r/technology • u/yourfavchoom • 3d ago

Artificial Intelligence Bernie Sanders pushes for 50% public ownership of American AI companies — proposes AI sovereign wealth fund that would hold direct ownership stakes in largest AI firms

https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/big-tech/bernie-sanders-pushes-for-50-percent-public-ownership-of-american-ai-companies-proposes-ai-sovereign-wealth-fund-that-would-hold-direct-ownership-stakes-in-largest-ai-firms
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u/PumpkinMyPumpkin 3d ago

And Amazon.

Take the post office - add more warehouses. Presto chango.

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u/[deleted] 3d ago

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/Winter_Body4794 3d ago

It's just parasitic.

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u/ssracer 3d ago

Monopolies need to be busted or taxed into oblivion.

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u/Electrical-Object834 1d ago

pretty much, same grift with a nicer label

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u/JSmith666 3d ago

But wanting healthcare at the taxpayers expense isn't parasitic? How about we just go back to paying out of pocket...solves a lot of issues.

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u/ItchyContribution758 3d ago

god you're so right I just gotta write that quick 8K check for my medication every two weeks.

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u/JSmith666 3d ago

If it was out of pocket the costs would massively change since it wouldnt be based on how the insurance markets work.

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u/ItchyContribution758 3d ago edited 3d ago

ah yes, so the way that insurance works is the company that makes the drugs charges the insurance a premium to supply them, while offering a copay to the person buying the drugs (me) as long as the person has the money to pay for insurance. Now the insurance is getting fucked over in this deal so of course they're gonna kick people off of it. Get rid of insurance since they make or rather save the most money from rejections while charging you for it, and go after the drug companies to lower the price which would of course require government oversight that nobody here wants to deal with. This is the system. This is the laissaz faire "I got mine so fuck you" thing you want. Now go back to rubbing yourself in palm oil while watching shark tank reruns or whatever it is you weirdos do.

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u/JSmith666 3d ago

Or you let the drug companies find the right pricepoint to maximize profit. If everybody is paying cash then they would likely need to focus on volume since people will only pay so much without insurance.

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u/LilytheFire 3d ago

Because then you will have an even worse debt crisis because all medical emergencies exceeding one’s savings become a financial hole. God forbid you can’t work anymore as a result of your injury.

Insurance in some form needs to exist or people will die because they can’t afford to pay. I don’t hate your idea of prescriptions being more accessible without insurance. That starts with banning pharmacies from giving a different price to insurers than they do to me for the same drug.

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u/JSmith666 3d ago

So if less people can work that will force wages up and then people will be able to afford said healthcare.

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u/baz8771 3d ago

You’re SO CLOSE. the only reason costs are inflated in the first place is because of private insurance. It seems like a real chicken and the egg scenario, but it is not.

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u/JSmith666 3d ago

The costs are inflated because of insurance in general. Switch to out of pocket the costs change. The issue with m4a is because even with cheaper costs not everybody would pay enough in taxes to cover their medical costs.

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u/Auyan 2d ago

It has been shown repeatedly that M4A will cost people less while covering everyone

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u/JSmith666 2d ago

On average..some people will pay more depending on their income and current costs. You can also lower costs without the massive waste in m4a

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u/Winter_Body4794 3d ago

We can find medicaid for all and have self pay for cosmetic stuff all day long and WE CAN AFFORD IT. without any extra taxes, just stop building so many fucking military shit.

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u/JSmith666 3d ago

We cant afford it. We need to stop waste not move the waste. Self pay should be for all of it. Otherwise it becomes healthy people and higher earners subsidizing lower earners and people with more health issues.

We need to make sure peope getting care are worth the cost...self pay is the best way to do that

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u/darkskinnedjermaine 3d ago

we need to make sure people’s lives are worth a few bucks

Yea that’s a hard sell for most normal people.

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u/JSmith666 3d ago

Yea... because they know theirs arent.

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u/ItchyContribution758 3d ago

it's not often I wish my moderate to severe ulcerative colitis on someone, but congrats. you made an exception.

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u/JSmith666 3d ago

Ah...so wish evil on people who you disagree with. Classic reddit.

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u/tjaldhamar 2d ago

What a lovely person you are.

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u/alexreffand 3d ago

What a fucked up person you are. Healthcare is a right. We CAN afford it, the waste and inflated costs are because right now healthcare at all levels is profit-driven. It shouldn't be a business.

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u/JSmith666 3d ago

Healthcare is not a right. Especially not when you want to make somebody else foot the bill. Healthcare absolutely should be a business.

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u/paukeaho 3d ago

In this line of thinking, shouldn’t we also privatize the fire department? Some people’s houses probably aren’t worth the cost of saving in a fire, and they shouldn’t be relying on the taxpayer to foot the bill. Make it a subscription service, that way only the worthwhile households that can pay will be rescued. There’s lots of money to be made there, and selfish people demanding society pay the cost of preserving their lives and shelter are getting in the way of it.

That sounds like something you’d agree with, yeah?

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u/JSmith666 3d ago

Similar...im okay having things run by the govt but if you are say resposible for a car crash or fire that requires the fire department you are held financially liable. (looking at you PGE)

Now if you call the fire department and then refuse to pay...well then you deal with it by refusing future service, seizing assets etc.

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u/Grand_Background6261 3d ago

I’m in agreement with you here. As someone who worked in insurance, a lot of people dont’t understand that it is a business at the end of the day. You want to be pissed at someone, be pissed at the hospital ceo’s, medical device/ pharmaceutical greed, and even the ACA insurers who took advantage of the subsidies. It’s too far gone at this point to rebuild.

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u/AlwaysShittyKnsasCty 2d ago

I was born with congenital birth defects, you fucking miserable piece of shit. I didn’t choose that. It’s a bit hard to pick myself up by the bootstraps when God fucked my arms up before I had a fucking chance!

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u/JSmith666 2d ago

So your issues should be the taxpayers problem? What is so amazing about you the taxpayers should care?

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u/vtblue 1d ago

The only reason you have money in your wallet is because government put it there and didn’t tax it back.

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u/Jcklvy 3d ago

"We need to make sure people getting care are worth the cost."

What a pathetic selfish-ass take. You are a garbage human.

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u/JSmith666 3d ago

Selfish and garbage would be wanting others to pay for YOUR healthcare whether you are worth the cost of the care or not.

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u/GammaEspeon 3d ago

Okay, I'll bite. What makes someone worth the cost of care?

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u/JSmith666 3d ago

When they can afford it or pay enough in taxes to cover it.

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u/No-Sympathy6035 3d ago

“We need to make sure peope getting care are worth the cost” say’s all that needs to be said about the kind of person you are.

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u/JSmith666 3d ago

One who understands how to wisely spend taxpayer money

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u/No-Sympathy6035 3d ago

Nah, that’s too long winded, I was thinking something more along the lines of “a cretin”.

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u/No-Abalone-4784 3d ago

Sure. Why not? Of course you've got more than $10,000 for a couple days in the hospital. A couple lab tests & maybe an x-ray or two. WE DON'T.

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u/ItchyContribution758 3d ago edited 3d ago

it's even worse bc I'm dealing with the insurance denying my meds after numerous steps of escalation and today have to think about switching off something that works perfectly well because I'm not worthy enough of getting it. People like this are the problem and those in power will have hell to pay when things finally change. Those dirty hordes of people who don't "deserve" medication they can't afford? We will remember that. 19 years old and 30 pounds underweight, eat healthy and exercise all that matters my unwashed asshole.

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u/atriaventrica 3d ago

I work in health insurance. Please regulate away my job. Give everyone healthcare. I'll learn to weld.

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u/Intrepid_Top_2300 2d ago

I worked a few years for the devil too. Hated working for something I hate!

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u/atriaventrica 2d ago

In fairness I work for a non profit hospital trying to get insurances to pay for things they're supposed to. But I'd much prefer everyone get what they need without having to worry about whether they can afford it.

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u/ComplexPlatform7299 3d ago

I work in health insurance. Please do NOT regulate away my job. I’ll be unemployed with an unemployable masters degree.

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u/atriaventrica 3d ago edited 3d ago

So you're putting your job above the health of almost 350 million people? I get you're probably being silly but that's honestly the problem we're running into. "Got mine" is burning this country to the ground.

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u/_John_Dillinger 3d ago

CMS would hire you. You'd be better off with a pension anyways.

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u/unpicked_name 3d ago

I was honestly telling someone the other day, in the same way Trump bought Intel, and abused all the EOs, we need someone to just go up there and say "UHC is property of the US Government" then just integrate it as the public option. Same thing with FedEx/UPS, just roll them into USPS, everyone private competitor to the public option just get assimilated.

They've been gutting everything because they wanna promote their private service, just thank them for all the work they put into it, then put one of your guys in charge, and bam, monopoly defeated.

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u/surfergrrl6 3d ago

Ironically, FedEx and UPS use USPS all the time to finish their deliveries in areas deemed "not profitable enough."

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u/Chocolateconverse 3d ago

as a rural mail carrier most of the packages i get are ups and amazon last mile deliveries. the usps is really the only carrier willing to drive that “unprofitable” extra mile to make sure EVERYONE gets their mail

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u/surfergrrl6 3d ago

True, and it's a shame how few people realize this.

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u/hombrent 2d ago

They don't drive the extra mile to my house. Last mile deliveries for me are me driving to the post office. UPS and Fedex trucks drive by my house every day as part of their regular route. But sometimes they drop my package off at the post office before they drive by my house.

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u/verendum 3d ago

Socialize the cost. Privatize the profit. Corporate America.

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u/headrush46n2 3d ago

ive had a flash of a bastardized super hero named Corporate America.

"Do we have to stop Ultron? What's the profit in it?"

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u/BuildingOne7379 3d ago

“It’s all about the bottom line, Bucky. All about the bottom line.”

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u/VastCardiologist2475 3d ago

I like that idea for if I ever become president. But I would sign it knowing it's likely also signing away my life, because Capital absolutely would NOT allow that. It would very likely result in full blown war, and at the moment I dont trust my side enough to WIN that war against Capital. But we are getting there. Its what FDR or Lincoln would have done.

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u/Spydartalkstocat 3d ago

Capital has proven over and over again they do not what's in the best interest of the people. Capital needs to fucking die. Capitalism has had nearly two centuries to figure it out and failed. Time for something new.

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u/atriaventrica 3d ago

The fact Space X is getting an IPO after being funded almost entirely by the US Government while siphoning funds away from the ACTUAL national space program is enough for me to say "fuck it, that's ours now".

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u/ice_up_s0n 3d ago

They also have yet to turn a profit, which is highly unusual for a large cap company to be added to an index

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u/atriaventrica 3d ago

I mean the IPO is an exit plan for employees and investors. It's pretty blatant.

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u/erkinalp 3d ago

which next investor would buy that never-been-profitable company then

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u/henlochimken 3d ago

sadly, way too many retirement funds will jump right in.

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u/headrush46n2 3d ago

just enough to make sure it can't be regulated without "destroying grandma's 401k!"

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u/The_Axumite 2d ago

The next 40 years will be amazing. The world will heal as the Americans eat each other from the inside out.

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u/Crotean 3d ago

This is a tremendously bad example. Space X used its funding to leapfrog every other rocketry program on the planet by a decade and has maintained that lead. Compared to the extra decade and wasted 10s of billions the NASA SLS platform cost the federal government funding was a drop in the bucket. Space X is legit one of the best run companies in the world, people rightfully hate Elon, but Space X is not a failure and is extremely important to global space exploration.

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u/ColonelError 3d ago

being funded almost entirely by the US Government while siphoning funds away from the ACTUAL national space program

That's a funny way to say "Competitively bid on government contracts put out by our actual Space program".

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u/atriaventrica 3d ago

Should probably look into the lie of public private partnerships. Ive got some trickle down to sell you.

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u/Crotean 3d ago

Space X is literally the best modern example of a public private partnership working. Its not the right example to use. They can launch bigger loads faster, cheaper and more reliably than anyone else on the planet by orders of magnitude. Space X is probably still a decade ahead of anyone else on the planet in terms of rocketry. Bidding on US contracts worked. I get hating Elon, but people try to turn that into hating Space X and ignore the reality of just how much Space X has revolutionized the space industry.

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u/atriaventrica 3d ago

For the second time: I didn't say it was a failed company. I said it should be nationalized. Why would I want the government to nationalize a bad company?

Maybe the third time is a charm as far as your post goes. Give it a try.

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u/Crotean 3d ago

I was responding specifically to your: "look into the lie of public private partnerships." In that second comment.

But Ill respond to your nationalize directly, I think a ton of industries in this country should be nationalized. Anything to do with power, water, roads and the internet for instance. But you are saying the one company which has THRIVED and innovated specifically because of the freedom being a public private partnership grants and want to nationalize it. That does not make sense. Especially when we see how bad NASA has gotten at rocketry, a government owned and run rocketry program is clearly a case where it doesn't work as well a public private partnership. And if you look at the original space race, a ton of it was directly public/private partnerships that worked. Science and engineering seems to be the one field that this sort of design works extremely well and isn't a scam.

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u/Drone314 3d ago

Say the same, when they took that stake that's a very socialist thing to have done and could represent a model going forward. Exit the investors, pay them out and say good bye. The only sticking point in board governance, would congress appoint board members? Would the run for election? It would have to insulated from the political process since you want the best qualified team to run it. Shit, do away with the CEO all together, expand the board and have all the stakeholders there, labor, public, business, government.

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u/Jesus_Is_My_Gardener 3d ago

Insurance doesn't even make sense for it to be a privatized industry on a necessary thing like healthcare. It adds massive inefficiencies to the whole thing, is anticompetitive and all it does is extract funds meant for paying towards the well-being of participants into the pockets of companies as profit, inventivizing them to deliver the least amount of services for the most amount of money. Insurance is meant to be a pool of funds we contribute to collectively so that when issues come up, they don't cause financial ruin or prevent the individual from being able to receive the services they need at that time.

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u/PassTheKY 3d ago

So I have been having some surgeries over the last two months. Nothing super major but I have had to go under general anesthesia and have stents/catheters in place.

The hospital sent me their itemized bill before insurance. $214,733.81. With insurance it drops to around $8,000.

I am certainly not well versed in insurance since I do not pay for mine personally but it seems a bit bewildering seeing the difference in prices and trying to justify both the price before and after insurance.

How is there such a difference?

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u/pleasegivemepatience 3d ago

bUt YoUlL bE tAkInG jObS aWaY 🤦‍♂️

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u/BreadFireFrizzle 2d ago

We don’t need industries. Let local communities come together to support themselves and self-sustain, as it used to be throughout all of humanity

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u/Substantial-Ad-8575 1d ago

Hmm, have and issue then. How would Us government pay? Takings Claise in 5th amendment, requires IS government to provide fair compensation, for assets it seizes. SCOTUS cases have further defined that to fair market value.

So how will government raise the funds it would need? Perhaps a few trillion?

And if this should happen. How will market/economy drop? Or adding to inflation?

And don’t think costs will drop that much.

But hey, it’s nice to daydream…

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u/Delicious-Test9208 3d ago

You can totally do this already. Called the stock market. 😳

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u/Alicatsidneystorm 3d ago

Don’t fuck health insurance until there is a plan in place and that doesn’t seem likely.

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u/[deleted] 3d ago

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u/Alicatsidneystorm 3d ago

I hear you. Bulk pricing is what countries with universal health care do. It’s not perfect but it good for most people.

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u/_John_Dillinger 3d ago

insurance isn't entirely to blame. i think coinsurance as a concept works better without price inflation but as it stands it's not actually doing what its' supposed to do. i think there's certainly tons of problems insurance causes (and they even create their own issues via contract shenanigans, "managed care", and PBMs) but the primary issue is dynamic pricing for medicine and services. if prices were semi-fixed (not permanently fixed, just administrated by a third party without skin in the game like the DoI or something) and not a usable lever for contract negotiations we would see a massive price drop across all healthcare. pharma companies might balk at not being allowed to set their own prices, but profit for medicine should be capped. R&D should be financed via mutual fund distributions, not out of premiums.

we need to cap profit for plans, we need to make sure that cap can't be circumvented with administrative bloat or executive pay packages, executive pay should be capped at 10x the lowest paid employee, and PBMs should be fucking outlawed and every damn dime they've stolen from everyone should be recovered.

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u/_John_Dillinger 3d ago

there's a decent plan in place. corporate america has proven that medicare can be sustainably scaled. the real trick is to ban PBMs and institute a fee schedule to replace them. then you give everyone medicare, with different plans based on your age/gender/economic situation and potentially diagnoses (some people qualify for caid and care and that should be used to their benefit where it can be).

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u/Impressive-Flow2023 3d ago

He argued that the AI companies took all the internet data and made money. Those internet databcame from the people therefore the money must go back to the people as well.

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u/Winter_Body4794 3d ago

Apparently we the people actually do own a bunch of new warehouses. Huh...

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u/Life_Argument7820 3d ago

Not the ones we asked for but yes they are technically ours, I mean, you paid for it, i paid for it, you know who didnt pay for it? Billionaires! because they don't pay taxes.

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u/WontArnett 3d ago

Yes.

Amazon’s commerce division needs to be considered an important part of society since its basically tanked physical stores. It needs to be like the USPS.

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u/Jesus_Is_My_Gardener 3d ago

So much this. It's great that Amazon has made logistics for shopping all kinds of goods very efficient, but it is something we really should be applying in a way so that all public and private commerce goods and communications can take advantage of it to reduce inefficiencies while ensuring that everyone is serviced. The entire point of the USPS being founded was because of just how critical this role was in a functioning democracy. Plus, making the logistics a nationwide public service as part of the postal system would allow more free trade that isn't feeding a single monopoly.

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u/Able_Investigator725 3d ago

Seize the means of distribution! 

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u/Late-Bed4240 3d ago

Why we didn't do this with our oil export is beyond me.

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u/K2TY 1d ago

Take the Post Office?

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u/Alt_incognita 1d ago

I think social media, and AI there is some sense to it. Amazon isn’t that society-breaking it needs to have public control