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Things That Happen in Silicon Valley and Also the Soviet Union

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Re: Things That Happen in Silicon Valley and Also the Soviet Union

#241

Post by KirinDave »

vsl wrote: post #239
KirinDave wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, like how you're not allowed to deviate from the views espoused by the ruling political party's policy in public. That one really was super insightful and true.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/tonybradley/2014/04/05/backlash... https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/08/technology/the-culture-wa... https://www.google.com/search?q=James+Damore ?

Damore's anti-feminist routine lines up with the general philosophy of the American political party that controls the house, sentate, and a growing majority on the supreme court. We're literally contemplating how soon before Roe v. Wade will be nullified over here.

Damore's poorly constructed arguments also line up with the suggestions of so-called rationalist personalities online and in print, who have major media distribution and significant representation in media that the American government favors (by not relentlessly attacking).

Tell me again how the ruling party controls everything around you, comrade. But while you're at it, we could maybe talk about how it's not okay to fire Damore for saying women should be paired up to code because they're genetically predisposed to be less good at it, but it's evidently extremely good that Tesla uses at-will employment to fire potential union organizers. We can find out how deep the rabbit hole of his victim complex is together. I brought rope and torches!

Re: Things That Happen in Silicon Valley and Also the Soviet Union

#242

Post by eli_gottlieb »

israel_53763 wrote: post #240
eli_gottlieb wrote: post #163

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I find it hard to argue that the USA is more of a democracy than Iran, though admittedly, that's because Iran has a very "American" system where anyone can run in elections, provided the ruling elite approves them as within-bounds for the system as a whole. Both could perhaps be characterized as "managed democracies" with highly authoritarian law-enforcement systems more than either is a full-blown dictatorship. Isra…

You make some weird, intellectual oh-so-clever-with-italics comment, and no one can follow it. Israel is a democracy. On level with USA, England, etc. It also has many of the same problems. Multi parties are encouraged. Courts are independent and respect and very powerful. Freedom of speech is respected. Property rights are strong. Business is free. Work force is protected. If you want a change - please fight for it.…

Oh shut up, Mr. Misrad haChutz. If you actually read what I said, you'd notice that I actually labeled Israel the sanest and most democratic of the bunch I'm criticizing: it has a multi-party framework, albeit one in which major media are explicitly allied to the ruling party and the PM smears journalists. But, as I said, Israel's chief problem is that the center and the left don't seem to know how to stop condescending to Mizrahim and the Periferiyah and actually stand for election on a platform that addresses the facts of Israeli life today.

Re: Things That Happen in Silicon Valley and Also the Soviet Union

#243

Post by closeparen »

Johnny555 wrote: post #177
closeparen wrote: post #63

> living five adults to a two room apartment This one has become terrifyingly normalized - even within the industry, people who don’t live this way are decadent irresponsible pigs. People who resent living this way are entitled redneck whiners. And despite all that, don’t you dare suggest you’re not really a member of the evil elite 1%.

Where is that? I work for a startup in the peninsula, and most of our employees over the age of 25 live by themselves (or with a romantic partner). And I don't know of any that live more than one to a bedroom. Many of the younger employees do live in shared housing, but then, so did I when I moved to SF and that was nearly 3 decades ago.

I don’t know of anyone else living alone at my household-name employer in SF. (I do, which means I save and travel less than most of them, but I get weird looks whenever it comes up).

Re: Things That Happen in Silicon Valley and Also the Soviet Union

#244

Post by pm90 »

digi_owl wrote: post #193
coolspot wrote: post #157

> - living five adults to a two room apartment > - 'totally not illegal taxi' taxis by private citizens moonlighting to make ends meet > - the plight of the working class is discussed mainly by people who do no work > - the currency most people are talking about is fake and worthless So true it hurts. > - mandatory workplace political education Is it really a thing?

> - the currency most people are talking about is fake and worthless Not quite sure what that is a dig at. Unless you are dealing in fresh produce or something, everything can be considered fake and worthless... As for the political education thing: I don't think they would be overt (or perhaps even conscious) but they do have various team building exercises, no?

It’s a dig at startup equity.

Re: Things That Happen in Silicon Valley and Also the Soviet Union

#245

Post by sireat »

mc32 wrote: post #44
zug_zug wrote: post #12

"- being told you are constructing utopia while the system crumbles around you" This is the one that resonated with me. Obviously "the system" as a whole isn't objectively crumbling by traditional measures like GDP, but there were things that could give that feeling: Homeless sleeping in the subway and on the main streets, the smells, crime so rampant it's basically ignored (my car was broken into > 5 times), working…

The one thing that you didn’t get in the Soviet Union was everyday crime, well, what we understand as crime. Sure they could and did send people off to the camps for weird [political and crimes against the state] offenses, but property crimes and such were close to non existent.

On what basis do you think there was no everyday crime in Soviet Union?

Having lived in SU there absolutely was normal crime - violent and nonviolent. Levels of crime were presumably like everywhere else.

Why wouldn't there be property crime?

There absolutely was everyday crime:

Burglary Stealing (personal and state property) Hooliganism (always a favorite in the news) Frauds / Confidence Games Firearms and Narcotics related offenses were less prevalent than in the US Rapes (not mentioned loudly) Sex related crimes in general were suppressed in the news Murders (also rarely heard at the time but they were there)

only one I cant find is Carjacking.

There were also economic crimes which even had a special KGB section to deal with them in addition to police.

-Meaning large scale stealing within state enterprises(ie stealing from the corporation that you work for) by higher up directors -Various black markets / money exchanges -Illegal enterprises down to midnight video services

In fact during that time official newspapers did not cover the murders as much as they did cover the lesser property crimes and performed various awareness rising functions.

Now with the opening of police archives a lot of more brutal crimes have been brought up.

Re: Things That Happen in Silicon Valley and Also the Soviet Union

#246

Post by mirkules »

woah wrote: post #38
oblio wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Aren't people in the tech industry numerous and powerful enough to lobby for humane conditions for their fellow citizens?

The tech industry does overwhelmingly vote for more housing, but many people in tech are young, newly arrived, and very busy. In California’s Byzantine political system, whoever can sit in the right meetings for longest and file the right paperwork at the right time has political power. This ends up being elderly homeowners, and the nonprofits that earn their money servicing the homeless (SF spends more money on this…

Frankly, I find the notion that people are too busy to fight for causes they believe in laughable. Either make the effort to effect change or accept that you are part of the problem. Face the truth.

I don't understand how someone can believe in something, but only when it's convenient.

Re: Things That Happen in Silicon Valley and Also the Soviet Union

#247

Post by botverse »

neuland wrote: post #62
shadowtree wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A good test is your view on the 2nd Iraq War. For background, as facts matter: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_War "After 9/11, the Bush Administration national security team actively debated an invasion of Iraq. On the day of the attacks, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld asked his aides for: "best info fast. Judge whether good enough hit Saddam Hussein at same time. Not only Osama bin Laden."[72] President Bu…

I'm not really sure how the 2nd Iraq War is a testament to American evil. It sounds to me like you're saying the invasion was unjustified? But, is there really anyone who thought Saddam was a good guy? He was very obviously a brutal dictator. So, at the very least there's one fewer of those around. Sure, WMD turned out to be a total fabrication and the Iraq War ended up being a misguided attempt at democracy building…

I think it’s very idealistic to think that the war was for helping the oppressed people of Iraq. Iraq War costed $2.4 trillion[1], figure out who pocketed it and then you will have a picture closer to reality. That picture tells me that the intentions were more corrupt than pure.

[1] https://wikipedia.org/wiki/Financial_cost_of_the_Iraq_War

Re: Things That Happen in Silicon Valley and Also the Soviet Union

#248

Post by aagha »

iskander wrote: post #55
jpzisme wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'll go ahead and say the United States is the greatest country the world has ever seen. It's not perfect, but once you live in other countries for a bit, even if you enjoy the experience, you appreciate the U.S. a lot more.

Meh. I've spent enough time in the Netherlands and Israel to know that the quality of life in both countries is, in many ways, way better than here. Socialized medicine and cheap education go a really long way toward making people happy (even if they have less disposable income).

Where do you live now? Why?

Re: Things That Happen in Silicon Valley and Also the Soviet Union

#249

Post by harambae »

KirinDave wrote: post #241
vsl wrote: post #239

Earlier quoted context omitted.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/tonybradley/2014/04/05/backlash... https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/08/technology/the-culture-wa... https://www.google.com/search?q=James+Damore ?

Damore's anti-feminist routine lines up with the general philosophy of the American political party that controls the house, sentate, and a growing majority on the supreme court. We're literally contemplating how soon before Roe v. Wade will be nullified over here. Damore's poorly constructed arguments also line up with the suggestions of so-called rationalist personalities online and in print, who have major media d…

>We're literally contemplating how soon before Roe v. Wade will be nullified over here.

There's currently 1 vote for that (Clarence Thomas). If Trump's pick joins that bandwagon there will be a whopping 2. None of this hysteria is good for America.

Re: Things That Happen in Silicon Valley and Also the Soviet Union

#250

Post by d0lph »

toomanybeersies wrote: post #230
d0lph wrote: post #182

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Iranians can revolt, most huge social changes requires revolt. Government is a result of the people, if the majority were not ok with it I think it would not last long. To me this implies on some level that the people of the country like their government.

How well is that working out for Syria and Libya at the moment? The whole concept of a dictatorship is that the ruling party has more power and can keep the people subjugated. The civilian populace don't have tanks and helicopters.

Guerrilla warfare is an extremely effective form of revolt. A bunch of people taking on a tank head on, a death sentence. But that's where sabotage should come into play.
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