3 ms·

You're confusing naughtiness with evil. Naughtiness has to do with breaking conventions, evil with hurting others. If you followed PG's record, you'd know how

by gruseom 15y ago

You're confusing naughtiness with evil. Naughtiness has to do with breaking conventions, evil with hurting others. If you followed PG's record, you'd know how strong an advocate he is that startups be good.

freshfunk 15y ago
In a morally-flexible environment, it's easy to confuse the two. For example - Zynga selling offers (for credits) with very fine print that signs you up for paid services. And the fine print is so convoluted/tiny most people don't read it. Helping or hurting consumers? - Facebook hiring a PR firm to highlight questionable privacy practices by Google. Helping users or hurting Google? - Subprime mortgages. Helping or hurting homeowners?
- gruseom 15y ago
  In a morally-flexible environment You're assuming your conclusion. Punctiliously following convention doesn't make you good. It just safely ensconces you near the mean. Not a promising place for startup founders to reside. Calvin from Calvin and Hobbes is naughty. He's not evil or even "morally-flexible".
  - freshfunk 15y ago
    Perhaps you should look to real business rather than comics for examples. It would be more convincing.
    - wging 15y ago
      I think the rule is, "Write to your audience."
- jdp23 15y ago
  Dropbox lying about their security guarantees ....
  - btilly 15y ago
    The fact that they are a Y-combinator company makes this far and away the best example given.
  - nl 15y ago
    Except that they didn't lie. English isn't a computer program - there are many interpretations possible. I suspect that they didn't even see the other interpretation of their language around security until someone pointed it out to them.
benhoyt 15y ago
As G. K. Chesterton said, "break the conventions and keep the commandments" -- http://www.chesterton.org/wordpress/?page_id=8 http://www.chesterton.org/wordpress/?page_id=8

3 ms·

You're confusing naughtiness with evil. Naughtiness has to do with breaking conventions, evil with hurting others. If you followed PG's record, you'd know how

by gruseom 15y ago

freshfunk 15y ago
In a morally-flexible environment, it's easy to confuse the two. For example - Zynga selling offers (for credits) with very fine print that signs you up for paid services. And the fine print is so convoluted/tiny most people don't read it. Helping or hurting consumers? - Facebook hiring a PR firm to highlight questionable privacy practices by Google. Helping users or hurting Google? - Subprime mortgages. Helping or hurting homeowners?
- gruseom 15y ago
  In a morally-flexible environment You're assuming your conclusion. Punctiliously following convention doesn't make you good. It just safely ensconces you near the mean. Not a promising place for startup founders to reside. Calvin from Calvin and Hobbes is naughty. He's not evil or even "morally-flexible".
  - freshfunk 15y ago
    Perhaps you should look to real business rather than comics for examples. It would be more convincing.
    - wging 15y ago
      I think the rule is, "Write to your audience."
- jdp23 15y ago
  Dropbox lying about their security guarantees ....
  - btilly 15y ago
    The fact that they are a Y-combinator company makes this far and away the best example given.
  - nl 15y ago
    Except that they didn't lie. English isn't a computer program - there are many interpretations possible. I suspect that they didn't even see the other interpretation of their language around security until someone pointed it out to them.
benhoyt 15y ago
As G. K. Chesterton said, "break the conventions and keep the commandments" -- http://www.chesterton.org/wordpress/?page_id=8 http://www.chesterton.org/wordpress/?page_id=8