Chicago - A message from the station manager

The [Tuesday] Papers

By Steve Rhodes

“Thousands of Uber drivers and their families and friends were promised a free party Monday night at the Museum of Science and Industry,” Block Club Chicago reports.
“What they got instead was an ‘unorganized catastrophe,’ as one person put it on Twitter.”
This is one of those stories that is simultaneously hilarious and maddening, a self-owning metaphor that in one way – the Fuck Uber! way – is immensely satisfying and in another way – the I am not a monster! way – elicits boatloads of sympathy for those caught in the gears of perhaps the giggest of the gig economy. In other words, it’s got everything, excluding (so far) a happy ending.


“The Monday night party was organized by Uber to show appreciation for its drivers, with employees told they’d get free access to the museum and free food for themselves and several guests. But the event proved far more popular than Uber had originally anticipated.”
I’m not sure how Uber could underestimate how popular free food in a cool setting with guests would be, but then again, Uber has yet to turn a profit – which isn’t to say the folks at the top are so poor they’ve taken to driving, um, Uber in their spare time to pay rent. Hardly.
“Drivers and others then took to social media to blast Uber, complaining they’d been stuck in traffic for hours only to be told the museum’s parking lot was full and they’ve have to find parking elsewhere or – as happened later in the night – the museum itself was too full and they couldn’t come in.”
Uber should have at least ordered pizzas for those stuck in their cars – or sent the catering staff out to circulate in the parking lot. My god.
“We’re thankful for the thousands of partner drivers and their families who attended tonight’s event to celebrate Uber in Chicago,” an Uber spokesman told Block Club. “However, hundreds more than RSVP’d came and we had to close admission to the event for everyone’s safety when the venue reached capacity.”
Hmm. I’m slightly sympathetic to Uber if hundreds of drivers showed up without RSVPing. Your job is to confirm appointments..
“Inside the museum, photos showed large crowds of people and event wait staff reportedly walking over museum exhibits to serve food.”
Whoa. Does the museum have its own event staff, or did they or Uber hire a third party? Were exhibits damaged? Is the sub okay?
“Young children were crying as their families were turned away due to the museum being at capacity, some attendees said.”
Check the ‘young children crying’ box.
“The Museum of Science and Industry referred questions about the event to Uber.”
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Assignment Desk: Call Lyft and find out if A) their business surged while the city’s Uber force was idled, and B) if they’re seeing an influx of drivers crossing over from Uber today.
Also, check in with the museum and see if Uber is no longer welcome to hold events there, among other questions, like who staffs those events. Presumably Uber signed a contract, too. Presumably that contract says, “Don’t trash the exhibits.”
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See also: The Uber IPO Is A Moral Stain On Silicon Valley.
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Previously:
* Uber Uber Alles.
* Uber’s Surge Pricing May Not Lead To A Surge In Drivers.
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ChicagoReddit

Moving back: Should I worry about old parking tickets? from r/chicago


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ChicagoTube
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BeachBook
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Should Community Colleges Build Housing?

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A sampling.


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The Beachwood McRibTipLine: Easy peasy.

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Posted on June 11, 2019