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And they've explained this multiple times. Aaron was given the title of co-founder, but he joined well after the site had launched, and then proceeded to go AWO

by d3nj4l 6y ago

And they've explained this multiple times. Aaron was given the title of co-founder, but he joined well after the site had launched, and then proceeded to go AWOL and not work for months until he was fired. Given that he was only very briefly involved in the site, it doesn't make sense to call him a co-founder, even if that was his de jure title. E: At the same time, I feel like I should state - Aaron Swartz was a martyr, and I don't mean to disparage him or his legacy.

Technically 6y ago
I don't know why the term is so valuable. Musk went so far as to buy the title for Tesla.
egroq 6y ago
> Aaron Swartz was a martyr, and I don't mean to disparage him or his legacy. Who killed him? According to wikipedia it was suicide. Did he have a mental issue?
- jagged-chisel 6y ago
  He was under threat of prosecution from the FBI.
  - egroq 6y ago
    So he suicided without mental issues, just to "make a statement"? Sorry that's not a martyr.
    - deleted 6y ago
      [deleted]
      - egroq 6y ago
        It is, but it's no excuse for suicide.
  - vmception 6y ago
    US prisons are so full because people do the time.
    - aplummer 6y ago
      They’re full because of the prison industrial complex.
      - krspykrm 6y ago
        Industry has nothing to do with it. Every country has industry. The reason the US has so many in prison is because its people are the more hair-on-fire moralistic crusaders in the civilized world and they want people in prison.
        aplummer 6y ago
        Industry is not what the prison industrial complex is. The prison industrial complex is a deliberate lengthening of sentences and increasing of mandatory jail time for non-violent offenses designed to increase the for-profit prison population to increase profit.
        krspykrm 6y ago
        "Prison industrial complex" is verbal sleight of hand to blame a system rather than people, but in reality these market forces are merely the revealed preference of what people want. If people wanted these inmates free - and by wanted I mean wanted in the revealed preference sense, not the virtue signal on the internet sense - capitalism would have them free tomorrow.
        aplummer 6y ago
        > If people wanted these inmates free - and by wanted I mean wanted in the revealed preference sense, not the virtue signal on the internet sense - capitalism would have them free tomorrow. That’s not how the world or capitalism works at all. Plenty of people want things and don’t get them. If you are referring to “a majority of people” then it’s still not how it works - for example the structure of the existing system affects it (see no president Clinton). There is much more to decisions and change. In this case, a minority of profit seeking people with power use levers of control on decision makers and propaganda to create public policy.
- Shivetya 6y ago
  the pressure the US DOJ attorneys put upon him became unbearable. their high pressure tactics which involve piling on charges and threatening the target with so many years in prison as to be lifetime for some can had adverse affects on people. Sadly this is par for the course as the prosecuting attorney and their office do not get called to account for their methods or out comes. this is very difficult to correct as many times the target is politically acceptable to many and therefor they just give the DOJ free reign to apply it to anyone they choose.
  - rmrfstar 6y ago
    It's important to understand the historical context. Aaron was arrested in 2011, when a lot of other internet politics was happening. Occupy Wall Street, Arab Spring, LulzSec (remember Fuck FBI Friday?), Wikileaks, SOPA. "The block was hot" so to speak. The attitude in DC was, "those people on the internet think they can do whatever they want, we'll show them." Well, they showed us and we lost a truly inspiring person.
ErikVandeWater 6y ago
Ostrich effect at work. He joined a whole 4-5 months later. > Ohanian launched Reddit in June 2005. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reddit https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reddit > When Infogami failed to find further funding, Y-Combinator organizers suggested that Infogami merge with Reddit,[32][33] which it did in November 2005, resulting in the formation of a new firm, Not a Bug, devoted to promoting both products.[32][34] As a result of this merger, Swartz was given the title of co-founder of Reddit. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aaron_Swartz https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aaron_Swartz
jancsika 6y ago
Tell me if I'm understanding this: A company with the mendacity to misrepresent an employee as a co-founder in order to attract said employee wasn't happy with that employee's performance. So they boldly refuse to continue misrepresenting him as a co-founder on their about page. If so, I would like to nominate Reddit for the Silicon Valley Courage Award. (However, I think Facebook is the clear front-runner for clamping down on "Stop the Steal" disinformation now that both houses of Congress and the presidency are under Democratic control.)

by d3nj4l 6y ago

Technically 6y ago

I don't know why the term is so valuable. Musk went so far as to buy the title for Tesla.

egroq 6y ago

> Aaron Swartz was a martyr, and I don't mean to disparage him or his legacy. Who killed him? According to wikipedia it was suicide. Did he have a mental issue?

jagged-chisel 6y ago
He was under threat of prosecution from the FBI.
- egroq 6y ago
  So he suicided without mental issues, just to "make a statement"? Sorry that's not a martyr.
  - deleted 6y ago
    [deleted]
    - egroq 6y ago
      It is, but it's no excuse for suicide.
- vmception 6y ago
  US prisons are so full because people do the time.
  - aplummer 6y ago
    They’re full because of the prison industrial complex.
    - krspykrm 6y ago
      Industry has nothing to do with it. Every country has industry. The reason the US has so many in prison is because its people are the more hair-on-fire moralistic crusaders in the civilized world and they want people in prison.
      - aplummer 6y ago
        Industry is not what the prison industrial complex is. The prison industrial complex is a deliberate lengthening of sentences and increasing of mandatory jail time for non-violent offenses designed to increase the for-profit prison population to increase profit.
        krspykrm 6y ago
        "Prison industrial complex" is verbal sleight of hand to blame a system rather than people, but in reality these market forces are merely the revealed preference of what people want. If people wanted these inmates free - and by wanted I mean wanted in the revealed preference sense, not the virtue signal on the internet sense - capitalism would have them free tomorrow.
        aplummer 6y ago
        > If people wanted these inmates free - and by wanted I mean wanted in the revealed preference sense, not the virtue signal on the internet sense - capitalism would have them free tomorrow. That’s not how the world or capitalism works at all. Plenty of people want things and don’t get them. If you are referring to “a majority of people” then it’s still not how it works - for example the structure of the existing system affects it (see no president Clinton). There is much more to decisions and change. In this case, a minority of profit seeking people with power use levers of control on decision makers and propaganda to create public policy.
Shivetya 6y ago
the pressure the US DOJ attorneys put upon him became unbearable. their high pressure tactics which involve piling on charges and threatening the target with so many years in prison as to be lifetime for some can had adverse affects on people. Sadly this is par for the course as the prosecuting attorney and their office do not get called to account for their methods or out comes. this is very difficult to correct as many times the target is politically acceptable to many and therefor they just give the DOJ free reign to apply it to anyone they choose.
- rmrfstar 6y ago
  It's important to understand the historical context. Aaron was arrested in 2011, when a lot of other internet politics was happening. Occupy Wall Street, Arab Spring, LulzSec (remember Fuck FBI Friday?), Wikileaks, SOPA. "The block was hot" so to speak. The attitude in DC was, "those people on the internet think they can do whatever they want, we'll show them." Well, they showed us and we lost a truly inspiring person.

ErikVandeWater 6y ago

Ostrich effect at work. He joined a whole 4-5 months later. > Ohanian launched Reddit in June 2005. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reddit https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reddit > When Infogami failed to find further funding, Y-Combinator organizers suggested that Infogami merge with Reddit,[32][33] which it did in November 2005, resulting in the formation of a new firm, Not a Bug, devoted to promoting both products.[32][34] As a result of this merger, Swartz was given the title of co-founder of Reddit. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aaron_Swartz https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aaron_Swartz

jancsika 6y ago

Tell me if I'm understanding this: A company with the mendacity to misrepresent an employee as a co-founder in order to attract said employee wasn't happy with that employee's performance. So they boldly refuse to continue misrepresenting him as a co-founder on their about page. If so, I would like to nominate Reddit for the Silicon Valley Courage Award. (However, I think Facebook is the clear front-runner for clamping down on "Stop the Steal" disinformation now that both houses of Congress and the presidency are under Democratic control.)