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Here's the deal: People looking for investments in their businesses are not panhandlers. They are not begging. They do not deserve to have any abuse tossed the

Here's the deal: People looking for investments in their businesses are not panhandlers. They are not begging. They do not deserve to have any abuse tossed their way. They are people working in a business environment trying to create a mutually-beneficial arrangement. They are professionals, as are their investors. > The Times describes some founders who put up with unwanted sexual advances because they were desperate to raise money for their startups. There’s an old-fashioned word for what these ladies are doing that I shan’t repeat here. This is wildly offensive and just stupid beyond all belief. A woman who has a start-up she's trying to raise money for is a WHORE if she puts up with unwanted sexual advances from investors? Or is Elaine Ou saying that a woman who has a start-up is a WHORE because women who go "begging" for money deserve to be treated like sex objects? Am I misreading that? I must be. Please help.

bsder 9y ago
> A woman who has a start-up she's trying to raise money for is a WHORE if she puts up with unwanted sexual advances from investors? She is saying that if you put up with this kind of behavior rather than cutting it off, you are part of the problem. To be fair, this goes for men, too. I have had the "joy" of turning down funding because the person involved was such a jackass. Fortunately, he wasn't offering a huge sum of money. Add another zero, and my partner and I would probably have been in a major argument. And two zeros and I probably would have swallowed my pride. I acknowledge that I can be bought--I just hope my price is high enough to make it worth it. I really don't envy women in this environment. Lots of people running VC funds really like to throw the power imbalance around even towards men. Adding sexual dynamics to the mix has to be ferociously toxic--think about the abuse of Hooter's waitresses and then dial the restraint to zero.

bsder 9y ago

> A woman who has a start-up she's trying to raise money for is a WHORE if she puts up with unwanted sexual advances from investors? She is saying that if you put up with this kind of behavior rather than cutting it off, you are part of the problem. To be fair, this goes for men, too. I have had the "joy" of turning down funding because the person involved was such a jackass. Fortunately, he wasn't offering a huge sum of money. Add another zero, and my partner and I would probably have been in a major argument. And two zeros and I probably would have swallowed my pride. I acknowledge that I can be bought--I just hope my price is high enough to make it worth it. I really don't envy women in this environment. Lots of people running VC funds really like to throw the power imbalance around even towards men. Adding sexual dynamics to the mix has to be ferociously toxic--think about the abuse of Hooter's waitresses and then dial the restraint to zero.