Uber hits PANIC BUTTON after India threatens to BAN dial-a-car firm Dial-a-car outfit Uber is addressing safety complaints in India by giving users a "panic button" to call police, amid reports suggesting the service may soon be banned in the state of Maharashtra, where Uber operates in the cities of Mumbai and Pune. The company said in a blog post that it will offer users the option to …
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So, if you are a woman and get on a bus, you could be potentially be gang raped to death by everyone on the bus. But if you into an Uber car, you could be potentially raped by only the driver? Seems like Uber still has a lower risk.
Given the prevalence of rape, and murder rape in India, it is pretty obvious that banning Uber after a single incident is really more about the status quo wanting to crush a new competitor, rather than dealing with sexual violence in India.
Please do some basic research before besmirching my ancestors' land. Paternalistic it may well be, and there have been some horrific incidents in the news, but as statisticians will tell you, what you really have to worry about are the risks that have become so commonplace they no longer make the news, like car accidents.
According to Wikipedia: "The incidence of reported rapes in India for 2010 were 1.8 per 100,000 people, among the lowest in the world. The US figure for 2010 was 27.3 per 100,000. However, it is estimated that only 1 in 10 rapes in India gets reported, while in the US 46% are reported.".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rape_in_India
So if we extrapolate: India - 1.8 x 10 = 18 per 100,000, US = 27.3 / 0.46 = 59.3 per 100,000, or 3 times higher than India. And I am guessing this figure does not count the horrendous incidence of rape in US prisons, which is so high the majority of rape victims in the US are actually men (incarcerated), not women. For reported rapes, the ratio is 15x.
According to Wikipedia: "The incidence of reported rapes in India for 2010 were 1.8 per 100,000 people…"
(emphasis added)
Good to know how many were reported, now how many actually took place? Is the 1 in 10 estimate applicable to India or generally?
REPORTED rapes.
Quoting ANY official statistic about India is like using a sieve to count drops of water in a monsoon downpour. Official figures give you no clue as to the reality of the situation. Any official can have a field day with such figures.
On the other hand there are numerous reports from Indian women AND Indian women's support groups who have had directly the opposite experience to your implied lack of rape in India.
From being completely ignored by police and legal officials, to being threatened, forcibly shut out or shut up, targeted for: physical abuse, torture, further rape and even murder.
And by whom?
By the relatives and friends of the accused including: men from the woman's own family, village, town, police etc.
And you have the audacity to quote India's official rape statistics?!
Rather than asking yourself, ask a NON-paternalistic Indian man OR any non-elite Indian woman about the prevalence of rape, and you will be reliably told that rape AND abuse of females is a far bigger problem than any official statistical lie from police, legal or government sources.
First, ask a nearby female which one does she "prefer". I suggest doing it in a rather tame country. If you do it around the Mediterranean (Spain, France, Italy, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria) or in Northern Europe (Sweden) you will need the panic button on YOUR phone - to call the ambulance to be taken to A&E to remove a shoe heel from your tenders. In a more tame country you are likely to get the explanation that as far as a woman is concerned there is bugger all difference and you will get the heel _AFTER_ that. But you will still get it. And you should.
Second, originally, taxi licensing in most countries was introduced for exactly this reason - criminal record checks and overall customer safety. Now the fact that some municipal authorities have converted it into a cash cow (Bonjour Ms Idalgo) is a different matter. This was later.
It's very interesting that the same pressure is not brought to bear on incumbent taxi services. Because lord knows taxi drivers are never abusive, incompetent, drunk, dangerous, crooked, or otherwise hazardous. Having used traditional taxis for years and Uber more recently, I can tell you where my preference lies, surge pricing aside.
At this rate, Uber will be the safest form of getting around. World + dog goes crazy over sex crime committed by Uber driver, nary a peep when your regular old cabbie decides to commit sexual assault. Which happens a lot. Check out a search for "taxi rape" on Google News to get a parade of nonces who were employed as regular old cabbies.
Why make a good product when you can pay government to outlaw the competition. It's a system crybaby lazy ass union members and government have used for decades to avoid having to work for more than 10 minutes at a stretch. Simply claim that your proscription is in the interest of children, old people, and the environment. For good measure, say that anyone who disagrees with you is an antisemite. Can't lose.
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