Another Google bus protest

[via @ellebeans]

47 Responses to “Another Google bus protest”

  1. Why are they so angry? Is it the availability of so many high paying jobs to the south? Is it that people are taking a bus instead of driving SUV’s? Perhaps they just are like Yahoo! Maybe it’s more sinister, they hate nerds!

    I hate high rents as much as anyone else, it gets harder to find a good spot every time I move. But if the biggest thing you can find to complain about is highly skilled workers taking mass transit so they can live in your beautiful city while powering the countries economy, maybe it’s time to find a more constructive hobby.

    • dude says:

      Massive, wealthy tech companies breaking the law and getting away with it, when you or I would get a $300 ticket for idling in a bus stop. I want to see this enforced. Letter/e-mailing campaign to SFMTA to complain about blocked bus stops, it’s an ADA violation that the city ignores. Regulate it. Make them pay A LOT to use the bus stops for their private fleet– which funnels 30K+ employees daily!!– and use that money to fund public transit programs. This is incredibly sensible.

      • Agreed, in the event that they are using public bus stops, they should have to pitch in on the upkeep and maintenance of them. In a perfect world, public transit to the Valley would be efficient enough to use.

        But the people in the above picture are being total dicks, and ineffective dicks at that.

        • dude says:

          Nah, not really. They should do this daily, while putting pressure on SFMTA to pass effective regulation, until right right kinds of regulations are put into place.

          I want to see something that imposes high fees, consolidates the locations of these bus stops so they aren’t as pervasive, and restrictions on what kind of streets they can use, such as streets with at least two or three lanes of traffic in each direction.

        • troll says:

          How can a total dick be an ineffective dick? DOES NOT COMPUTE

        • Zig says:

          There is no world where something like that is possible. Dispersed office parks can’t effectively be served by PT

      • ed says:

        Bullshit. this isn’t why you are angry.

        Private shuttles have been using muni stops for DECADES. where are the protesters at the 19 stop on bryant and 7th for the hall of justice shuttle? they aren’t there.
        you are mad because google et al. own it.

        this boom is no different from the tech boom of the early 2000s or the .com of the 90s, and on and on since the motherfucking 49ers.

        You want to give the land back to the Vallejos? or the Ohlones? fine. I’ll fight with you. You want to fight against the current Ellis act? fine, I am with you.

        But you want to fight against people having jobs and commuting collectively, fuck you. you are making some arbitrary line in the sand because you think you are better than someone else.

        PS, yes MTA is working on a solution FWIW

        • i_agree_with_ed says:

          “But you want to fight against people having jobs and commuting collectively, fuck you.” My thoughts exactly.

        • JohnnyL says:

          Amen.

          Can’t wait for the MTA to announce a deal with their partners to use the bus stops. I wonder what they’ll block next, fucking HOV lanes??

      • lops says:

        So if they paid to use the stops everyone would shut the fuck up?

        DOUBT IT.

      • Valenchia says:

        @dude: Really so much rage just about the violation of a municipal ordinance? Sorry but you are clearly just jealous.

        • JohnnyL says:

          Exactly!

          To “Dude”‘s point, I have seen him extremely angry at a car parked in a handicap spot with no DP. He was pissssssssssed!

    • timbo says:

      The biggest thing I have to complain about is your atrocious grammar and punctuation.

    • Zig says:

      Private buses are not mass transit

    • Andrew berg says:

      really? Powering the countries economy? With what? Products? No… this industry is extractive, it uses public and private wealth to create more wealth and centralizes power over this “commodity” called information that has no value other than leverage. It creates nothing and threatens to undermine civil society. These “highly skilled workers” would not, and there is a poll that shows this, live here in large part if not for the bus. The busses inject a toxic amount of wealth into the city. Cities are fragile ecosystems that have to accommodate more than one kind of person. The working class is a VERY important part of that ecosystem.

  2. Matra says:

    These assholes have a lot of free time on there hands.

  3. ALWAYS HIGH says:

    BLOCK THE BIKE LANE – BIKE RIGHTS!

  4. Cordelia says:

    The problem is how you define “highly-skilled” workers. Tech companies have somehow convinced the world that what they do is somehow important or smart. Fuck the genius bar – they aren’t geniuses. Just a bunch of white dudes (no offense I love a lot of white dudes) trying to get as much “stuff” as they can – money, apartments, whatever – the rest of the world be damned.

    • People don’t take buses to San Jose to work at the Genius Bar.

    • ed says:

      I don’t know what they do, but if there are thousands of them that dot it, I agree, seems like you can train any monkey to do it.

      I don’t particularly care what its called. I just like having living wage jobs around.

  5. Wheresmejumper says:

    I feel sorry for all of the SF landlords trapped on that bus. But while they are sitting there they can observe the protesters and learn that it’s okay to overlook the true underlying cause of a problem and simply blame it on a stereotype that you enjoy begrudging.

  6. Leary says:

    If you want them to get off and join you, then stop throwing rocks at them like the Oakland protesters did.

  7. Technot says:

    Look what those techies are doing at Techendo :
    http://www.techendo.co/posts/god-hates-techies-shower-curtain-to-go-on-sale-soon

    They are selling our work for profit.

  8. JohnnyL says:

    Hey, to all of you folks so ENRAGED with the ILLEGAL use of bus stops, why don’t you have a campaign against the abuse the the Disabled Placard abuse in this city?

    Imagine all the revenue this would generate! Imagine how you could update your MySpace profile with that victory!

  9. Urbanblend says:

    The economy is booming and this is a positive situation for all of us, whether we are middle class, upper class or lower. We are all benefiting from this, as well as the city of San Francisco with the influx of funding to our infrastructure, social systems etc… Why on earth are protestors spending their time whining and blocking productive people from getting to work? Would you prefer the days of 2008 when thousands of people were losing their jobs, homes and quality of life. I’ve been here for over 25 years and have worked very hard to make a good life for myself, my family and my community. Things are changing for the better….this is a good thing. Leave these buses and the passengers alone and look at the big picture. Or…remain myopic and fall to the wayside.

    • Zig says:

      I am not benefiting one bit from the tech boom. I already had a job and now need a new apartment with my second kid on the way. The whole thing is net negative for us.

      • one says:

        Good luck, Zig. The only advice you’ll get from this crowd is to either learn to program or go to Stanford like tjey did. EASY. If you’re on the verge of homelessness, it’s your own damn fault. Dislike the hostility directed at you because you’re not one of them? You just jelly, yo, word, bro. You should die or move to Bakersfield.

  10. Oyster Boy says:

    HITLER!!!

  11. Zig says:

    It is a little annoying that high paid tech workers are being provided an untaxed benefit from their employer subsidizing their living in a distant neighborhood

    Fact: without the buses these people would either not live in SF or would need to pay for parking, gas and a car thereby decreasing the amount they would be willing to pay in rent

    • House says:

      Yeah so let’s put more cars on the road so we have more traffic and pollution.

      We had a rent problem BEFORE the tech industry started taking over. It’s a little accelerated, but it’s not their fault. It’s good that they’re taking cars of the road.

  12. Chase Hoblitzell says:

    I’ve been a regular reader of Mission Mission for years. But you just walked into the middle of the street and pulled down your pants. Protesting google buses, whether your upset about illegal use of bus stops (THE HORROR! THE HORROR!) or gentrification (completely off target) is so misguided and short-sighted. As a liberal this is exactly the kind of shit that drag the whole left through the dirt. It reminds me of people declaring their belief in 9/11 conspiracy theories; it shows your critical thinking skills are nil. Rational and scientific discussion of ideas and policy is non-existent. Please someone point me to a coherent logical argument about why people should be pouring their energy and resources into protesting google buses. What does this accomplish? What is the goal? To get google to pay for the use of bus stops? Really? In this day and age, of all the things going on, this is what your upset about?
    There are huge problems with in regards to housing, infrastructure, urban planning, and public transportation in the Bay Area, however protesting google buses doesn’t address those problems…
    Basically this post declares this blog is run by morons. I will not miss you…

    • Chase Hoblitzell says:

      Wait? Didn’t this post originally declare “Join Us!” The facebook mirror post certainly did… I mean ummm… if it did- my post stands… if it didn’t declare support for the protest, and the poster remains impartial, apologies for my harsh judgement. The post is directed at google bus protestors….

  13. mike says:

    i think everyone has the right to feel however they want. i dont feel strongly enough to protest, but i appreciate those who do so that i can read something in the morning as i sip my coffee at my high tech job. and i think thats all really the extent most of us will do; just try to empathize.

  14. umm says:

    There’s a lot of fucked up shit in this city that is causing this housing crisis which should be protested. None of that shit has anything to do with Google nerds and a bus driver going to work. If these people had any sense at all they would be protesting at City Hall and going after the people who actually own and control the property in this city. Not begrudging other working people because they are given a better wage.