To the top with you! This almost exactly mirrors my experience, right down to last year being my first PyCon and giving a lightning talk this year for the first time. It was an amazing experience, and I applaud all those who worked so hard to make it great for everyone, Jesse Noller especially.
What really happened at PyCon 2013
31–40 of 109 posts
Re: What really happened at PyCon 2013
#32Earlier quoted context omitted.
Is this a troll? I don't know your history, but I've heard that you have one, so... If this is a troll, someone let me know, please. Otherwise... >It's designed in a way that makes it very difficult for women to fit in, in any stable and reliable way. Additionally You can't just make a statement, not provide evidence, and then say "additionally...". You haven't proven your first point. What sexist assumptions is whit…
I don't know your history, but I've heard that you have one Only one? I have, like, at least five or six, my friend. What sexist assumptions is white-collar Work [sic] culture based on? And how is it designed such that it is difficult for women to fit in? Dedication and ability are assessed, in most corporations, based on antiquated, counterproductive, and fascistic reliability measures that disfavor, for one example…
You write in such a protracted, drawn-out fashion that it is hard to understand what you are saying. Please permit me to clarify.
>Dedication and ability are assessed, in most corporations, based on antiquated, counterproductive, and fascistic reliability measures that disfavor, for one example, taking maternity (or paternity) leave or dedicating substantial energy to childcare
White-collar work inherently discriminates against women because they could possibly get pregnant. Is this what you are saying?
>You really think making $250,000 plus commission is "risky"
Yes, that is why people are hired at such high salaries. Because they do well for a couple of years and then flame out, never to work in the industry again. Again, you are clearly far removed from the industry so I don't fault you for not knowing how compensation works in said industry. But it isn't like you're walking into a golden ticket. If you don't meet bar, you don't get your bonus, which is more often than not the bulk of your "salary". And then you get canned. No remorse. that is risk.
>it's not personally risky to be an employee.
I don't understand how you can say this if you've actually worked for Wall Street firms.
>Like losing your savings (bootstrapping failure)
Smart founders don't tap their savings dry on an unsure bet.
>Playing games with other peoples' money (and getting a resume/credibility boost no matter what happens) isn't nearly as risky as putting 3 years of your life into something that might wreck your career for reasons that aren't your fault.
Except that it is way MORE risky. If you start a company and fail, at least you can say "I started a company and failed" and the Silicon Valley Brigade will give you a job as a Rails programmer. If you fail slinging options, you're never working in that field again. Literally.
I agree with your assessment of VCistan, now that you've expanded on it.
Re: What really happened at PyCon 2013
#33Earlier quoted context omitted.
I don't know your history, but I've heard that you have one Only one? I have, like, at least five or six, my friend. What sexist assumptions is white-collar Work [sic] culture based on? And how is it designed such that it is difficult for women to fit in? Dedication and ability are assessed, in most corporations, based on antiquated, counterproductive, and fascistic reliability measures that disfavor, for one example…
You write in such a protracted, drawn-out fashion that it is hard to understand what you are saying. Please permit me to clarify. >Dedication and ability are assessed, in most corporations, based on antiquated, counterproductive, and fascistic reliability measures that disfavor, for one example, taking maternity (or paternity) leave or dedicating substantial energy to childcare White-collar work inherently discrimina…
"If you start a company and fail, at least you can say "I started a company and failed" and the Silicon Valley Brigade will give you a job as a Rails programmer."
Haha, this happened to me exactly. I didn't even know Ruby. Or Rails!
Re: What really happened at PyCon 2013
#34Earlier quoted context omitted.
I don't know your history, but I've heard that you have one Only one? I have, like, at least five or six, my friend. What sexist assumptions is white-collar Work [sic] culture based on? And how is it designed such that it is difficult for women to fit in? Dedication and ability are assessed, in most corporations, based on antiquated, counterproductive, and fascistic reliability measures that disfavor, for one example…
You write in such a protracted, drawn-out fashion that it is hard to understand what you are saying. Please permit me to clarify. >Dedication and ability are assessed, in most corporations, based on antiquated, counterproductive, and fascistic reliability measures that disfavor, for one example, taking maternity (or paternity) leave or dedicating substantial energy to childcare White-collar work inherently discrimina…
Your point about the fate of failed options traders does not gel with what I've seen. Yes, you get canned if you do poorly. Sometimes, just for being unlucky. (Startups work that way, too. Every job, these days, does that.) Also, it's correct that bonus is most of total compensation for top people-- sometimes over 90%-- which means not getting one really blows, but Wall Street salaries aren't exactly bad. If you were expecting a $3 million bonus, on top of your $250,000 salary, and got a Goose Egg during Comp, then are canned a month later with 6 months' severance, well... my heart bleeds for you. You've got half a year to get another job and, unless the market's completely fucked (cf. 2008) you'll get a promotion. Failed trading options? You'll trade something else if you want to trade, or you can move elsewhere. VCs will fund anyone with the Finance Stamp of Approval, at least in New York. Foursquare for ostrich farm? Here's your rocket fuel, now hire some ninjas and move the needle.
Personally, though, I wouldn't want to be a trader. Quant is as close to that game as I'd want to go. I've seen what traders do and it doesn't look fun. It's not professionally risky, but it's still very stressful. I'll give you that.
Sure, you can get another job after a failed startup, but usually as a subordinate, and that's viewed as dishonorable after 35 and untenable past 40. If you fail as a derivatives trader, VC-istan will let you be a founder. Sure, you're going from $250k plus a possible 1000% bonus to $200k and 15% of a startup. Again, my heart bleeds.
Re: What really happened at PyCon 2013
#35Earlier quoted context omitted.
That's an interesting point. I don't have any real basis to generalize, but I have been in a number of situations where business people think that tech people are too politically correct. Coming from a general view that tech isn't really a role model in that category to begin with, that was surprising to encounter. My limited time in Europe suggests that European culture on the whole is less attentive on this subject…
Without overgeneralizing too much, Europe does not have the same culture of political correctness as the US does. If someone makes a joke people get offended less quickly. In this case people would just think of the jokers as immature and move on. The only exception I can think of is concerning the holocaust. EDIT: Anyway, I can recommend anyone to live in another culture for some time in their life. First you will f…
I'm an American who lives in Denmark, and I agree, but I'm not sure it is people getting offended less quickly in general, versus on specific subjects. There are plenty of ideas that Danes consider to be completely crazy, not really debatable in polite company. For example, suggesting that abortion should be illegal, which is a mainstream position in the USA, is such a crazy-far-right position in Denmark that you couldn't bring it up in a regular social setting. Also, suggesting that healthcare should be a purely private responsibility, not guaranteed by the state, would position you as quite far-right, with even many far-right people distancing themselves from the full extent of that position.
On the other hand, Danes can come across as rather crass about some subjects, especially race.
Re: What really happened at PyCon 2013
#36Author here. It's so nice to see the conversation get back to all the good things that go on at PyCon.
Re: What really happened at PyCon 2013
#37Earlier quoted context omitted.
The truth, which is ugly, is that the white-collar Work culture that has existed for over 200 years is based on some extremely sexist assumptions. It's designed in a way that makes it very difficult for women to fit in, in any stable and reliable way. Additionally, most of the things about Work that make it hard for women are also deeply defective attributes (e.g. male dominance hierarchies) of it that are maladaptiv…
Is this a troll? I don't know your history, but I've heard that you have one, so... If this is a troll, someone let me know, please. Otherwise... >It's designed in a way that makes it very difficult for women to fit in, in any stable and reliable way. Additionally You can't just make a statement, not provide evidence, and then say "additionally...". You haven't proven your first point. What sexist assumptions is whit…
"The entire industry is based on risk."
The entire industry is based on a business model which only a monkey could fuck up, yet the industry manages to fuck it up (as Taleb writes).
You do realize that all these risk computation are totally bogus and led to big trouble in 2008 right?
And that there's no risk because when the shit hit the fan bankster simply go say they're too big too fail and get bailed out.
And at that point they're effectively on life support and, still as Taleb is saying it, they should shut the fuck up.
Don't talk about risk when the only risk is being bailed out by public money once you, of course, miscomputed the risk.
Wanna talk about all the banks in the eurozone that needed a bail out in the recent years since Greece defaulted because they didn't correctly analyze the Greece state default risk?
Hint: it's far from over and far more fucked up than most people think and more banks will be bailed out again with public money (starting with Cyprus right now).
Yet in 1999 economists did warn about precisely that: about the euro that would lead to both Spain and Greece doing state default. Who listened?
Where in the financial world did anyone listen to that and take that risk into account? Nowhere.
Nobody.
Because public money is always here to bail out.
So please stop telling us there's risk. It's all a freakin' broken model and the entire financial system ain't there to provide liquidity anymore: it's become something out of control trying to shift as much money around as possible in order to generate as much "rake" as possible.
And if these monkeys didn't even correctly manage the risk on something as essential as state debt, when having all the information available to correctly compute such a risk (including warning from economists that defaults would be coming), what makes you think they'd be able to compute the risk on more complicated products, like CDS and all the crazy stuff that this industry simply makes up in order to take a bigger rake on all the money shifted around?
It's a bunch of quants who've lost it: they're out of touch with the real world and can't understand something as basic as the inevitability of a state defaulting when facing the facts.
And you're trying to tell us that they know what taking risk is?
Risk is entrepreneurs putting their personal belongings on the line. Not a bunch of sick gamblers using broken models to try to generate more and more money with the public money that is keeping their employers alive.
"The black swan" is a pretty good book. Of course it's not "nice" towards people like you. Sadly he was right and predicted correctly what would happen, contrarily to all the supposedly "risk takers" you seem to be so fond of because they'd be taking such amazing risks.
Re: What really happened at PyCon 2013
#38I had a great time at PyCon. My son who is 7 attended young coders and learned a lot. All the kids got Pi's too so now we have two Pi's to work on. I did not even hear about the Twitter incident. I consider it a twitter incident and not real.
It was really, really cool to see all the young folks around this year. I'm glad your son could come.
Re: What really happened at PyCon 2013
#39In the Adria Richards trial there are 2 upstanding people. Jim Frankiln (CEO of Sendgrid) Who offered not only a pertinent, but fair fair reaction to this entire thing, but also The Pycon staff members. Who, without ego or vendetta, enforced the rules as described. I salute both of these people.
Re: What really happened at PyCon 2013
#40Thank you for posting this. I wasn't at PyCon 2013, but I really wish the discussion would get back to the fact that 99% of what happens when technical people get together is positive and cool. It's really sad that the ridiculous 1% gets so much attention. I actually don't think technology people are that bad, not as a class. Most types of ambitious male business people are a lot more vulgar and perverse than the tec…
That's an interesting point. I don't have any real basis to generalize, but I have been in a number of situations where business people think that tech people are too politically correct. Coming from a general view that tech isn't really a role model in that category to begin with, that was surprising to encounter. My limited time in Europe suggests that European culture on the whole is less attentive on this subject…
From my view as a Scandinavian your culture seems much more obsessed about sex and punishment than you should. 3-strike system and schools with "zero tolerance" policies are unthinkable here.
I also think it's strange to see how you try to protect TV viewers from nipples and the "F-word".
It's not surprising that it produces people like AR who thinks any offence is worth fighting.