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Like Peter Thiel, Tech Workers Feel Alienated by Silicon Valley ‘Echo Chamber’

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Re: Like Peter Thiel, Tech Workers Feel Alienated by Silicon Valley ‘Echo Chamber’

#561

Post by jdavis703 »

avmich wrote: post #542
jdavis703 wrote: post #531

Earlier quoted context omitted.

OP is clearly talking about people he personally knows. I have to say I concur with OP, but that’s just anecdote. Looking at 2016 voting habits in the Bay Area, Donald Trump got double digit election returns in every county. That’s not even factoring "never Trump" conservatives who voted 3rd party or stayed home. So there are a fair amount of conservatives here. For comparison there are more Trump voters in San Franc…

Did you include those who didn't vote, but would vote for Democrats? In other words, double digit election returns are from those who voted, or "votes for Trump as percent of eligible voters"?

The latter, "votes for Trump as percent of eligible voter." One of your sibling comments comes with more data.

Re: Like Peter Thiel, Tech Workers Feel Alienated by Silicon Valley ‘Echo Chamber’

#562

Post by TheAdamAndChe »

filoleg wrote: post #397
rpmcmurphy wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just a friendly reminder, Gawker did not out Thiel. He had a public profile on Friendster that clearly described him as interested in men. Gawker's editor at the time remarked that people like him thought the web was this super ultra secret bat cave, and that if you posted something there it wasn't really public.

Is doxxing people using information (publicly) available online ok then? Because that's what it really is, but worse, since the doxxing entity in question is a big media publication

If I post on my Facebook that I am married, I don't consider it doxxing if someone else posts about that. Social media should be considered social and public.

Re: Like Peter Thiel, Tech Workers Feel Alienated by Silicon Valley ‘Echo Chamber’

#563

Post by s73v3r_ »

manfredo wrote: post #270
strangeloops85 wrote: post #229

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah I don't get it either, especially the "feeling alienated" part. Does that include being feted and having a respectful discussion with your liberal friend and old colleague, Reid Hoffman, on the Stanford campus on Jan. 31 of this year, moderated by a very sympathetic Niall Ferguson? With laudatory words and praise from the President and Provost? https://news.stanford.edu/2018/02/01/cardinal-conversation-r... Look…

This article isn't just about Peter Thiel, it's about tech workers in general. Not everyone has the luxury of being a billionaire, and knowing that they live comfortably for the rest of their lives even if they become unemployable. The sentiments expressed by quotes in this article: > People in Silicon Valley “openly lie to one another out of fear of losing their jobs or being publicly crucified..." > Sometimes Silic…

> Sometimes Silicon Valley venture-capital investors and startup founders “have a certain way of thinking, and if you don’t fit into that way of thinking you’re not in the cool club”

This isn’t new; women have been telling us this for many years now.

Re: Like Peter Thiel, Tech Workers Feel Alienated by Silicon Valley ‘Echo Chamber’

#564

Post by manfredo »

tessierashpool wrote: post #498
dreit1 wrote: post #484

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is the exact type of commentary the article is talking. This conservative strawman you’ve built is far from average. In this absurd, inflammatory commentary replace the conservative boogeyman with a Muslim boogeyman or a gay boogeyman and realize you’re using the exact same type of rhetoric as the people you despise

is it absurd to claim that the NRA's refusal to compromise re assault weapons has led to the death of many kids in American schools? what is the absurd part here? how many kids can a gay person be alleged to have killed just by being gay? there is no conservative boogeyman in my post. I am referring to the practical effects of policy decisions.

> is it absurd to claim that the NRA's refusal to compromise re assault weapons has led to the death of many kids in American schools?

Given that the definition of an "assault weapon" has nothing to do with the actual capabilities of a firearm, and everything to do with the shape of its grip, the presence of collapsing stocks, etc. I'd say yes it is pretty absurd. For example this [1] rifle is exactly the same in caliber, capability, and general functionality as the infamous AR-15 yet is not targeted by even the most restrictive States' definitions of assault weapons. Heck, even liberal publications are catching on to the fact that "assault weapons" are a red herring: https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/14/sunday-review/the-assault...

> what is the absurd part here? how many kids can a gay person be alleged to have killed just by being gay?

Pick a more relevant liberal policy: How many people have been killed by prisoners on parole? Should all politicians who support reduced prison sentences and earlier parole, as well as individuals who support those policies, be held responsible for the crimes that parolees and released prisoners commit crimes? This number is much greater than the number of school shootings.

That fact should not be used as justification to ostracize, or otherwise take actions against people who believe in more lenient parole and less prison time - and people who support conservative policies should get the same respect.

[1] https://image.sportsmansguide.com/adimgs/e/6/637956_ts.jpg

Re: Like Peter Thiel, Tech Workers Feel Alienated by Silicon Valley ‘Echo Chamber’

#565

Post by on_and_off »

sho wrote: post #114
resu_nimda wrote: post #110

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I never can tell if there really is an influx of insane, insufferable far left crazies, or if people who insist on remaining racist and keeping gays in the closet are mad that nobody is having that anymore. That's because it's entirely a matter of individual perspective and experience. Everyone takes their own tiny viewport onto a region of millions of diverse people and attempts to claim "oh yeah SF/bay area is like…

There may be millions of diverse people and opinions but there is definitely a dominant ideology, it is definitely far-left, and it suppresses all other political viewpoints. This is absolutely blindingly self-evident in SF and if you disagree I wonder if you have actually been there.

Judging by the hordes of homeless people I seriously doubt that SF has a far left ideology

Re: Like Peter Thiel, Tech Workers Feel Alienated by Silicon Valley ‘Echo Chamber’

#566

Post by cmurf »

tomp wrote: post #330
mlloyd wrote: post #283

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Completely aside from this, how can you support Trump while knowing that he doesn't support you and his VP actively fights against LGBT rights?

You do realize that (1) politics is multi-dimensional, (2) trans-issues are far too unimportant for Trump to actually care about and (3) US has good enough legal system that there's approximately 0 chance that Trump can actually do anything agains trans people (I mean he can't even manage to ban foreign Muslims).

The Department of Justice gets involved in cases not just based on law but also on politics due to limited resources. They literally have to pick and choose what lawsuits they're going to get involved in, or not. The president nominates, senate confirms, the various federal attorneys general who likewise make those kinds of decisions at the local level.

Even if I set aside the incorrect assertion that Trump can't do anything against transgendered persons, self-evidently he can look the other way, as can DOJ, and federal prosecutors. And now that means people are left to defend themselves, or not. Is that justice?

https://transequality.org/1557-FAQ https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/trump-adm...

The Fair Housing Act is supposed to prevent racial discrimation in lending. Does it still happen? Yes. In fact it's widespread and it's institutionalized. It's baked into the system, and the free market, being amoral, games the system to the benefit of those who are already privileged and can pay for that privilege. This is maybe a surprise if you don't know about these things.

https://www.apnews.com/ae4b40a720b74ad8a9b0bfe65f7a9c29

I think people have no idea how fragile the system is, in particular when the head of state impugns, without evidence, and denigrates the federal agencies we depend on to carry out the imperfect justice system that we have. Papering over reality with ideas the legal system will be the superman to save us from the malignancy in the White House is somewhere in between wishful thinking and ignorant.

Re: Like Peter Thiel, Tech Workers Feel Alienated by Silicon Valley ‘Echo Chamber’

#567

Post by manfredo »

s73v3r_ wrote: post #555
ScottBurson wrote: post #499

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree with you that the numbers are very skewed, but I agree with the parent in that, of the few outspoken conservatives I've worked with, I have not seen anyone's career suffer for their politics.

Nor have I. I think it’s similar to the “War on Christmas,” it’s not something that is actually happening, but people like to pretend it is.

I have never seen a woman being harassed or otherwise mistreated in the workplace. Should I conclude that women do not experience harassment or mistreatment in tech?

Re: Like Peter Thiel, Tech Workers Feel Alienated by Silicon Valley ‘Echo Chamber’

#568

Post by anon11082016 »

s73v3r_ wrote: post #513
manfredo wrote: post #379

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is it? I've never witnessed a Bay Area tech company state that their under representation of women and minorities is due to a different distribution of preferences in these groups as compared to men and whites & Asians. On the contrary, in some tech companies doing this appears to be a fireable offense. Also, the point is not that less conservatives are in tech companies is the issue. I am under no illusion that prob…

I don’t hear the tech companies saying it, but go into the comment section here on any story related to those things, and it will definitely come up as a very popular opinion. And not too long ago, hell, even currently in some places, it was considered a mainstream conservative view that gays should not have the same rights to marry. If a person holding that view were to work at, say, Grindr, I would absolutely expec…

I didn't know we all worked at Grindr suddenly

Re: Like Peter Thiel, Tech Workers Feel Alienated by Silicon Valley ‘Echo Chamber’

#569

Post by scarface74 »

_skel wrote: post #169

I don't get it. I grew up in Silicon Valley and I work in tech, and so do many other people I know. They run the gamut from far-left socialists to libertarians to own a bunch of guns. They have all kinds of ethnic backgrounds and religious views. Some of my most libertarian/pro-gun friends have not been shy about their political views and it hasn't hurt their tech careers at all. They are far more welcome here than l…

It's not liberterianism or even standard Republicanism that seems to be an anathema to the tech crowd. It's populism and religious conservatism.

But sense I'm neither populist or a religious conservative, I'm just as much in the bubble as anyone.

Re: Like Peter Thiel, Tech Workers Feel Alienated by Silicon Valley ‘Echo Chamber’

#570

Post by rmrm »

TheAdamAndChe wrote: post #554
rmrm wrote: post #548

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think it is an unsettling reaction to have your predominant thought upon seeing a woman or non white male in a position of authority to assume it is because of their gender or race. I find it hard to believe you are not able to find other logical reasons for ot, so it sounds like a choice youve made to view the world through that lense.

There might be other logical reasons that they are in power, but even knowing that affirmative action made their sex or race a factor and that my biology would work against me if I were to apply for their position is enough to make me jealous and bitter about it. I think affirmative action sows divides because of it, and is probably counterproductive nowadays. If discrimination based on race or sex is bad, then why i…

I can speak from my own experience only as I dont study the statistics, but in 20 years of work as a white male I can categorically say ate that my race and gender has never been a hindrance in my career progression. I dont doubt the possibility exists, but I do not based on my network feel its to any noticeable degree. As in, I havent ever observed it happen, as a hiring manager myself or by a hiring manager.

As to your second part, as to what its origin is, its clearly in response to a multigenerational systemic suppression of certain classes. That is not in debate, and frankly from my white male perch, I continue to see firsthand much more of the lingering slights and biases against certain classes and groups, that affect their career and their inclusion, than I ever have any anti white male sentiment or anti white male advancent credo.

So in summary - I really dont think much has changed, and that isnt a good thing.

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