4 ms·

Why can’t we keep going like this? Profit continues whether workers go back to the office or not. Companies are making money hand over fist right now. If this

Why can’t we keep going like this? Profit continues whether workers go back to the office or not. Companies are making money hand over fist right now. If this stretches past the end of 2021, WFH will simply be a feature of the white collar economy. Companies are already finding it hard to break inertia and get people back into the office; after another 6 months of this they’re not even going to try.

refulgentis 5y ago
There are people who are suffering greatly under these arrangements and it's not talked about much. It's much easier to understand how hard it is to have kids at home while juggling work than it is to understand the detrimental effect of Big Tech having you move somewhere, then shutting off any ability you have to form social connections There's a lot of ways to nerdsnipe that argument, ex. "just move back!"...it's too late, those social connections are gone
- wayoutthere 5y ago
  Right, but this assumes that nobody was suffering under the pre-pandemic work culture. For many people I talk to, their lives have significantly improved under this dynamic. Yes, with kids. There are also a lot of places to make social connections that aren’t work.
  - refulgentis 5y ago
    Yes, you're right, as you point out, I mentioned them. You're, of course, right that work isn't the only place to meet people, but that's trivially true in a way that feels insulting - my intent was to point out the other side of the coin is being trivialized, and it's on me that I wasn't clear on the that. And earnestly, is there really a ton of places to make social connections available right now?
- dudul 5y ago
  And some people were suffering when they had to spend 2+ hours commuting every day. When they never saw their kids. Being remote does not mean working from home. Being remote does not mean never going out, quite the opposite actually, you just need to be intentional about it.
spidersouris 5y ago
Sorry - my comment was more of a general "we can't keep everything closed and continue to impose lockdowns" rather than "we have to stop WFH and everyone should go back to the office," in spite of the article. Still, to expand on the issue of WFH, I absolutely see no problem with it and I even advocated for it before the pandemic. I just wish everyone who wants to go back to the office for legitimate reasons (because they like to see their co-workers, because they have bad working conditions at home and what not) were able to if vaccinated.
- wayoutthere 5y ago
  Yeah I guess that’s what I’m saying - whatever version of “lockdown” we’re currently in (which is simply recommended but not required masking in my city) is probably the “new normal”. The economy has proven it can function effectively and even grow GDP at this level. And covid is probably never going away given the intransigence. I don’t think there’s political appetite to lock down things again. The left won’t go along with lockdowns this time; they’re too bitter at the right for causing this to drag out.

refulgentis 5y ago

There are people who are suffering greatly under these arrangements and it's not talked about much. It's much easier to understand how hard it is to have kids at home while juggling work than it is to understand the detrimental effect of Big Tech having you move somewhere, then shutting off any ability you have to form social connections There's a lot of ways to nerdsnipe that argument, ex. "just move back!"...it's too late, those social connections are gone

wayoutthere 5y ago
Right, but this assumes that nobody was suffering under the pre-pandemic work culture. For many people I talk to, their lives have significantly improved under this dynamic. Yes, with kids. There are also a lot of places to make social connections that aren’t work.
- refulgentis 5y ago
  Yes, you're right, as you point out, I mentioned them. You're, of course, right that work isn't the only place to meet people, but that's trivially true in a way that feels insulting - my intent was to point out the other side of the coin is being trivialized, and it's on me that I wasn't clear on the that. And earnestly, is there really a ton of places to make social connections available right now?
dudul 5y ago
And some people were suffering when they had to spend 2+ hours commuting every day. When they never saw their kids. Being remote does not mean working from home. Being remote does not mean never going out, quite the opposite actually, you just need to be intentional about it.

spidersouris 5y ago

Sorry - my comment was more of a general "we can't keep everything closed and continue to impose lockdowns" rather than "we have to stop WFH and everyone should go back to the office," in spite of the article. Still, to expand on the issue of WFH, I absolutely see no problem with it and I even advocated for it before the pandemic. I just wish everyone who wants to go back to the office for legitimate reasons (because they like to see their co-workers, because they have bad working conditions at home and what not) were able to if vaccinated.

wayoutthere 5y ago
Yeah I guess that’s what I’m saying - whatever version of “lockdown” we’re currently in (which is simply recommended but not required masking in my city) is probably the “new normal”. The economy has proven it can function effectively and even grow GDP at this level. And covid is probably never going away given the intransigence. I don’t think there’s political appetite to lock down things again. The left won’t go along with lockdowns this time; they’re too bitter at the right for causing this to drag out.