The article seems to imply there is a right and wrong answer to what is a very personal question that depends on your exact circumstances.
Quitting your job to pursue your passion is a privilege
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Re: Quitting your job to pursue your passion is a privilege
#72Earlier quoted context omitted.
The premise you're assuming only holds if socioeconomics is constant. Imagine being the child of two software engineers living in a house in the suburbs with your own room and computer. Now imagine being the child of a single mother who works two minimum wage jobs and lives in a cramped apartment in the projects. If the latter child doesn't end up spending as much time programming as the former child, how much of it…
Maybe you missed the last paragraph of my comment? I absolutely agree with the notion of socioeconomic privilege. For what it's worth, I ended up making more than my (single) mother in my very first CS internship.
Sorry, completely glossed over it. Looks like we agree on this :)
Re: Quitting your job to pursue your passion is a privilege
#73Earlier quoted context omitted.
My favorite new ridiculous word is "silent technical privilege"[1] , according to which we now must apologize for having interests in technical subjects since childhood, rather than socializing and getting drunk like rest of the "unfortunate" kids. [1] http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/technology/2014/01/...
It isn't, and never has been, about apologising. It is about recognising that you had a step-up based on being part of a particular demographic, and then either acknowledging that other people won't necessarily have had those step-ups, helping to level the playing field by giving extra help to those who don't have that step-up, or both. So, basically equalising things a wee bit.
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Re: Quitting your job to pursue your passion is a privilege
#74Earlier quoted context omitted.
Omfg give it a rest already. Yes, some people are more privileged than others. But if you're going to hang out on an internet forum full of professional programmers only to lament how privileged everyone is youre going to have a bad time. In the context of this forum and this discussion, nothing about what the parent said screams privilege. Living with your parents after college is privilege now? Where the hell does…
geeze you're touchy. rush limbaugh got you too worked up today? All he is saying is that not everyone can go home and live with their parents when they fail. Not sure where guilt plays into this other than in your own mind/narrative.
But why point it out? It's one of the least "privilegy" privilege I could imagine. Living with parents is the default, something "privileged" people try to escape. It's more economically sensible, so in this way poor people are more "privileged" by being more likely to live with their parents. Yes, you could point out various groups like people who've lost their parents, or people with abusive parents, etc. but at this point one has to realize that for every possible attribute X you could carve out a social subgroup that doesn't have X, and call X-havers privileged. It's meaningless.
Re: Quitting your job to pursue your passion is a privilege
#75Earlier quoted context omitted.
It isn't, and never has been, about apologising. It is about recognising that you had a step-up based on being part of a particular demographic, and then either acknowledging that other people won't necessarily have had those step-ups, helping to level the playing field by giving extra help to those who don't have that step-up, or both. So, basically equalising things a wee bit.
helping to level the playing field by giving extra help to those who don't have that step-up Why does someone who is privileged have the obligation to help those that are not?
From my system of morality, people have a responsibility to provide aid to those who are less well off, and alsoalso have a responsibility to provide knowledge to those who do not have it. I think this follows from the idea that we all have a right to life, dignity, and knowledge.
However after some thought, and the rather unpleasant experience of having attempted to discuss and argue this point before, I do not think I can answer in a way that would convince you to change your current viewpoint, rather we would end up arguing opinions.
Re: Quitting your job to pursue your passion is a privilege
#76Ten years ago, the rhetorical buzzwords of that period had gotten really, really tedious. Words like: - Patriot - Freedom - Terrorism - Never Forget - If we don't do X, they win Ten years later, and I'm glad those words are a joke by now. But only to face new words: - Privilege - Trigger - Victim Blaming - Social Justice - Perpetuating false narratives Buzzwords only have currency with people who want others to stop…
I realise it's a bit buzzwordy, but social justice is a useful catch-all term when describing what political activists fight for. Is there a term you prefer in its place?
Re: Quitting your job to pursue your passion is a privilege
#77Earlier quoted context omitted.
It isn't, and never has been, about apologising. It is about recognising that you had a step-up based on being part of a particular demographic, and then either acknowledging that other people won't necessarily have had those step-ups, helping to level the playing field by giving extra help to those who don't have that step-up, or both. So, basically equalising things a wee bit.
>" helping to level the playing field by giving extra help to those who don't have that step-up, or both. " On a more overall point, I'd say that doing such a thing, even if noble and "well-meaning", actually demeans the work of the people that actually created the difference in "step-ups" as you refer to them in the first place. Some things are given to you by coincidence of birth and location. But other things, the…
How does it demean the work of those people? They worked for something (Better conditions for their children), and they got it. Whether or not it conveys an advantage over other people is irrelevant to the value of the work, and the results that work produced.
Moreso, I think that we have a responsibility to provide that (better conditions) not only to our children, but also to whomever else we can.
Re: Quitting your job to pursue your passion is a privilege
#78Passion without genuine skill and knowledge is useless. You can be passionate about many things, for example cars, but unless you put in the hours, your passion doesn't mean you will be a great car engineer, or automotive company executive. [EDIT] Also want to add that people grossly underestimate the responsibility of being their own boss. There are a lot of tasks you have to handle outside of your usual work like f…
There are lots of startups that I considered dumb. A messaging service that only allows 140characters sounds ridiculous. But here we are. In trying to start my own business I'm still learning to get over my own self doubt.
There are lots of startups that I considered dumb
And in the vast majority of cases you were right. A parallel comment pointed out that it's a lottery. I don't even think that's true, as with the lottery I know exactly what the odds are. Odds on some random startup "...only for dogs, on the Internet"? Fuck if I know.
Re: Quitting your job to pursue your passion is a privilege
#79Earlier quoted context omitted.
There are lots of startups that I considered dumb. A messaging service that only allows 140characters sounds ridiculous. But here we are. In trying to start my own business I'm still learning to get over my own self doubt.
> A messaging service that only allows 140characters sounds ridiculous. It made a lot more sense when we used SMS to tweet.
It made sense at the time, and most people probably weren't around when you could tweet by SMS, but almost 10 years later we're still working with this imposed limit. And doing it well.
Re: Quitting your job to pursue your passion is a privilege
#80Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think of this every time I come across one of those motivation videos on youtube. It'll have like twenty million views, how many of those people actually took it to heart?
Which reminds me of TED talks which are pinnacle of "fakeness" and bullshit in our society. Well, most of them at least.
Couldn't agree more. Just selling the "Wow" factor. In reality, most talks are baseless, same with startups. Some do manage to make millions just by selling the "Wowness". A whale buys the product and dumps it.