“Jeff Bezoes is spending the most on political donations among CEOs.”
He has the most to spend.
I’m a fan of Bezos and Amazon. Sure, there is stuff to pick on. The biggest and best tend to get picked on. McDonald’s among fast food, WalMart and Amazon among retail giants.
But, there is a lot that Amazon does right. Think about all the benefits to single, busy parents, the elderly and homebound, the disabled that Amazon offers with its delivery services. It’s not like the mom and pop retail stores are paying huge wages, at least not in my area, and they definitely are not offering the job benefits to their employees that Amazon offers. Most small, local retailers get by on a staff of part-time employees with zero benefits. I do support my local merchants but to pretend that they are all stellar employers is inaccurate glorification of the reality, IMO.
Not a fan of Amazon. I like to shop local as much as possible. Everyone I know was pre-ordering Fear from them online. I just stopped in at our independent bookstore in town and picked it the day it was available. Paid the exact same price as Amazon charged. Some friends who had pre-ordered it hadn’t gotten it yet when I bought my copy.
Not an Amazon fan here either. I know some folks who work(ed) in one of their distribution plants and it sure wasn’t pretty. Yes, our local places are nicer to their employees. If they aren’t (word gets around - a few aren’t), then I don’t shop with them (or eat there) either.
Today’s NY Times business section has a big article speculating the winner will be northern Virginia, and specifically the Crystal City area of Arlington. Makes sense in many ways. Crystal City is a stone’s throw from National Airport for domestic flights and not far from Dulles for international flights, on two Metro lines for easy commuting from the District two stops away with decent connections to most of the DC metro, excellent bike trail connections to the District, all of Arlington, and beyond. Crystal City has many slighted dated and somewhat underutilized office buildings currently with a 20% vacancy rate, mostly owned by a single development company that also owns vacant land in the area, facilitating a comprehensive redevelopment plan if they’re a party Amazon can work with or buy out. Virginia is also said to have a more business-friendly tax and regulatory climate than the District or Maryland, as well as political representation by both major parties which could be advantageous to a savvy firm looking out for its own interests in the political arena. Also a large and highly educated workforce in the DC metro, together with quality colleges and universities in close proximity including UVA, VaTech, Georgetown, GW, American, UMaryland, JHU and more.
Some negatives: traffic is horrendous, though Amazon is reportedly especially interested in transit- and bike-friendly areas because it thinks that’s what millennials want. And the cost of living in the DC metro is very high, but Amazon must be used to that in Seattle. Some question as to whether Arlington is the kind of culturally appealing location Amazon says it wants to attract young talent, but it’s actually a rather diverse community (9% black, 15% Hispanic, 10% Asian, 28% foreign-born) and a progressive one, and and anything Arlington itself lacks in cachet is probably more than compensated by its close proximity to DC directly across the Potomac.
I would be shocked if it is not that area. Judging by how fast the flights to D.C. filled up in the last week, the decision might be near. Bad timing for Mr.'s trip. One day he was looking at an empty plane, the next week he was ready to book his travel, and only a handful of middle seats was left.
I know a lot of intrepid year-round bikers here in Minnesota who would vehemently disagree with you, and our winters are a lot colder, snowier, and longer than those in Northern Virginia. We have plenty of people who commute to work or school by bike all winter. It requires the proper clothing, a good mountain bike or “fat bike” with wide tires, fenders to keep the slush off you, and good lights so motorists can see you. Oh, and a certain amount of gumption. But serious cyclists aren’t deterred by a little cold and snow, and many think it’s just downright fun.
But then, I’ve seen DC completely shut down by a 2-inch snowfall—people are afraid to drive in it, much less bike. So maybe it’s a regional thing.
Back in the early nineties, when Seattle was hit with an unexpected snow storm that brought everything to a standstill, Mr. kept biking to work past stuck in the snow cars. His coworkers were amazed.
@bclintonk - it is definitely a regional thing. I have lived in NoVA for 35 years and people here are very deterred by snow and cold. It was 60 degrees outside last week and some folks were wearing parkas. Lots of whining about the cold.
