Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Google fires employee who protested Israel tech event, shuts forum

cnbc.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

251–260 of 368 posts

Re: Google fires employee who protested Israel tech event, shuts forum

#251

Post by ameister14 »

segasaturn wrote: post #168
ameister14 wrote: post #87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>I would argue that Google has more power over us now than King George III had over his subjects in 1773 This is not the first time I have seen bizarre hyperbole like this - it's quite strange. Russia, China, and King George III all have and had people killed for dissent. Google didn't murder this engineer, imprison him, or anything of the sort. They just stopped paying his salary.

No, you're right. In Russia, China and 18th century England, suppression of speech is done either out the barrel of a gun or whisking people off to jail. In America it's done by sending the speaker to the unemployment line, or the food bank, or the homeless shelter - it's very likely that this employee will be blacklisted by the industry and never have the opportunity to live a stable life again. Apparently this outc…

I really doubt that Google has the power to blacklist someone from the industry, or that they would take steps to do so in this instance even if they did have such power. I have yet to see an example of Google doing so or anything that makes me believe they have such power.

Even if they did - it would be a significantly lesser power than the ability to execute people, and would belong to the 'low justice' in a feudal era, not 'high justice' which the King possessed. So rather than the power of King George, Google would have the power of a Manorial Court.

Re: Google fires employee who protested Israel tech event, shuts forum

#252

Post by sanderjd »

glomph wrote: post #232
sanderjd wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Honest question: Is this a common function of a union? For instance, I don't seem to recall hearing much about auto-workers taking ethical stances and being protected from termination by their union. But it's also not something I've paid much attention to, so maybe this is indeed something unions do. I'm genuinely curious.

Historically yes it is a massive part of what unions have done and continue to do. For example there have been many examples of dock workers refusing to transport South African or Israeli goods. That this is done as a collective action organised by union is what protects workers from individual retaliation.

Ok, that makes sense, but are there examples of individual action, where the union then protects that individual from the consequences of that action?

Re: Google fires employee who protested Israel tech event, shuts forum

#254

Post by Izkata »

lordfrito wrote: post #246
PheonixPharts wrote: post #226

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you earnestly believe there's no important distinction between employees of a multinational corporation and a guest in your private home then I don't think there's any more possible room for discussion. I am curious though, in what specific context would you "defend to the death" my right to free speech? It seems strange to be willing to offer your life for something with so many terms and conditions applied.

> If you earnestly believe there's no important distinction between employees of a multinational corporation and a guest in your private home then I don't think there's any more possible room for discussion. There are important distinctions between these two concepts, but not for the sake of the argument here. Freedom of speech is about the relationship between citizens and their government -- not citizens and each o…

You're arguing the US freedom of speech law, the others are arguing the principle the law is based on. The quote in your profile usually refers to the principle, which is why everyone seems to be confused.

Re: Google fires employee who protested Israel tech event, shuts forum

#255

Post by bjourne »

lordfrito wrote: post #125

Lately it seems that more and more rank-and-file employees believe that a company has some sort of moral obligation to take their political opinions into consideration. Corporations aren't democracies. Unless you're an executive or high ranking decision maker, you're along for the ride. I don't ask my kids for their opinion about my home budget, what house I should buy, etc. So it is at work. Expecting a company to k…

> Lately it seems that more and more rank-and-file employees believe that a company has some sort of moral obligation to take their political opinions into consideration.

Flip the argument around. Rank-and-file employees believe they have the right to not shut the fuck up about issues that concern them. Emigrate to a more authoritarian country if you don't like it.

Re: Google fires employee who protested Israel tech event, shuts forum

#256

Post by bjourne »

mise_en_place wrote: post #22

My old manager put it best: No politics and religion in the workplace. Seriously, it's as simple as that. We are here to work, not philosophize about politics and current events.

"No politics" mostly means only politics that suit those in power. E.g fundraisers for Ukraine is, but not fundraisers for Gaza. Company-sponsored LGBTQ events, but none about collective bargaining rights.

Re: Google fires employee who protested Israel tech event, shuts forum

#257

Post by tuatoru »

wwweston wrote: post #81

Israel is an inherently inequitable and therefore likely terminally conflict-ridden ethnostate. Israel is a reasonable reaction to a long and terrible history of ethnic persecution. What's going on in Gaza is an unacceptable humanitarian tragedy that is a reaction to an unacceptable attack. There are players on both "sides" of this conflict that are driving it because they actually want the conflict, people who never…

Up until Hamas attacked Israel, Palestine relied on Israel to collect taxes. Collecting taxes is the bmost basic government function there is.

Hamas had twenty years to become a government. It was uninterested in doing so. Israel is not the genocidal agent here.

Re: Google fires employee who protested Israel tech event, shuts forum

#258

Post by runarberg »

slenk wrote: post #250
snird wrote: post #244

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

Neither side is doing good

Your parent has been flagged to death, but they are simply wrong. All ceasefire agreements so far have called for the release of all hostages. By far the majority of released hostages got their freedom via a temporary ceasefire. A call for ceasefire is by extension a call for the release of hostages.

Hamas has always maintained that they are willing to release the hostages in exchange for a permanent ceasefire.

On the international stage it is actually the actors who are against ceasefire (primarily the USA) who have vetoed all resolutions which calls for the release of hostages.

It is actually the reverse, those against a ceasefire are those who are preventing the hostages from being freed.

Re: Google fires employee who protested Israel tech event, shuts forum

#259

Post by disqard »

lordfrito wrote: post #195
LordDragonfang wrote: post #186

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While it's absolutely true that corporations are amoral dictatorships, not democracies, companies like Google spend an awful lot of PR time and money virtue signaling otherwise (and I use that term not in a derogatory way, but a literal way - they are deliberately signaling virtue, often in conflict with their actual actions.) If Google want to pretend their founding principal is "do the right thing", and put that fr…

> companies like Google spend an awful lot of PR time and money virtue signaling otherwise Oh I totally agree, I have zero love for Google or FAANG etc... they need to get reigned in. It's just that, on this particular point (tolerating disruptive workplace behavior), I'm on the side of Google (and every other company) here.

On a tangent, I find it a funny coincidence that both your handles start with "lord" -- it's like watching a debate in the House of Lords (UK's "Upper Parliament") :)

Re: Google fires employee who protested Israel tech event, shuts forum

#260

Post by lern_too_spel »

lordfrito wrote: post #218
archagon wrote: post #214

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't have an opinion on this particular incident, but if I work at a company that suddenly starts making military tech, and I find a critical mass of coworkers to unionize with me and protest the decision, then the company will have little choice but to back down.

Sure... but that's not what happened here. This employee single handedly took matters into their own hands and disrupted a company event.

It wasn't a company event, at least not an event of the company he worked for. It was a talk by someone from his company at a conference promoting Israeli tech companies.
Post reply on HN