Spyke

Replies

news

Comment on

Trump Demanded El Mencho’s Head. Mexicans Are Paying the Price.

Reply in thread

Cartels are like any gang: there’s social pressure to join, the promise of respect and riches, and for some, it may be the only way out of a life of poverty.

The problem is the rot runs too deep. Well intentioned politicians are murdered (to preserve power or existence), and the cartel often infiltrates police and armed forces to stay steps ahead.

Going after a cartel boss sends a message to the narcos (they’re not untouchable). I think you are right in the sense that the lower level members should have some way out of the lifestyle that doesn’t necessitate violence. That’s a hard problem to solve.

Comment on

Amazon BUSTED for Widespread Scheme to Inflate Prices Across the Economy— Amazon, its vendors, and competing retailers are price fixing, hiking up prices for consumer products, making Amazon richer

Reply in thread

The Valve example sounds similar, but I think Amazon is comparably more nefarious:

  • Valve chargers developers $100 per title, and a revenue sharing fee that starts at 30%
  • in exchange, devs must follow Valve’s content and pricing policies (which requires developers not to undercut Steam’s prices

Amazon has a few different tiers for sellers, but in general, they charge:

  • Monthly fees ($39.99 / mo)
  • Referral fees (8-15%)
  • Fulfillment and refund fees, which includes additional storage fees
  • Advertising fees (for keyword bids or sponsored products)

Valve is kind enough to offer free promotion on the home page (if your game is popular, or has a sale), and digital games are much easier to scale, versus manufacturing and holding physical inventory. They also do a lot of nefarious shit (loot boxes..), but I’d argue at least their partners aren’t being squeezed quite as much.

You reached the end