Google fires activist Rebecca Rivers and 3 others
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Google fires activist Rebecca Rivers and 3 others
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Re: Google fires activist Rebecca Rivers and 3 others
#2Google did this to themselves when they invited and fostered this culture. It had its naive merits.
But like many such attempts, what happens is these groups with good intentions get coöpted and controlled by others with bigger agendas-agendas which often are not in alignment with leadership.
When the PLA got too strong Mao devised the Red Guards. He didn’t want another Menshevik - Bolshevik-like episode.
Nor do companies.
It’s one thing to let people “have a say” in constructing their workplace atmosphere; to make it coöperative, inclusive etc., things which align with productivity— it’s another to interfere with the economics of the company.
Re: Google fires activist Rebecca Rivers and 3 others
#3Seems like a bit of a National Labor Relations Act violation. Bizzare how the more defensive a company gets the more it is likely to violate labor laws.
Re: Google fires activist Rebecca Rivers and 3 others
#4Google did this to themselves when they invited and fostered this culture. It had its naive merits. But like many such attempts, what happens is these groups with good intentions get coöpted and controlled by others with bigger agendas-agendas which often are not in alignment with leadership. When the PLA got too strong Mao devised the Red Guards. He didn’t want another Menshevik - Bolshevik-like episode. Nor do comp…
I bet several Google employees object to working on military/govt force projects. Enough jobs to go around.
Re: Google fires activist Rebecca Rivers and 3 others
#5Google did this to themselves when they invited and fostered this culture. It had its naive merits. But like many such attempts, what happens is these groups with good intentions get coöpted and controlled by others with bigger agendas-agendas which often are not in alignment with leadership. When the PLA got too strong Mao devised the Red Guards. He didn’t want another Menshevik - Bolshevik-like episode. Nor do comp…
I bet several Google employees object to working on military/govt force projects. Enough jobs to go around.
There probably are. They tend to be idealists who if it ever came time for them to set rules in their newly formed society would lean on the same instincts to keep people who disagree with them out when realpolitik emerges.
Re: Google fires activist Rebecca Rivers and 3 others
#6Google did this to themselves when they invited and fostered this culture. It had its naive merits. But like many such attempts, what happens is these groups with good intentions get coöpted and controlled by others with bigger agendas-agendas which often are not in alignment with leadership. When the PLA got too strong Mao devised the Red Guards. He didn’t want another Menshevik - Bolshevik-like episode. Nor do comp…
You can't have it both ways by using "don't be evil" as your mantra for a decade and then disregarding everything when it is no longer convenient.
Re: Google fires activist Rebecca Rivers and 3 others
#7Google did this to themselves when they invited and fostered this culture. It had its naive merits. But like many such attempts, what happens is these groups with good intentions get coöpted and controlled by others with bigger agendas-agendas which often are not in alignment with leadership. When the PLA got too strong Mao devised the Red Guards. He didn’t want another Menshevik - Bolshevik-like episode. Nor do comp…
You can't have it both ways by using "don't be evil" as your mantra for a decade and then disregarding everything when it is no longer convenient.
I think they really meant it. It was the antithesis to the Microsoft of the early aughts. But now they have other, broader goals to work for. Arguably they have become more borg-ish than MS of the 00's.
But they’ve come to realize that at a certain point in size idealism doesn’t scale (coöperatives, hippie communes, etc) and others will eat your lunch if you encumber yourself with idealism (which can also go in the negative direction (when idealists find conflict amongst themselves and a loser is defined).
Re: Google fires activist Rebecca Rivers and 3 others
#8Google did this to themselves when they invited and fostered this culture. It had its naive merits. But like many such attempts, what happens is these groups with good intentions get coöpted and controlled by others with bigger agendas-agendas which often are not in alignment with leadership. When the PLA got too strong Mao devised the Red Guards. He didn’t want another Menshevik - Bolshevik-like episode. Nor do comp…
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Re: Google fires activist Rebecca Rivers and 3 others
#9Google did this to themselves when they invited and fostered this culture. It had its naive merits. But like many such attempts, what happens is these groups with good intentions get coöpted and controlled by others with bigger agendas-agendas which often are not in alignment with leadership. When the PLA got too strong Mao devised the Red Guards. He didn’t want another Menshevik - Bolshevik-like episode. Nor do comp…
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Your points are great and valid but isn't it even simpler to point out the flaw in OPs argument: if the end-all and be-all is the economics of the company then they should surely be fine going in to work tomorrow and offering their boss a 20% pay cut to help contribute to the economics of the company...
Re: Google fires activist Rebecca Rivers and 3 others
#10Earlier quoted context omitted.
You can't have it both ways by using "don't be evil" as your mantra for a decade and then disregarding everything when it is no longer convenient.
I think they really meant it. It was the antithesis to the Microsoft of the early aughts. But now they have other, broader goals to work for. Arguably they have become more borg-ish than MS of the 00's. But they’ve come to realize that at a certain point in size idealism doesn’t scale (coöperatives, hippie communes, etc) and others will eat your lunch if you encumber yourself with idealism (which can also go in the n…
> others will eat your lunch
Thats not what would happen to Google. What it would mean is Google has a slightly slower path to being a trillion dollar company.