4 ms·

I agree with your assessment and prognosis, and look forward to employers and employees being held to somewhat higher standard of mutual tolerance (even if begr

by dexen 8y ago

I agree with your assessment and prognosis, and look forward to employers and employees being held to somewhat higher standard of mutual tolerance (even if begrudging) and cooperation, and generally keeping it business-first while on the clock. If one wishes to protest or take other political action, sure, take a day off and head to D.C. or other visible public space. A throw-away thought: business attire used to be a clear distinction between the time in official capacity, and the private time. With that mostly gone in tech, and given the 24/7 cellphone, email & IM connection, the distinction between workplace and personal doesn't feel all that clear. That being said, there exists an idea that "the personal is political"[1]; politics supposedly permeate all of one's life. It is further expanded to claim that anybody who is able to avoid mixing politics with daily activities, or able to avoid strongly siding with a political, is benefiting from the current power structure (aka "the system"), and further reinforces said system by staying passive. I think there's a small grain of truth to it, but when becomes an overriding concern and disruptive to teamwork[2] or family & social life[3], something went very wrong. -- [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_personal_is_political https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_personal_is_political [2] as in people asking for firing of others, or refusing to work with with or mentor others [3] recently a "Divorce your Republican husbands." tweet made rounds. Not linking it as it feels too incendiary for HN.

bvadams 8y ago
If the personal is political then we have no refuge from politics. And the only people that say this are the type that want only their specific brands of politics to dominate public and private life.
- angry_octet 8y ago
  If you're a persecuted minority you don't get time out from being persecuted. If your school's teachers need food stamps to survive you don't have a 'refuge from politics'. If you get sick and can't afford health care you don't have the luxury of 'avoiding politics'. People's politics have consequences, and they should own them.
  - malvosenior 8y ago
    No. Living a content life and focusing on your own problems is not political. "The personal is political" is a hyper partisan statement and anyone not on the extreme left would reject this idea wholesale. What this concept implicitly states is that if you're happy and 100% of the human population is not living at your socioeconomic level, then you're making a political statement. It's pure BS.
    - angry_octet 8y ago
      "No", it is you who are tacking additional straw man arguments and then being outraged. By your argument a content slave owner could by proud of his thriving cotton economy, and justifiably believe his political support for this system should have no consequences. If you know you're supporting people that actively try to suppress the rights of your fellow citizens, how can you complain when you are judged for it?
      - malvosenior 8y ago
        > By your argument a content slave owner could by proud of his thriving cotton economy, and justifiably believe his political support for this system should have no consequences. This is the strawman. I said nothing about slave owners. I'm talking about your average, middle class citizen (since that's who's being accused of taking a political stance through inaction). > If you know you're supporting people that actively try to suppress the rights of your fellow citizens, how can you complain when you are judged for it? I and many other people don't "know" that we're supporting people who actively suppress rights. In fact I'll say that I definitely do not.
        angry_octet 8y ago
        Were those in the slave economy not regular citizens? Did they not elect slave owners to represent them? Help catch runaway slaves? And do white people today still support the mass incarceration of black people? White people have mj prescriptions and black people serve time for selling dime bags. Generations of men are unemployable because of petty crime convictions that were ramped up to be major felonies by 'law and order' Republicans. Police policies specifically targeting black neighbourhoods with zero tolerance arrest strategies. HOW CAN YOU NOT KNOW THIS

by dexen 8y ago

bvadams 8y ago

If the personal is political then we have no refuge from politics. And the only people that say this are the type that want only their specific brands of politics to dominate public and private life.

angry_octet 8y ago
If you're a persecuted minority you don't get time out from being persecuted. If your school's teachers need food stamps to survive you don't have a 'refuge from politics'. If you get sick and can't afford health care you don't have the luxury of 'avoiding politics'. People's politics have consequences, and they should own them.
- malvosenior 8y ago
  No. Living a content life and focusing on your own problems is not political. "The personal is political" is a hyper partisan statement and anyone not on the extreme left would reject this idea wholesale. What this concept implicitly states is that if you're happy and 100% of the human population is not living at your socioeconomic level, then you're making a political statement. It's pure BS.
  - angry_octet 8y ago
    "No", it is you who are tacking additional straw man arguments and then being outraged. By your argument a content slave owner could by proud of his thriving cotton economy, and justifiably believe his political support for this system should have no consequences. If you know you're supporting people that actively try to suppress the rights of your fellow citizens, how can you complain when you are judged for it?
    - malvosenior 8y ago
      > By your argument a content slave owner could by proud of his thriving cotton economy, and justifiably believe his political support for this system should have no consequences. This is the strawman. I said nothing about slave owners. I'm talking about your average, middle class citizen (since that's who's being accused of taking a political stance through inaction). > If you know you're supporting people that actively try to suppress the rights of your fellow citizens, how can you complain when you are judged for it? I and many other people don't "know" that we're supporting people who actively suppress rights. In fact I'll say that I definitely do not.
      - angry_octet 8y ago
        Were those in the slave economy not regular citizens? Did they not elect slave owners to represent them? Help catch runaway slaves? And do white people today still support the mass incarceration of black people? White people have mj prescriptions and black people serve time for selling dime bags. Generations of men are unemployable because of petty crime convictions that were ramped up to be major felonies by 'law and order' Republicans. Police policies specifically targeting black neighbourhoods with zero tolerance arrest strategies. HOW CAN YOU NOT KNOW THIS