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The tech sec­tor might be evil

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Re: The tech sec­tor might be evil

#161

Post by tachyonbeam »

outoftacos wrote: post #147
davedx wrote: post #2

Good summary of the current political climate around the tech sector. To be honest, this has been a long time coming -- I've been reading pieces with disdain for "Silicon Valley technocrats" for a while now. It is picking up pace now, though... and the EU has already fired quite a few shots. "I left out Twit­ter be­cause it’s not ac­tu­al­ly a com­pa­ny, it’s a dys­func­tion­al non-profit that ac­ci­den­tal­ly pro­vi…

The other angle which I haven't seen much written about yet (hint hint aspiring journalists) is I personally know a good number of the mid and high level employees at these companies, and they are becoming increasingly disillusioned by the day. They just don't want to be a part of this bullshit system anymore. Especially at Google and Facebook, they seem to be more authoritarian than some toppled dictatorships of the…

> Fortunately it's a great time for radical career shifts, especially if you always wanted to be an artist.

Can you elaborate? Genuinely curious.

Re: The tech sec­tor might be evil

#162

Post by kerbalspacepro »

dforrestwilson wrote: post #142

This is bigger than the tech sector. Look at the credit companies. 3 big names. One of them just had a massive data breach. So far the CEO has kept his job, and no major business customers have left the platform (nor will they).

Better to say "credit bureaus". Your local credit union is a "credit company" but nobody would say its evil (just insecure).

Re: The tech sec­tor might be evil

#163

Post by taway_1212 »

robin_reala wrote: post #151
taway_1212 wrote: post #139

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's a big difference though. A country without a solid defence sector is not really sovereign - it has to buy its weapons from other countries, which can cut the supply at any time, or just refuse to sell you current-gen tech altogether. There simply would be no USA without its defense sector - it is essential to its existence. Citizens of other countries (France, UK, Sweden etc.) understand that and you don't he…

Well, as a citizen of the UK who’s currently living in Sweden, I’ll provide the counterpoint that I refuse to work with any of our morally corrupt ‘defence’ industries and always bring it up as a red line with any company I interview at.

Which industry is not morally corupt then? I can see maybe single companies in given industries not behaving like total assholes, but on the whole I think all industries are rotten.

Re: The tech sec­tor might be evil

#164

Post by BatFastard »

RickJWagner wrote: post #122
hoorayimhelping wrote: post #119

> The oth­er thing that’s new is that they’re thought lead­ers who are pro­gres­sives and lib­er­al­s; just like most of us in the tech pro­fes­sion­ I think most people in tech are probably more moderate-to-liberal and it's that progressives are the loudest voices politically right now, so it seems like tech is more left leaning than it is. Also, tech exists in places other than the coasts.

I tend to be conservative, and I work in tech. It feels to me like a repressive atmosphere. Conservatives are muzzled or eliminated. It's not a healthy environment for anyone.

Calling yourself a conservative is meaningless.

The US has shifted away from being a republic to being more of an oligarchy over the last 30 years. So if you are a supporter of oligarchs stand up and be counted.

If you are a fiscal conservative you should be pissed that the republicans put the country farther in debt than the democrats do.

If you are a social conservative, what the fuck is wrong with you? If you want to live like the Amish, go for it. But you dont see the Amish trying to impose their way of life on others do you?

So yes, people who's ideas feel repressive or too far out there either learn to monitor their own extreme ideas or they are shunned. That's how a civil society works.

Re: The tech sec­tor might be evil

#165

Post by BatFastard »

blowski wrote: post #114

More evil than any of the following? * Banking * Mining * Clothing * Pharmaceuticals * Media * Agriculture etc. Every industry has its good points and bad points, good people and bad people. Moreover, what one person thinks is evil another might think is completely harmless or even a good thing. I suspect our discomfort is more with big businesses making massive amounts of money. That has more to do with modern capit…

Evil is as evil does.

Re: The tech sec­tor might be evil

#166

Post by tsunamifury »

throwaway613834 wrote: post #4

What sucks is I can't just tell my friends "you're working for an evil company -- just look at {insert 5 evil things they did in the past couple years}". It sucks even more that these are some of the kindest and most caring people I know, with better moral character than myself -- I almost feel they somehow got brainwashed into their jobs. But who would enjoy hearing that? At best they would ignore it; at worst you'd…

People are more responsible for what they do than what their company does. I'd invite you to judge your peers more based on their individual choices than who pays them. If you are an American are you responsible for the evil of that nation? You'd probably say no. So goes with your tech friends.

Re: The tech sec­tor might be evil

#167

Post by sverige »

throwaway613834 wrote: post #24
sillysaurus3 wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The most productive thing: Voice dissent. Ensure the higher-ups have thought through their position and the consequences. Assume they know things you don't. Ultimately, follow the order. Once it's their call, you're absolved of any responsibility. Both morally and in every meaningful sense.

Okay, so how do I get my friends to do that is the question. Conveying this requires getting them to admit there is something wrong with what their employer is doing in the first place, and at that point I'd be already past the obstacle I'm trying to figure out how to overcome.

After reading most of the comments, I think you tell them bluntly what you're thinking.

If they listen to you, maybe they'll quit. If you lose their friendship, you can make new ones who don't work for evil companies.

And if they keep doing evil things for a living but still want to be your friend, maybe you should be the one to end the friendship. I've done that a few times. It gets easier with practice.

Re: The tech sec­tor might be evil

#168

Post by 3131s »

taway_1212 wrote: post #139
3131s wrote: post #137

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just like the guy pulling the lever in the gas chamber.

There's a big difference though. A country without a solid defence sector is not really sovereign - it has to buy its weapons from other countries, which can cut the supply at any time, or just refuse to sell you current-gen tech altogether. There simply would be no USA without its defense sector - it is essential to its existence. Citizens of other countries (France, UK, Sweden etc.) understand that and you don't he…

I'm not universally against weapons manufacturing or the defense sector, but if your company is selling weapons to Saudi Arabia (or the US military, really) you should do some serious introspection about whether you are harming the world for your own profit and / or intellectual curiosity.

Re: The tech sec­tor might be evil

#169

Post by bigtunacan »

cyberpunk0 wrote: post #130
mrtksn wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Twitter is the medium about what's happening RIGHT NOW. In before you would open the TV or the radio to get information about what's happening right now but these days many people would look at Titter to get information about "RIGHT NOW". It could be mundane things about the lives of other people or it could be an event that's affecting large number of people. If something is happening, there would be reports of obse…

Arguably it's a medium for unimportant things happening right now. anecdotal but I see maybe 1% useful tweets and 99% garbage.

I would second this argument. I quit Twitter about two years ago after realizing that I mostly don't care about the things that are "happening right now" according to Twitter.
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