Category Archives: econ
Website highlights financial stress of driving a taxi in the City
I point your temporary attention to a Flash website produced by UC Berkeley j-school grad students Eric Zassenhaus and Amy Jeffries. The video clips thumbnailed along the bottom are accurate and colorful paintings of a typical taxi shift. Well worth … Continue reading
“Energy independence” is silly. We must use less energy regardless of its source.
My unwavering allegiance to the American Public Media radio program Marketplace was made ever tighter by a clear and compelling opinion piece by Jerry Taylor of the Cato Institute. The piece is written so concisely I can do no better … Continue reading
Fire destroys low-income resident’s apartment. Archaic rent control forces her to leave City.
The Chronicle has a touching and well-written article about the aftermath of the Mission District fire that completely destroyed a 30-unit apartment building Monday evening. Central to the article is the story of Griselda Paleo. Ms. Paleo is 59 and … Continue reading
Hey, SFMTA, please double residential parking fees and introduce traffic congestion fees.
The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) is a bureaucratic whale, containing, in separate stomachs, the Department of Parking and Traffic (DPT) and the San Francisco Municipal Railway (Muni) public transit system. Recently, the SFMTA crunched some numbers and said, … Continue reading
My taxi earnings: are City tourists back?
I sure noticed when tourists to the City took a vacation from vacationing. Now it appears they might be back in force. Monday I had 3 trips to Pier 33, the most common departing point to catch the ferry to … Continue reading
Driving highlights
While driving Sun-Mon (1am-12pm) These few days were slow, slow, slow. I find it funny that I have such a hard time estimating how much I’ll make beforehand. It’s almost like gambling. The only ‘sure-fire’ well-paying weekends are those with … Continue reading
Politicians forget (ignore?) basic economics.
Let’s rewrite a few headlines to illustrate the point. Case 1 The original headline reads, “Supervisor looks to limit liquor licenses.” Supervisor Gerardo Sandoval seeks to add a ballot measure banning any future City liquor licenses. This headline should read, … Continue reading
Why is Congress wasting its time (aka our money) with baseball players?
I’ll admit right up front: I’m not sure what Congress actually does at their meetings in Washington. But, what I glean from an ear half-tuned to NPR is that it’s usually a discussion on legislation germane to American citizen’s lives … Continue reading
My taxi earnings begin to increase. Is it temporary?
December and January were tough months. Holidays meant many people left the City. There was very little tourism and few, if any, special events that draw large numbers into the City. This weekend and last weekend produced relatively high earning … Continue reading
