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Hey, folks, go start a business before voicing opinion about these matters. It's just amazing how there's this recurring theme on HN of folks without a clue ab

Hey, folks, go start a business before voicing opinion about these matters. It's just amazing how there's this recurring theme on HN of folks without a clue about business thinking they actually know something. Better yet, this is HN. Go formulate a startup and apply to YC, let's see how far you get and what you learn about what it takes to provide excellent innovative products that people want to buy. You'll also learn the gut-wrenching realities of being an entrepreneur. And then, a few years later, you'll find yourself having a surreal conversation with some know-it-all who never risked anything, never tried to innovate, never tried to launch or run a business, who is absolutely certain you are a greedy pig, your company is evil and the customer service person should be just as wealthy as you are. You don't understand just how dumb some of these comments sound from the vantage point of someone who achieved success through continued struggle and effort spanning years and at great personal and financial cost. There's nothing wrong with Capitalism. What's wrong is the victim culture we seem to be developing --which leads exactly nowhere at both a personal and national level. I say this in the nicest possible way. Get a clue. Please.

solidangle 11y ago
Apparently complaining about living in poverty is victim culture. Apparently complaining about working two full-time minimum wage jobs while barely being able to pay the bills is victim culture. Apparently complaining about not being able to afford a quality education for your children (so that they do not have to live in the same poverty) is victim culture. Apparently complaining about not being able to afford healthcare is victim culture. Sure, people doing startups or creating other businesses work hard, but that shouldn't be the norm. Working 40 hours a week as an employee should be enough. And by the way we're not even complaining about the people creating businesses, we're complaining about the people who inherit their wealth, get everything handed on a silver platter, and who still aren't grateful and don't want to pay their employees more than minimum wage. We shouldn't accept that kind of wealth in our society when there are people living in (extreme) poverty.
- rebootthesystem 11y ago
  How dare you? My grandparents arrived at these shores without a dime to their names, without command of the language, from a GENOCIDE where they endured the trauma of having seen members of their families raped and murdered. They woked their asses off and made it. And they instilled that culture on their children and grand children. So, yes, fucking stop thinking like a victim. It's insulting. Yes's there are those who absolutely need help. Stop complaining and go help them. Don't blame others.
  - davesque 11y ago
    Solidangle probably didn't know anything about your personal background. So you have no right to accuse him of being insensitive. Also, it's good that you were able to turn a bad situation into something good. However, the mere fact that you, individually, managed to succeed doesn't mean there's not a problem that's worth talking about. Your personal story is relevant, but anecdotal.
qntty 11y ago
This is a tragically ironic comment.
davesque 11y ago
This comment is very one-sided and there are a couple of problems with it. 1) What if you just don't have that much to risk? What if a failed business startup means you're on the street and have literally no one to turn to? You sound as though you've either never been in that situation or you were in that situation and just didn't realize it. And that would make you dumb, not smart. 2) What if people just aren't turned on by competition? Running a successful business in the US means you have to compete fiercely in the market for customers. You have to adopt a certain kind of aggressive attitude that doesn't appeal to everyone (nor should it). Also, I propose that this kind of winner-take-all environment does not help when trying to do certain kinds of work (e.g. basic scientific research). What of all the scientifically-minded people who prefer a more open, less result-driven approach to problem solving? Are they just part of a "victim" culture?
- rebootthesystem 11y ago
  I've been bankrupt, as in not a dime to my name, twice. That did not stop me. Not saying everyone has to be an entrepreneur, not everyone is wired for the risk and dedication it entails. What I am recoiling against this this bullshit notion that there's a dirty inequality based solely on the amount of money someone makes or has. That is NOT the direct cause of poverty. It's pure nonsense. Comparing CEO salary to receptionist salary is nonsense. It's a victim mentality. A friend of mine has a PhD in Physics and was working in aerospace. He did the math and determined he could not build wealth if he stayed on that path. He quit his aerospace job and started a non-tech business having nothing to do with his education. A truck driver could have started the same business. He failed. He dusted himself off and tried again. He now owns multi million dollar homes and has a pretty decent lives. Some if his aerospace "friends" resent him yet not one of them will quit their job to try and improve their lives. Lack of education? $1,000 buys you a ticket to a number of countries where university education is free and the cost of living is super low. No, the problem is having a victim mentality rather than being hell-bent to make it. It's easier.
  - davesque 11y ago
    There are a million good reasons why most people are not willing or able to go through bankruptcy twice.

solidangle 11y ago

Apparently complaining about living in poverty is victim culture. Apparently complaining about working two full-time minimum wage jobs while barely being able to pay the bills is victim culture. Apparently complaining about not being able to afford a quality education for your children (so that they do not have to live in the same poverty) is victim culture. Apparently complaining about not being able to afford healthcare is victim culture. Sure, people doing startups or creating other businesses work hard, but that shouldn't be the norm. Working 40 hours a week as an employee should be enough. And by the way we're not even complaining about the people creating businesses, we're complaining about the people who inherit their wealth, get everything handed on a silver platter, and who still aren't grateful and don't want to pay their employees more than minimum wage. We shouldn't accept that kind of wealth in our society when there are people living in (extreme) poverty.

rebootthesystem 11y ago
How dare you? My grandparents arrived at these shores without a dime to their names, without command of the language, from a GENOCIDE where they endured the trauma of having seen members of their families raped and murdered. They woked their asses off and made it. And they instilled that culture on their children and grand children. So, yes, fucking stop thinking like a victim. It's insulting. Yes's there are those who absolutely need help. Stop complaining and go help them. Don't blame others.
- davesque 11y ago
  Solidangle probably didn't know anything about your personal background. So you have no right to accuse him of being insensitive. Also, it's good that you were able to turn a bad situation into something good. However, the mere fact that you, individually, managed to succeed doesn't mean there's not a problem that's worth talking about. Your personal story is relevant, but anecdotal.

qntty 11y ago

This is a tragically ironic comment.

davesque 11y ago

This comment is very one-sided and there are a couple of problems with it. 1) What if you just don't have that much to risk? What if a failed business startup means you're on the street and have literally no one to turn to? You sound as though you've either never been in that situation or you were in that situation and just didn't realize it. And that would make you dumb, not smart. 2) What if people just aren't turned on by competition? Running a successful business in the US means you have to compete fiercely in the market for customers. You have to adopt a certain kind of aggressive attitude that doesn't appeal to everyone (nor should it). Also, I propose that this kind of winner-take-all environment does not help when trying to do certain kinds of work (e.g. basic scientific research). What of all the scientifically-minded people who prefer a more open, less result-driven approach to problem solving? Are they just part of a "victim" culture?

rebootthesystem 11y ago
I've been bankrupt, as in not a dime to my name, twice. That did not stop me. Not saying everyone has to be an entrepreneur, not everyone is wired for the risk and dedication it entails. What I am recoiling against this this bullshit notion that there's a dirty inequality based solely on the amount of money someone makes or has. That is NOT the direct cause of poverty. It's pure nonsense. Comparing CEO salary to receptionist salary is nonsense. It's a victim mentality. A friend of mine has a PhD in Physics and was working in aerospace. He did the math and determined he could not build wealth if he stayed on that path. He quit his aerospace job and started a non-tech business having nothing to do with his education. A truck driver could have started the same business. He failed. He dusted himself off and tried again. He now owns multi million dollar homes and has a pretty decent lives. Some if his aerospace "friends" resent him yet not one of them will quit their job to try and improve their lives. Lack of education? $1,000 buys you a ticket to a number of countries where university education is free and the cost of living is super low. No, the problem is having a victim mentality rather than being hell-bent to make it. It's easier.
- davesque 11y ago
  There are a million good reasons why most people are not willing or able to go through bankruptcy twice.