8 ms·

Speaking from experience, statements like this are often cases where the actual story was more benign than the perception, and the statement here is the percept

Speaking from experience, statements like this are often cases where the actual story was more benign than the perception, and the statement here is the perception, not the actual story. If this is true, then there's a huge problem, but I'm willing to believe (pending more information) that the policy isn't this blatantly sexist, and that the truth is somewhat more nuanced.

piker 11y ago
It's also a lawyer trying to make a prima facie complaint to avoid summary dismissal of a lawsuit. As long as there's a good-faith belief that this could be true, including such an allegation in the complaint will expand the plaintiff's pre-trial discovery breadth. That costs Yahoo more money to defend, increases the likelihood of uncovering a smoking gun and puts the plaintiff in a better settlement negotiation posture.
- kelukelugames 11y ago
  This is how lawsuits works. Employee has one valid complaint. Lawyer tacks on a dozen more complaints and hope the company settles.
  - munchbunny 11y ago
    Yeah, it's a pity that the system we put in place to make victims whole first asks us to say the worst about everybody involved, victim included. Not that I have a better idea, but I think there's a cruel irony to it.
  - pc86 11y ago
    It's the same in criminal law as well. You allegedly violated a law? Well here are four more that say the same thing in a slightly different way. Oh, you were within 100' of a school? Possibly longer jail time? It was a construction zone, too? Here's another three offenses that open you up to civil litigation as well.
jonesb6 11y ago
Reminds me of the Microsoft quote someone here brought up yesterday, "I've said it before and I'll say it again, we're too damn disorganized to be as evil as you think we are." Given Yahoo's track record it is much easier to believe this whole mess was due to ineptitude by management/hr, yet sexual discrimination is a much 'sexier' headline so they went with that.. and oh look all the "super smart" people on hacker news still "circle jerk" over it. It's almost like were not a superior community and are quite comparable to the rest of the internet..
- melted 11y ago
  When it comes to evil, Microsoft was as organized as Sheldon Cooper's desk drawers when I worked there. Disclaimer: that was well over a decade ago. Most product discussions (and therefore decisions), for example, were in terms of killing competition, not in terms of building a better product, and war rhetoric in general was quite prevalent. I kind of understand it, it's easier to motivate people to work hard if they believe they're at war (as Joseph Goebbels once astutely pointed out), but my god, what a shitty way to build products.
- randycupertino 11y ago
  > "I've said it before and I'll say it again, we're too damn disorganized to be as evil as you think we are." That's actually hilarious. Our defense is... our ineptitude!
- th0waway 11y ago
  maybe not intentionally evil, but an 'emergent evil' caused by the sum of behaviours and thought patterns.

piker 11y ago

It's also a lawyer trying to make a prima facie complaint to avoid summary dismissal of a lawsuit. As long as there's a good-faith belief that this could be true, including such an allegation in the complaint will expand the plaintiff's pre-trial discovery breadth. That costs Yahoo more money to defend, increases the likelihood of uncovering a smoking gun and puts the plaintiff in a better settlement negotiation posture.

kelukelugames 11y ago
This is how lawsuits works. Employee has one valid complaint. Lawyer tacks on a dozen more complaints and hope the company settles.
- munchbunny 11y ago
  Yeah, it's a pity that the system we put in place to make victims whole first asks us to say the worst about everybody involved, victim included. Not that I have a better idea, but I think there's a cruel irony to it.
- pc86 11y ago
  It's the same in criminal law as well. You allegedly violated a law? Well here are four more that say the same thing in a slightly different way. Oh, you were within 100' of a school? Possibly longer jail time? It was a construction zone, too? Here's another three offenses that open you up to civil litigation as well.

jonesb6 11y ago

Reminds me of the Microsoft quote someone here brought up yesterday, "I've said it before and I'll say it again, we're too damn disorganized to be as evil as you think we are." Given Yahoo's track record it is much easier to believe this whole mess was due to ineptitude by management/hr, yet sexual discrimination is a much 'sexier' headline so they went with that.. and oh look all the "super smart" people on hacker news still "circle jerk" over it. It's almost like were not a superior community and are quite comparable to the rest of the internet..

melted 11y ago
When it comes to evil, Microsoft was as organized as Sheldon Cooper's desk drawers when I worked there. Disclaimer: that was well over a decade ago. Most product discussions (and therefore decisions), for example, were in terms of killing competition, not in terms of building a better product, and war rhetoric in general was quite prevalent. I kind of understand it, it's easier to motivate people to work hard if they believe they're at war (as Joseph Goebbels once astutely pointed out), but my god, what a shitty way to build products.
randycupertino 11y ago
> "I've said it before and I'll say it again, we're too damn disorganized to be as evil as you think we are." That's actually hilarious. Our defense is... our ineptitude!
th0waway 11y ago
maybe not intentionally evil, but an 'emergent evil' caused by the sum of behaviours and thought patterns.