Inside Bill’s Brain • Hacker News Board

Re: Inside Bill’s Brain

#21

Post by blueside » Sat, Sep 21, 2019, 4:25 PM UTC

joezydeco wrote: post #18

shadypupper wrote: post #17

I tried to watch it, but it just felt like a 'Bill Gates' public profile PR piece. Basically just espousing how great Bill and his family are and were at all points in history.

I regularly get downvoted for pointing out that Saint Bill the Philanthropist refuses to acknowledge all the shitty behavior and the damage he left behind to earn him that fortune in the first place.

Couldn't agree more. How he got there is always overlooked. Bill is certainly very intelligent and competent. But could Bill start a company from scratch and be competitive today? One that is remotely close to MS and from competing fairly? I'm doubtful.

Re: Inside Bill’s Brain

#22

Post by clarkevans » Sat, Sep 21, 2019, 4:27 PM UTC

rhizome31 wrote: post #16

htk wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

From my understanding, the documentary is about what Bill Gates is doing, and what inspired him. IMHO his cutthroat tactics leading Microsoft are already well documented and have nothing to do with the great work he’s doing now.

Without entering the debate regarding whether Gates foundation does more good than damage, it seems a bit of a stretch to say that this is unrelated to his earlier business practices. It's fair to imagine that those practices have contributed to put him in a situation where he can do what he does now.

Conversely, those same practices prevented others from being in a position where they could have likewise been generous. The iron fist of concentrated power, even when wrapped in a velvet glove of generosity, is simply bad for society.

Re: Inside Bill’s Brain

#23

Post by JohnJamesRambo » Sat, Sep 21, 2019, 4:27 PM UTC

Dangeranger wrote: post #6

ben165 wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The sad thing is that the States aren't interested in this technology or why does it take so long to get it done there? It would be great to use waste material to get more energy out before burying it again. I'm from Germany, sadly thou, most of the people are to uneducated and scared to push atomic power station to the next level. Great documentation btw.

The US is bifurcated between people who see no problem with current nuclear plants and those who see any nuclear plant as an abomination in need of removal. It’s hard to have a reasonable debate about this issue when the sides are so diametrically opposed due to their dogmatic beliefs.

The question is do we need nuclear and the risks? Can renewables like wind, hydro, and solar provide what we need cheaper and without the dangers associated with nuclear? If so, then why even mess with it?

Re: Inside Bill’s Brain

#24

Post by soperj » Sat, Sep 21, 2019, 4:31 PM UTC

JohnJamesRambo wrote: post #23

Dangeranger wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The US is bifurcated between people who see no problem with current nuclear plants and those who see any nuclear plant as an abomination in need of removal. It’s hard to have a reasonable debate about this issue when the sides are so diametrically opposed due to their dogmatic beliefs.

The question is do we need nuclear and the risks? Can renewables like wind, hydro, and solar provide what we need cheaper and without the dangers associated with nuclear? If so, then why even mess with it?

Hydro has killed more people and ruined more land than Nuclear ever will.

Re: Inside Bill’s Brain

#25

Post by GimbalLock » Sat, Sep 21, 2019, 4:32 PM UTC

I found it pretty surprising how much they romanticized his years of working instead of sleeping. That’s a dangerous thing to promote.

Re: Inside Bill’s Brain

#26

Post by luckydata » Sat, Sep 21, 2019, 4:32 PM UTC

JohnJamesRambo wrote: post #23

Dangeranger wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The US is bifurcated between people who see no problem with current nuclear plants and those who see any nuclear plant as an abomination in need of removal. It’s hard to have a reasonable debate about this issue when the sides are so diametrically opposed due to their dogmatic beliefs.

The question is do we need nuclear and the risks? Can renewables like wind, hydro, and solar provide what we need cheaper and without the dangers associated with nuclear? If so, then why even mess with it?

The answer is yes, we need nuclear because there's no chance we'll get to 100% renewable energy in time to make a difference, nuclear could fill the niche we need to make wind and solar generation feasible.

Re: Inside Bill’s Brain

#27

Post by luckydata » Sat, Sep 21, 2019, 4:33 PM UTC

traverseda wrote: post #9

Maybe this is unfair, but I hope they at least touch on the halloween documents and the antitrust suite. Anything that touches on microsoft's history should at least mention the anti-competitive practices they used to cripple competition.

Why in the hell would they do that in this documentary?

Re: Inside Bill’s Brain

#28

Post by wootie512 » Sat, Sep 21, 2019, 4:35 PM UTC

rhizome31 wrote: post #16

htk wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

From my understanding, the documentary is about what Bill Gates is doing, and what inspired him. IMHO his cutthroat tactics leading Microsoft are already well documented and have nothing to do with the great work he’s doing now.

Without entering the debate regarding whether Gates foundation does more good than damage, it seems a bit of a stretch to say that this is unrelated to his earlier business practices. It's fair to imagine that those practices have contributed to put him in a situation where he can do what he does now.

Is there a debate about whether or not his foundation is doing more good than damage? I'd like to learn more about it. I find it interesting how difficult it seems to do philanthropy that has long lasting benefits without damaging some party.

Re: Inside Bill’s Brain

#29

Post by ScottFree » Sat, Sep 21, 2019, 4:38 PM UTC

joezydeco wrote: post #18

shadypupper wrote: post #17

I tried to watch it, but it just felt like a 'Bill Gates' public profile PR piece. Basically just espousing how great Bill and his family are and were at all points in history.

I regularly get downvoted for pointing out that Saint Bill the Philanthropist refuses to acknowledge all the shitty behavior and the damage he left behind to earn him that fortune in the first place.

Not to mention his philanthropy work frequently causes considerable damage itself, like the malaria nets[0] that poisoned the local food supply, the failed public school overhaul[1] and common core[2][3].

[0]: https://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/25/world/africa/mosquito-net...

[1]: https://nancyebailey.com/2018/07/04/gatess-blunders-destroy-...

[2]: https://www.philanthropydaily.com/gates-philanthropy-failure...

[3]: https://www.learningsuccessblog.com/blog/dyscalculia/common-...

Re: Inside Bill’s Brain

#30

Post by Keloo » Sat, Sep 21, 2019, 4:40 PM UTC

rhizome31 wrote: post #14

curiousDog wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Will you guys please stop with the Soros bashing? There's literally no basis for all the BS being spewed about a self-made man like that.

If you think about it, the concept of self-made man is a bit weird. Every man comes at least from a woman who carried him for about 9 months. Even if she abandoned him at birth, he must have been taken care of by some people who taught him how to speak, helped him with his first steps, etc. Not to mention the roads he drove on, the food he ate, the knowledge he learned, etc. This concept is problematic in that it neg…

I don't really get it. Self-made is about success not about who give you birth or food or shelter etc. unless there is a very strong correlation like you have been educated by someone who is successful. I agree the naming is not the most suggestive but.. read the definition of self-made man: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-made_man