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I didn't get hot sauce on me and I wasn't at MicroConf — but I will defend Noah. I've met him on several occasions and he's been friendly and helpful. He also g

by edash 15y ago

I didn't get hot sauce on me and I wasn't at MicroConf — but I will defend Noah. I've met him on several occasions and he's been friendly and helpful. He also gives time and energy to many people and projects without wanting anything in return. I'm not defending his presentation; that slide offends me too. But I know that he deserves better than to wake up seeing this on the front page of Hacker News. The author could have used the slide as a jumping off point for greater issues like gender equality in tech, or the pros and cons of being offensive in a presentation, or even a discussion about the word "bitch". Any of those topics would have forwarded the point more than writing a long ad hominem attack on someone who surely didn't intend to hurt or offend anyone personally.

sixtofour 15y ago
"But I know that he deserves better than to wake up seeing this on the front page of Hacker News." He is in almost complete control over this. Or he was when he woke up the morning of the conference.
niels_olson 15y ago
Pro tip: one should not defend clearly sexist behavior if for no other reason than it associates you with sexist behavior in your own mind. And the speaker's behavior, as described, is clearly sexist.
- edash 15y ago
  I wasn't defending Noah's behavior. I was defending Noah.
  - deleted 15y ago
    [deleted]
  - niels_olson 15y ago
    Your defense is wrapped up in the context of the entire conversation, which is specifically about a particular behavior. Claims that you're offended by the behavior and are only defending ther person, even if they are genuine, are superseded by the enclosing context. For better or worse.
  - seigenblues 15y ago
    as near as i could read, no one was attacking Noah -- just Noah's behavior, which seems out of line. See the "i'm not calling you a racist, i'm calling your behavior racist" crucial line of distinction. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0Ti-gkJiXc http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0Ti-gkJiXc) Noah can be a sweet, helpful, lovable teddy bear, and still have behavior that needs to be called out.

by edash 15y ago

sixtofour 15y ago

"But I know that he deserves better than to wake up seeing this on the front page of Hacker News." He is in almost complete control over this. Or he was when he woke up the morning of the conference.

niels_olson 15y ago

Pro tip: one should not defend clearly sexist behavior if for no other reason than it associates you with sexist behavior in your own mind. And the speaker's behavior, as described, is clearly sexist.

edash 15y ago
I wasn't defending Noah's behavior. I was defending Noah.
- deleted 15y ago
  [deleted]
- niels_olson 15y ago
  Your defense is wrapped up in the context of the entire conversation, which is specifically about a particular behavior. Claims that you're offended by the behavior and are only defending ther person, even if they are genuine, are superseded by the enclosing context. For better or worse.
- seigenblues 15y ago
  as near as i could read, no one was attacking Noah -- just Noah's behavior, which seems out of line. See the "i'm not calling you a racist, i'm calling your behavior racist" crucial line of distinction. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0Ti-gkJiXc http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0Ti-gkJiXc) Noah can be a sweet, helpful, lovable teddy bear, and still have behavior that needs to be called out.