to jump in the back seat?
In short I have had enough of the kind of nonsense passing as "business-as-usual" in the taxi industry. This upcoming weekend I will again witness too many driver's simple inability to move cars forward at the train or boat. It never ends but look at the bright side, everyone! This weekend you can wear your replica Seahawk jersey and cheer on your football heroes. Rah Rah! Go team Go! Watch all those cabbies fumble the taxi ball! Hurrah! Hurrah! Oh hell! we just scored a touchdown for the other team! How in the world did we manage that!? Yes that's right, just how did we do it? Utter madness, my taxi friends, utter madness! That is the explanation.
Two haiku regarding "white."
The winter leeks
have been washed white---
how cold it is!
Basho (1644-1694)
Before the white chrysanthemum
the scissors hesitate
a moment.
Buson (1716-1783)
I love the inherent silence contained in these poems. No noise. Only beauty in the stilled moment.
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