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Anyone else feel sad that terrible choices made as a minor are having such a devastating impact on an otherwise upstanding human being?

syshum 6y ago
Welcome to cancel culture, and by product of infinite data retention
- Jordanpomeroy 6y ago
  I guess we all have an implicit social score because we all put our opinions out there.
  - syshum 6y ago
    China has a state run system, we have a social media run system Not sure which is worse
vb6sp6 6y ago
He continued to associate with neo-nazis as an adult. so, no.
- Jordanpomeroy 6y ago
  Did he? I missed that part. I guess I still feel sad that someone that otherwise could be a productive member of society was so horribly misled as a child.
- freedomben 6y ago
  > He continued to associate with neo-nazis as an adult. Can you link to a source? I haven't heard this and it substantially changes things. I want to make sure it's true before speaking it but I can't find it.
  - manfredo 6y ago
    He mentions that he associated with white supremacists, in the past tense, in his 1992 testimony. That would still mean he has not associated with white supremacists since he as a teenager.
  - vb6sp6 6y ago
    https://onezero.medium.com/ceo-of-surveillance-firm-banjo-once-helped-kkk-leader-shoot-up-synagogue-fdba4ad32829 https://onezero.medium.com/ceo-of-surveillance-firm-banjo-on... "But Patton does not mention that, by his own testimony, he continued to socialize with white supremacists while in the Navy. Patton told prosecutors that he gathered with skinheads while stationed in Virginia for training. “I had known some of the Skinheads there from prior rallies in Tennessee and because of not knowing anybody there, I ended up meeting with them and hung out with them for some time,” he said. Patton received a subpoena to testify before a federal grand jury regarding the West End Synagogue shooting while he was still in the Navy, ultimately giving his first testimony in the case in September 1991. In addition to the shooting, Patton was implicated in at least one other hate crime that occurred during his time in Tennessee. According to an affidavit of probable cause filed by a Nashville-area FBI agent in support of a search for Patton and his residences, Patton allegedly defaced the Greater Bethel AME Church in Nashville, an African American Methodist denomination. By his own grand jury testimony, Patton admitted to spray-painting buildings in the area with “KKK” and swastikas. The affidavit also alleges that Patton also impersonated an FBI agent to uncover spies among the skinheads he associated with."
vikramkr 6y ago
His company does surveillance tech for the criminal justice system, meaning they handle sensitive data and are involved in areas with high risk of racial bias and important privacy and ethics questions. If I was contracting with him, I'd be concerned about why his criminal history wasnt communicated sooner given how relevant it is to the nature of his business (especially with concerns about racial discrimination in the criminal justice system), and I'd be curious why I only found out about it through a news report. He isn't owed societies trust with something so sensitive, delicate, and important. I'm glad he's reformed as a person from his getaway driver for a racially motivated drive by shooting days, but I don't feel sad at all that government is taking the background history of their contractors very seriously and that he is responding by stepping down to signal to people impacted by the criminal justice system the values of Banjo and to alleviate concerns people will have if their police force is contracting with an ex KKK member.
- manfredo 6y ago
  > If I was contracting with him, I'd be concerned about why his criminal history wasnt communicated sooner given how relevant it is to the nature of his business (especially with concerns about racial discrimination in the criminal justice system) and I'd be curious why I only found out about it through a news report. Why is this concerning? Do you expect people to post their criminal histories on their LinkedIn? Even if said crimes occurred as a minor and the person has spent their whole adult lives as a law abiding person? I don't find it curious at all as to why he didn't go around announcing his past criminal connections: because it would hamper his career prospects, and because he doesn't want people to portray the actions he took as a homeless teenager as reflecting his character as an adult. This whole thread demonstrates why not highlighting his past history was a wise decision.
  - vikramkr 6y ago
    Looking at the original article, it looks like he continued associating with skinhead groups in his time in the military[0], and that the reason it didn't come up in background searches is because his name was misspelled. Yes, I absolutely expect someone entrusted with enormous responsibility in the criminal justice realm to be upfront and open about their past and be held to a far higher, far more stringent standard. And it doesn't help that his company hasn't been the most morally upright company in recent times either[1]. [0]https://onezero.medium.com/ceo-of-surveillance-firm-banjo-once-helped-kkk-leader-shoot-up-synagogue-fdba4ad32829 https://onezero.medium.com/ceo-of-surveillance-firm-banjo-on... [1]https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/z3bgky/banjo-ai-used-secret-company-and-fake-apps-to-scrape-facebook-twitter https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/z3bgky/banjo-ai-used-secr...
vikramkr 6y ago
https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/z3bgky/banjo-ai-used-secret-company-and-fake-apps-to-scrape-facebook-twitter https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/z3bgky/banjo-ai-used-secr... Doesn't look like "upstanding" is the most accurate word to describe him today if some of those allegations from the vice article are true...

syshum 6y ago

Welcome to cancel culture, and by product of infinite data retention

Jordanpomeroy 6y ago
I guess we all have an implicit social score because we all put our opinions out there.
- syshum 6y ago
  China has a state run system, we have a social media run system Not sure which is worse

vb6sp6 6y ago

He continued to associate with neo-nazis as an adult. so, no.

Jordanpomeroy 6y ago
Did he? I missed that part. I guess I still feel sad that someone that otherwise could be a productive member of society was so horribly misled as a child.
freedomben 6y ago
> He continued to associate with neo-nazis as an adult. Can you link to a source? I haven't heard this and it substantially changes things. I want to make sure it's true before speaking it but I can't find it.
- manfredo 6y ago
  He mentions that he associated with white supremacists, in the past tense, in his 1992 testimony. That would still mean he has not associated with white supremacists since he as a teenager.
- vb6sp6 6y ago
  https://onezero.medium.com/ceo-of-surveillance-firm-banjo-once-helped-kkk-leader-shoot-up-synagogue-fdba4ad32829 https://onezero.medium.com/ceo-of-surveillance-firm-banjo-on... "But Patton does not mention that, by his own testimony, he continued to socialize with white supremacists while in the Navy. Patton told prosecutors that he gathered with skinheads while stationed in Virginia for training. “I had known some of the Skinheads there from prior rallies in Tennessee and because of not knowing anybody there, I ended up meeting with them and hung out with them for some time,” he said. Patton received a subpoena to testify before a federal grand jury regarding the West End Synagogue shooting while he was still in the Navy, ultimately giving his first testimony in the case in September 1991. In addition to the shooting, Patton was implicated in at least one other hate crime that occurred during his time in Tennessee. According to an affidavit of probable cause filed by a Nashville-area FBI agent in support of a search for Patton and his residences, Patton allegedly defaced the Greater Bethel AME Church in Nashville, an African American Methodist denomination. By his own grand jury testimony, Patton admitted to spray-painting buildings in the area with “KKK” and swastikas. The affidavit also alleges that Patton also impersonated an FBI agent to uncover spies among the skinheads he associated with."

vikramkr 6y ago

His company does surveillance tech for the criminal justice system, meaning they handle sensitive data and are involved in areas with high risk of racial bias and important privacy and ethics questions. If I was contracting with him, I'd be concerned about why his criminal history wasnt communicated sooner given how relevant it is to the nature of his business (especially with concerns about racial discrimination in the criminal justice system), and I'd be curious why I only found out about it through a news report. He isn't owed societies trust with something so sensitive, delicate, and important. I'm glad he's reformed as a person from his getaway driver for a racially motivated drive by shooting days, but I don't feel sad at all that government is taking the background history of their contractors very seriously and that he is responding by stepping down to signal to people impacted by the criminal justice system the values of Banjo and to alleviate concerns people will have if their police force is contracting with an ex KKK member.

manfredo 6y ago
> If I was contracting with him, I'd be concerned about why his criminal history wasnt communicated sooner given how relevant it is to the nature of his business (especially with concerns about racial discrimination in the criminal justice system) and I'd be curious why I only found out about it through a news report. Why is this concerning? Do you expect people to post their criminal histories on their LinkedIn? Even if said crimes occurred as a minor and the person has spent their whole adult lives as a law abiding person? I don't find it curious at all as to why he didn't go around announcing his past criminal connections: because it would hamper his career prospects, and because he doesn't want people to portray the actions he took as a homeless teenager as reflecting his character as an adult. This whole thread demonstrates why not highlighting his past history was a wise decision.
- vikramkr 6y ago
  Looking at the original article, it looks like he continued associating with skinhead groups in his time in the military[0], and that the reason it didn't come up in background searches is because his name was misspelled. Yes, I absolutely expect someone entrusted with enormous responsibility in the criminal justice realm to be upfront and open about their past and be held to a far higher, far more stringent standard. And it doesn't help that his company hasn't been the most morally upright company in recent times either[1]. [0]https://onezero.medium.com/ceo-of-surveillance-firm-banjo-once-helped-kkk-leader-shoot-up-synagogue-fdba4ad32829 https://onezero.medium.com/ceo-of-surveillance-firm-banjo-on... [1]https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/z3bgky/banjo-ai-used-secret-company-and-fake-apps-to-scrape-facebook-twitter https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/z3bgky/banjo-ai-used-secr...

vikramkr 6y ago

https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/z3bgky/banjo-ai-used-secret-company-and-fake-apps-to-scrape-facebook-twitter https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/z3bgky/banjo-ai-used-secr... Doesn't look like "upstanding" is the most accurate word to describe him today if some of those allegations from the vice article are true...