I’m not sure if this is satire, because it’s full of contradictions. I’m sorry, but in your post, I find a poverty of empathy. The freedom to choose which customers to pick up is vital to the drivers' classification as independent contractors. That choice and flexibility is what makes them independent contractors in the first place. If they were employees, I would agree with you, they shouldn’t be able to choose. The constraint of agency of choice would be due to the contract between the driver and Uber. However, Uber is immensely interested in keeping the status quo - they’re willing to send $100M just to make sure that the drivers are classified as independent contractors. Uber doesn’t care about its drivers or customers, they never did. This is a business decision like any other, and someone has to pay the cost. It used to be the drivers, but now Uber has shifted it to the riders. If the case had gone to court, and the drivers were classified as employees, it would have increased Uber’s operational expenses. Trust me, they would have responded by increasing the cost of rides, and you would have written an article complaining about how your rides now cost $15. Look, you can’t have it both ways. You choose to use services built on the backs of exploited labor, and you suffer the consequences. However, I see very little hope in changing your mind because you’re already brainwashed by Uber. You have already dehumanized the drivers and yourself when you just press a button, expect a car to materialize, and he driven to your destination in a sterile box. Your mind is ripe for automation.