4 ms·

> It's funny that 15 years back I was so anti MS and pro Google and now I think it's the other way! Or 15 years before that, pro-MS and anti-IBM. IBM is still

> It's funny that 15 years back I was so anti MS and pro Google and now I think it's the other way! Or 15 years before that, pro-MS and anti-IBM. IBM is still huge, but they've found a steady revenue stream doing enterprise stuff, so they're not creating (much) fresh evil. MS could have made steady profits writing decent desktop software (I'm not so sure now). They're both powerful but comfortable. Google is huge, and still thinks it can rule the world. Companies are a bit like religions. When they're small, they can't have much impact. When they're big and young, they can wreak havoc. If they make it to comfortable old age, they're peaceful and stable. The Catholic Church is huge, benign, and stable now, but 1000 years ago they were a bit more conquest-focused and violent, and 2000 years ago they were just a few harmless militants.

CodeMage 7y ago
> Companies are a bit like religions. When they're small, they can't have much impact. When they're big and young, they can wreak havoc. If they make it to comfortable old age, they're peaceful and stable. The Catholic Church is huge, benign, and stable now, but 1000 years ago they were a bit more conquest-focused and violent, and 2000 years ago they were just a few harmless militants. That's a really bad analogy and detracts a lot from your point. Big religions that reach old age are merely stable, but that doesn't necessarily make them peaceful or benign. My guess is that you're probably looking at it through the lens of living in United States.
- username223 7y ago
  Oops... > My guess is that you're probably looking at it through the lens of living in United States. Well, that is where I live, so that's the lens I have... My experience is that religions tend to settle down as they age. Catholics, while they may have firm belief, tend to keep it to themselves, and not to proselytize. It's more of a culture and ritual than a fervent cause. Protestants, especially Evangelicals, tend to be a bit more vocal. Mormons were killing people not so long ago[1] (though my Mormon friends never tried to convert me). Scientologists are just insane. Our older religions are, on average, more peaceful and benign. I don't know where you live or grew up, so I can't guess at your experience with religion. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountain_Meadows_massacre https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountain_Meadows_massacre

CodeMage 7y ago

> Companies are a bit like religions. When they're small, they can't have much impact. When they're big and young, they can wreak havoc. If they make it to comfortable old age, they're peaceful and stable. The Catholic Church is huge, benign, and stable now, but 1000 years ago they were a bit more conquest-focused and violent, and 2000 years ago they were just a few harmless militants. That's a really bad analogy and detracts a lot from your point. Big religions that reach old age are merely stable, but that doesn't necessarily make them peaceful or benign. My guess is that you're probably looking at it through the lens of living in United States.

username223 7y ago
Oops... > My guess is that you're probably looking at it through the lens of living in United States. Well, that is where I live, so that's the lens I have... My experience is that religions tend to settle down as they age. Catholics, while they may have firm belief, tend to keep it to themselves, and not to proselytize. It's more of a culture and ritual than a fervent cause. Protestants, especially Evangelicals, tend to be a bit more vocal. Mormons were killing people not so long ago[1] (though my Mormon friends never tried to convert me). Scientologists are just insane. Our older religions are, on average, more peaceful and benign. I don't know where you live or grew up, so I can't guess at your experience with religion. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountain_Meadows_massacre https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountain_Meadows_massacre