How I Worked Through the Social Justicization of Google without Going Insane (Thread) :
I started working at Google in 2011, back when people thought it was weird that I was "switching from finance to tech"
At the time the company was assumed to be Libertarian leaning, as was I
I started working at Google in 2011, back when people thought it was weird that I was "switching from finance to tech"
At the time the company was assumed to be Libertarian leaning, as was I
My first team was mostly women, which was probably a good thing for me, and the company was not overtly political for my first few years
As Google morphed into a large company, there were many things that did frustrate me, but politics was not one of them
As Google morphed into a large company, there were many things that did frustrate me, but politics was not one of them
It was fairly clear the company wanted to make money & like other mega corporations, had fairly sophisticated schemes to keep wage growth throttled as revenues rose
Once I understood this, it was easy to depersonalize my relationship with my employer
Their job was to pay me
Once I understood this, it was easy to depersonalize my relationship with my employer
Their job was to pay me
Amidst the dishonesty that was needed to maintain the narrative they used to suppress wages, their treatment of women & minorities at the time was actually coherent and if anything, ahead of the curve
And while their approach didn& #39;t "advantage" me, I couldn& #39;t say it was unfair
And while their approach didn& #39;t "advantage" me, I couldn& #39;t say it was unfair
2014 was the cusp of the transition & marked the beginning of when the world really started going insane
Always ahead of the curve South Park put out a hilarious episode called "The Cissy" where Cartman pretends to be trans to get his own bathroom https://southpark.cc.com/full-episodes/s18e03-the-cissy">https://southpark.cc.com/full-epis...
Always ahead of the curve South Park put out a hilarious episode called "The Cissy" where Cartman pretends to be trans to get his own bathroom https://southpark.cc.com/full-episodes/s18e03-the-cissy">https://southpark.cc.com/full-epis...
A few months later at work, on a trip to the men& #39;s bathroom, I noticed a full box of tampons
At first I thought it was a cleaning lady& #39;s mistake
Then I saw a box in a 2nd bathroom
I was fairly familiar w/ the people in my building & did not believe there to be any transpeople
At first I thought it was a cleaning lady& #39;s mistake
Then I saw a box in a 2nd bathroom
I was fairly familiar w/ the people in my building & did not believe there to be any transpeople
So I put a small piece of paper on top of one to see if it would move
A week went by and the paper was still there
These were social justice props placed in the men& #39;s bathroom
Alongside these empty gestures were increased discussions of white and male privilege
A week went by and the paper was still there
These were social justice props placed in the men& #39;s bathroom
Alongside these empty gestures were increased discussions of white and male privilege
It was all pretty absurd to me because living in San Francisco, I used to walk by homeless people all the time
They were almost all men
It was obvious this entire narrative was focused exclusively on the tale end of commercially successful people, where men outnumber women
They were almost all men
It was obvious this entire narrative was focused exclusively on the tale end of commercially successful people, where men outnumber women
At the beginning, I thought it was an honest oversight
I figured by sharing areas where men were disadvantaged (homelessness, suicide, and treatment in the criminal justice system) we could begin to have a more holistic understanding of gender in society
I figured by sharing areas where men were disadvantaged (homelessness, suicide, and treatment in the criminal justice system) we could begin to have a more holistic understanding of gender in society
By the fall of 2016, the rhetoric was reaching what I thought was peak absurdity, which Trump capitalized on to get elected
I thought his election would mark a turning point in Google& #39;s approach. Perhaps an honest appraisal of their methods and a calculated retreat
Wrong
I thought his election would mark a turning point in Google& #39;s approach. Perhaps an honest appraisal of their methods and a calculated retreat
Wrong
The office felt like a morgue the day after the election
Instantly the narrative of "fake news" started circulating, which I thought was a bit absurd given the timing
If it were actually an issue, why& #39;d it only get brought up AFTER the election results were in? @Cernovich knows
Instantly the narrative of "fake news" started circulating, which I thought was a bit absurd given the timing
If it were actually an issue, why& #39;d it only get brought up AFTER the election results were in? @Cernovich knows
I guess the peculiar timing raised a red flag only to me
I worked closely in the news department, and as these narratives started circulating, I began asking questions like:
If fake news inspired the Comet Pizza shooter, what about the NY Times role enabling the Iraq war?
I worked closely in the news department, and as these narratives started circulating, I began asking questions like:
If fake news inspired the Comet Pizza shooter, what about the NY Times role enabling the Iraq war?
I think I may have been the only member in or around the News department who was familiar with the Church Committee hearings of the 70s, where it was revealed that the CIA planted journalists across various publications to influence public thought
To me, the news was always fake
To me, the news was always fake
I never felt scared to voice my opinion, b/c I may have been paid well, but in my mind still felt underpaid
If I was going to be underpaid, I damn well wasn& #39;t going to become a mental slave too
I figured the worst that could happen was getting fired & I was okay with that risk
If I was going to be underpaid, I damn well wasn& #39;t going to become a mental slave too
I figured the worst that could happen was getting fired & I was okay with that risk
I also wasn& #39;t a dick about it. I just said the things I thought in an even tone
I never conveyed animosity, I just said what I thought and why
It was always okay
Then in 2017 I became addicted to watching the videos of a YouTube psychologist
I watched him for 20+ hours a week
I never conveyed animosity, I just said what I thought and why
It was always okay
Then in 2017 I became addicted to watching the videos of a YouTube psychologist
I watched him for 20+ hours a week
At the time I thought he was the smartest person I had ever heard speak
It was @jordanbpeterson and he conveyed ideas that I had vaguely thought in my mind, but had yet to crystalize as well as he had
I assumed others had heard him as well
It was @jordanbpeterson and he conveyed ideas that I had vaguely thought in my mind, but had yet to crystalize as well as he had
I assumed others had heard him as well
Then on one Sunday in August 2017, a colleague pinged me sharing a "Diversity Memo"
She asked me what I thought
I read it & could tell the author followed Jordan Peterson too; it was obvious in the memo& #39;s structure
I said I thought it was probably true & didn& #39;t think much more
She asked me what I thought
I read it & could tell the author followed Jordan Peterson too; it was obvious in the memo& #39;s structure
I said I thought it was probably true & didn& #39;t think much more
I didn& #39;t expect it to be a big deal & was shocked that the office the following Monday felt like we just survived a terrorist attack
Person after person in my team of ~20 (whom I got along well with) struck down the memo, casting it as backward and ignorant
Person after person in my team of ~20 (whom I got along well with) struck down the memo, casting it as backward and ignorant
With my voice cracking and a tear in my eye, I was the only one who spoke up in support during the team meeting
I said it was true
Then I mentioned that I never thought there& #39;d come a time where I& #39;d be scared to bring up peer reviewed research at work https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2015/04/women-preferred-21-over-men-stem-faculty-positions">https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2...
I said it was true
Then I mentioned that I never thought there& #39;d come a time where I& #39;d be scared to bring up peer reviewed research at work https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2015/04/women-preferred-21-over-men-stem-faculty-positions">https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2...
I got along well with the women on my team
I spoke with almost all of them individually about it. After speaking to them (and sharing my honest opinion of the memo and the research that supported it) none of them hated me
I could tell their reaction to the memo was PTSD-like
I spoke with almost all of them individually about it. After speaking to them (and sharing my honest opinion of the memo and the research that supported it) none of them hated me
I could tell their reaction to the memo was PTSD-like
They BELIEVED the news. They BELIEVED they were under attack by Trump
So anything remotely resembling these attacks was going to elicit a vicious pushback
But that didn& #39;t stop me from writing to our SVP of Diversity, sharing 25+ peer reviewed research papers aligned w/ the memo
So anything remotely resembling these attacks was going to elicit a vicious pushback
But that didn& #39;t stop me from writing to our SVP of Diversity, sharing 25+ peer reviewed research papers aligned w/ the memo
My Director was NOT happy
And the tough thing was I respected him. He was one of two people in my life who has been right a clear majority of the time we disagreed
He tried to get me to shut up
He asked if this was how I wanted to be remembered
And the tough thing was I respected him. He was one of two people in my life who has been right a clear majority of the time we disagreed
He tried to get me to shut up
He asked if this was how I wanted to be remembered
I told him the most offensive portion of the memo, the statement that women are more neurotic than men, was based on a self-reported study of 23,000 people across 40 countries
That Trait Neuroticism was a technical term
That I could literally pull the data tables
That Trait Neuroticism was a technical term
That I could literally pull the data tables
He said that I knew too much about this
If the facts are on my side, and I& #39;m the one being pressured not to speak, doesn& #39;t that show you who is really in power and who really has privilege?
He conceded that maybe it did, still worried there was a risk I& #39;d go nuclear
If the facts are on my side, and I& #39;m the one being pressured not to speak, doesn& #39;t that show you who is really in power and who really has privilege?
He conceded that maybe it did, still worried there was a risk I& #39;d go nuclear
My girlfriend at the time was scared
Her family survived the Cultural Revolution in China and she& #39;d spent that summer watching Jordan Peterson videos with me
She saw what was happening at her tech job as well
But after a few weeks passed, it seemed like all was back to normal
Her family survived the Cultural Revolution in China and she& #39;d spent that summer watching Jordan Peterson videos with me
She saw what was happening at her tech job as well
But after a few weeks passed, it seemed like all was back to normal
I kept telling my friends at work what I thought was real and what I thought was BS
I kept getting told I needed to be careful
And in the end, I never got fired
My performance review was even positive in my next and last review period before leaving to work in crypto
I kept getting told I needed to be careful
And in the end, I never got fired
My performance review was even positive in my next and last review period before leaving to work in crypto
The moral of the story is, put yourself in a financial position to tell the truth
Then tell it
If your work won& #39;t have it
Fuck them
Go work with other people
But it& #39;ll probably be OK if you& #39;re able to convey your beliefs firmly yet calmly
It has always been that way for me
Then tell it
If your work won& #39;t have it
Fuck them
Go work with other people
But it& #39;ll probably be OK if you& #39;re able to convey your beliefs firmly yet calmly
It has always been that way for me
I should note I actually got a ~$10K raise in the next (and my last) review period
I forgot about this as I left 2 months later
If you have your shit together & are physically strong you will create a halo around you that makes free your speech
I forgot about this as I left 2 months later
If you have your shit together & are physically strong you will create a halo around you that makes free your speech