One way techies can affect change is to not do business with the government, particularly law enforcement and military.
However, this won't happen, because at the end of the day the only thing people actually care about is money.
Slack Removed a Blog Post Showing How Police Use Its Tech
41–50 of 283 posts
Re: Slack Removed a Blog Post Showing How Police Use Its Tech
#42I don’t get it. Are we now advocating that police is overall more of a force of evil than good? Legitimate question.
A BLM co-founder is on NPR advocating to "defund the police."
"It’s not possible for the entity of law enforcement to be a compassionate, caring governmental agency in black communities. That’s not the training, that’s not the institution."[0]
There's a continuum of what "defund" means, but the idealists are pushing for actual, no-hyperbole defunding and disbanding. Police cannot be made good. They believe would be easier to reduce crime some other way than authorized state violence, and the funds could be redirected to those ways.
[0] https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2020/06/03/black-lives-matte...
Re: Slack Removed a Blog Post Showing How Police Use Its Tech
#43Earlier quoted context omitted.
That is what's becoming apparent right now, yes. I was more of an "a few bad apples" person until this week. But they're making it extremely clear that as a faction they have no regard for anything or anyone but their own power and bravado.
This principle incriminates the protesters just as much. There is widespread rationalization and support for the "few bad apples" perpetrating violence/looting/burning/rioting. There is very little condemnation. Lots of quoting MLK Jr. "rioting is the voice of the unheard" and yet MLK Jr. certainly did not practice or advocate violence. If the protesters can't regulate their own bad apples then how can they judge pol…
I choose to not care about the looters because I know that if they get caught, we won't be giving them a paid vacation then clear them of all wrongdoing.
Re: Slack Removed a Blog Post Showing How Police Use Its Tech
#44Earlier quoted context omitted.
A few years ago I would've thought thought that was an overreaction (assuming police were just using it as customers, and not something like surveillance). This week, I no longer feel that way.
Honest foreigner question: are all US police that "stinky" that any association with them is now bad, or is it an overreaction? Surely there are good police departments, ones that work with the community and not against them? But maybe I'm not seeing it from the perspective of those black employees...
Honest native answer: it depends on which side of the political spectrum you are on. Plenty of citizens are defending the police's actions, even their current actions during the protests, as completely justified. The POTUS doesn't make his fiery speeches in a vacuum; his base completely supports that attitude.
Edit amendment: Folks, OP wasn't asking whether or not the police actions were justified or not justified. He was asking about whether association with them would be interpreted as inherently "stinky" in the future. Whether good or bad, a prospective employer's feelings about a prospective employee's work history with US law enforcement is strongly coupled to their political views. That's true for military service, its true for ICE, and now its true for local police as well.
Re: Slack Removed a Blog Post Showing How Police Use Its Tech
#45Earlier quoted context omitted.
Honest foreigner question: are all US police that "stinky" that any association with them is now bad, or is it an overreaction? Surely there are good police departments, ones that work with the community and not against them? But maybe I'm not seeing it from the perspective of those black employees...
The problem is a lack of accountability for the bad police. If good police are standing by while the bad police are abusing their power, they aren’t really good police. If the bad police are walking away without repercussions or, in some cases, even retaining their taxpayer-paid pensions, we can’t trust the police force as a whole. The job of police is to maintain order, not to protect their own.
You're absolutely right but I don't think holding someone's retirement account over their heads is a good move. Let them keep their pension for the number of years they actually did serve. Strip them of their right to serve sure, but don't go back in time and pull their paycheck.
Re: Slack Removed a Blog Post Showing How Police Use Its Tech
#46Earlier quoted context omitted.
A few years ago I would've thought thought that was an overreaction (assuming police were just using it as customers, and not something like surveillance). This week, I no longer feel that way.
Honest foreigner question: are all US police that "stinky" that any association with them is now bad, or is it an overreaction? Surely there are good police departments, ones that work with the community and not against them? But maybe I'm not seeing it from the perspective of those black employees...
Most police forces and sheriff departments in the US are small and go years or decades between controversy.
Re: Slack Removed a Blog Post Showing How Police Use Its Tech
#47Earlier quoted context omitted.
A few years ago I would've thought thought that was an overreaction (assuming police were just using it as customers, and not something like surveillance). This week, I no longer feel that way.
Honest foreigner question: are all US police that "stinky" that any association with them is now bad, or is it an overreaction? Surely there are good police departments, ones that work with the community and not against them? But maybe I'm not seeing it from the perspective of those black employees...
The issue isn't there are good or bad cops. In any large organization there will be "bad apples" (malicious actors), that just statistically will happen. What is very important is how misconduct is handled, and how these "bad apples" are handled.
Due to the legal concept of qualified immunity, it is very difficult to sue the police for civil or criminal liability. I understand the intent of qualified immunity. The idea is that a police officer did the best they could knowing what they know, and it is very easy to look at things after the fact (hindsight is 20/20), so it makes it easier for a police officer to do their job without constant worry of lawsuit. However, it has been abused to the point that it is next to impossible to sue for criminal/civil liability.
Additionally, there is wide conception that police do not police their own (look up "blue wall of silence"), and police unions are very strong, so it is extremely difficult for an outside organization to police them.
Case in point, it is argued that if it weren't for the cell phone video of George Floyd, the police officers would not have even been charged with misconduct and would still have their jobs, much less criminal charges.
If you have an organization that has a monopoly on violence and there is not a good way to keep that in check, THIS WILL LEAD TO MASSIVE PROBLEMS.
Re: Slack Removed a Blog Post Showing How Police Use Its Tech
#48Earlier quoted context omitted.
Should be this one https://archive.is/iCVq0
403 Forbidden
There's a copy in the Internet Archive as well: http://web.archive.org/web/20170621172438/https://slackhq.co...
Re: Slack Removed a Blog Post Showing How Police Use Its Tech
#49Re: Slack Removed a Blog Post Showing How Police Use Its Tech
#50Have switched from Slack to discord and our team has been happy.
What benefits do you find that discord offers over Slack?