What you are describing is essentially "ladder kicking", which was the top comment from the discussion a few months ago: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14

What you are describing is essentially "ladder kicking", which was the top comment from the discussion a few months ago: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14779881 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14779881 > Having known so many people involved with Facebook for so long, I have come up with a phrase to describe the cultural phenomenon I’ve witnessed among them – ladder kicking. Basically, people who get a leg up from others, and then do everything in their power to ensure nobody else manages to get there. No, it’s not “human nature” or “how it works.” Silicon Valley and the tech industry at large weren’t built by these sorts of people, and we need to be more active in preventing this mind-virus from spreading.