4 ms·

"The boom on Bullshit-Articles on Bullshit-Job Boom," is here.

aetherspawn 8y ago
With all the talk of BS jobs, you’d think the article would be shorter. I lost interest 2/3 way through - felt like it was going in circles. But I agree there could be some merit behind the premise.
- laxatives 8y ago
  Its the New Yorker -- every article they write reads they like they get paid by the word.
  - sverige 8y ago
    Actually, they do get paid by the word.
davidivadavid 8y ago
I for one have no idea why this concept gets so much air time given how little substantial foundations it's based on. I can find justifications that make all the so-called "bullshit" jobs perfectly valuable within a couple minutes of thought. I wish the inventor of the concept had invested as much.
- komali2 8y ago
  What are the justifications for a bullshit job?
- dvtv75 8y ago
  A friend of mine is a camera operator for a small production firm. They have some really old equipment, including tripods that aren't safe to use for their cameras, but they still cheap out on them anyway. He gets paid about $16/hour to stand by the camera for up to 20 hours a week to make sure it doesn't fall over, which costs around $10k/year. A new tripod would cost $1500 and could last for a decade, so $it's 100k vs $1500. Justify that, if you can. I can't, and I'm not being sarcastic or bitchy, I really want someone to explain it.
  - groby_b 8y ago
    Many possible explanations. One of the most common ones is cash flow. If you're somewhat at break-even, there just isn't any $1,500 around, but there are enough jobs to pay $320 a week, and do that every week. (This is by the way the same reason poor people often make "stupid" decisions) This is the most common case for smaller companies - it's all hand-to-mouth, and you barely squeak into profitability, so you minimize one-time expenses that shorten your runway. (What we around here like to call "Ramen profitable") There's also the fact that even with a tripod, you probably want somebody around - assuming they use high-end movie gear, a camera runs between $100k and $500k. Spending $10k a year on somebody who catches it in case of accident makes sense. I'm sure there are other explanations. I'm sure there are places that make stupid decisions, too :)
- rockstartech 8y ago
  Please share these justifications then...
- tonyedgecombe 8y ago
  The reason it gets so much air time is because most of us encounter it during the course of our work. It's in our face so it's good to hear it called out for what it is.
sevilo 8y ago
exactly my thoughts, does the world even gain much from reading these? I'd argue corporate lawyers, which he called bullshit jobs are way more useful
- TeMPOraL 8y ago
  It keeps the topic in public's attention. Maybe when more people realize just how much economy is made of utterly wasteful zero-sum games, we'll have an environment ready to accept changes - which can be anything from culling those bullshit jobs to going full-UBI.
s73v3r_ 8y ago
When was the bust on Bullshit-Articles, regardless of the topic?
stevenwoo 8y ago
Both articles that have made the front page are simply articles about the same author, the last one was from the Guardian I distinctly remember. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/may/25/bullshit-jobs-a-theory-by-david-graeber-review https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/may/25/bullshit-jobs-...

With all the talk of BS jobs, you’d think the article would be shorter. I lost interest 2/3 way through - felt like it was going in circles. But I agree there could be some merit behind the premise.

laxatives 8y ago
Its the New Yorker -- every article they write reads they like they get paid by the word.
- sverige 8y ago
  Actually, they do get paid by the word.

davidivadavid 8y ago

I for one have no idea why this concept gets so much air time given how little substantial foundations it's based on. I can find justifications that make all the so-called "bullshit" jobs perfectly valuable within a couple minutes of thought. I wish the inventor of the concept had invested as much.

komali2 8y ago
What are the justifications for a bullshit job?
dvtv75 8y ago
A friend of mine is a camera operator for a small production firm. They have some really old equipment, including tripods that aren't safe to use for their cameras, but they still cheap out on them anyway. He gets paid about $16/hour to stand by the camera for up to 20 hours a week to make sure it doesn't fall over, which costs around $10k/year. A new tripod would cost $1500 and could last for a decade, so $it's 100k vs $1500. Justify that, if you can. I can't, and I'm not being sarcastic or bitchy, I really want someone to explain it.
- groby_b 8y ago
  Many possible explanations. One of the most common ones is cash flow. If you're somewhat at break-even, there just isn't any $1,500 around, but there are enough jobs to pay $320 a week, and do that every week. (This is by the way the same reason poor people often make "stupid" decisions) This is the most common case for smaller companies - it's all hand-to-mouth, and you barely squeak into profitability, so you minimize one-time expenses that shorten your runway. (What we around here like to call "Ramen profitable") There's also the fact that even with a tripod, you probably want somebody around - assuming they use high-end movie gear, a camera runs between $100k and $500k. Spending $10k a year on somebody who catches it in case of accident makes sense. I'm sure there are other explanations. I'm sure there are places that make stupid decisions, too :)
rockstartech 8y ago
Please share these justifications then...
tonyedgecombe 8y ago
The reason it gets so much air time is because most of us encounter it during the course of our work. It's in our face so it's good to hear it called out for what it is.

sevilo 8y ago

exactly my thoughts, does the world even gain much from reading these? I'd argue corporate lawyers, which he called bullshit jobs are way more useful

TeMPOraL 8y ago
It keeps the topic in public's attention. Maybe when more people realize just how much economy is made of utterly wasteful zero-sum games, we'll have an environment ready to accept changes - which can be anything from culling those bullshit jobs to going full-UBI.

s73v3r_ 8y ago

When was the bust on Bullshit-Articles, regardless of the topic?

stevenwoo 8y ago

Both articles that have made the front page are simply articles about the same author, the last one was from the Guardian I distinctly remember. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/may/25/bullshit-jobs-a-theory-by-david-graeber-review https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/may/25/bullshit-jobs-...