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I used to listen to a podcast I enjoyed about a small and rapidly growing tech company in Oregon, someone I had personally met a few years back at a conference

by ejb999 5y ago

I used to listen to a podcast I enjoyed about a small and rapidly growing tech company in Oregon, someone I had personally met a few years back at a conference - which is where I first learned of the company; they work in the e-commerce space and I enjoyed listening to the founder talk about the trials and tribulations of growing his company; when covid hit, the company grew like gangbusters (like just abut every online business), and he would talk about the skyrocketing business growth and all of the money they were making. Then he also went on to talk about how he was lining up at the public trough to get welfare from the government (PPP) to 'help' his business - was so thoroughly disgusted by the lack of ethics and have never listen to the show again, and lost all respect for this founder as well. I will never understand rich people making money hand-over-fist and still willing to take money from taxpayers who make a fraction of what they do so they can have even more (are you listening Elon? this story is not about you, but it could be.)

AlchemistCamp 5y ago
Related: https://www.startupsfortherestofus.com/episodes/episode-493-startup-roundtable https://www.startupsfortherestofus.com/episodes/episode-493-...
Frost1x 5y ago
>I will never understand rich people making money hand-over-fist and still willing to take money from taxpayers who make a fraction of what they do so they can have even more The two are correlated because our economic system rewards that very cut throat greedy behavior. Those behaviors mixed with some luck and skill are often how those very people became rich in the first place.
toolz 5y ago
So in your opinion it was the companies fault that they didn't purposely leave a competitive advantage on the table while their competition surely utilized it? It seems that you judge from a place of detached ignorance. We are going through a pandemic and that business owner may very well be worried the bottom will fall out any moment and if that owner has employees it is their responsibility to prepare as much as possible during times of uncertainty. I find it unethical that you would judge the company rather than blame the core root of the problem which is the incompetence of the handouts in identifying rather easily that this company was growing and thus not in need. For all you know the owner would very much prefer he didn't qualify for those loans alongside their competition. Blaming the company solves nothing but does create division. Blaming the program, however, has the potential to solve every problem you have with the situation.
- ejb999 5y ago
  >>So in your opinion it was the companies fault that they didn't purposely leave a competitive advantage on the table while their competition surely utilized it? Yes, absolutely. People who are making money hands over fist should not be lining up for corporate welfare just because everyone else is. It's too bad so many people are OK with disgusting behavior - just because 'everyone is doing it'. How much better could we take care of people that truly needed assistance, if we didn't have to worry about making sure that the large numbers of people who don't actually need the help, weren't also lining up at the trough. Amazing to me that people will continue to make excuses for rich pr*cks that abuse the system to enrich themselves at everyone else's expense.
- ejb999 5y ago
  >>So in your opinion it was the companies fault that they didn't purposely leave a competitive advantage on the table while their competition surely utilized it? Are you OK with upper middle class and rich people getting in line at 'no questions asked' food banks? even though they don't need the help? taking away food from people that actually need it? If so, please explain the the difference.
  - toolz 5y ago
    Nope, but I actually want to solve problems rather than start drama, which is why I blame the mis-allocation of public resources towards providing upper middle class with food from food banks. If you're looking for problems, blame is easy to throw around. If you're looking for solutions you have to start with the processes that can be held accountable and changed. You can wish all you want, but your moral judgement isn't going to change the actions of people you don't know. What _will_ work however is demanding that public resources are allocated appropriately. That's because the government works for us, but that person you want to denigrate owes you nothing.

by ejb999 5y ago

AlchemistCamp 5y ago

Related: https://www.startupsfortherestofus.com/episodes/episode-493-startup-roundtable https://www.startupsfortherestofus.com/episodes/episode-493-...

Frost1x 5y ago

>I will never understand rich people making money hand-over-fist and still willing to take money from taxpayers who make a fraction of what they do so they can have even more The two are correlated because our economic system rewards that very cut throat greedy behavior. Those behaviors mixed with some luck and skill are often how those very people became rich in the first place.

toolz 5y ago

So in your opinion it was the companies fault that they didn't purposely leave a competitive advantage on the table while their competition surely utilized it? It seems that you judge from a place of detached ignorance. We are going through a pandemic and that business owner may very well be worried the bottom will fall out any moment and if that owner has employees it is their responsibility to prepare as much as possible during times of uncertainty. I find it unethical that you would judge the company rather than blame the core root of the problem which is the incompetence of the handouts in identifying rather easily that this company was growing and thus not in need. For all you know the owner would very much prefer he didn't qualify for those loans alongside their competition. Blaming the company solves nothing but does create division. Blaming the program, however, has the potential to solve every problem you have with the situation.

ejb999 5y ago
>>So in your opinion it was the companies fault that they didn't purposely leave a competitive advantage on the table while their competition surely utilized it? Yes, absolutely. People who are making money hands over fist should not be lining up for corporate welfare just because everyone else is. It's too bad so many people are OK with disgusting behavior - just because 'everyone is doing it'. How much better could we take care of people that truly needed assistance, if we didn't have to worry about making sure that the large numbers of people who don't actually need the help, weren't also lining up at the trough. Amazing to me that people will continue to make excuses for rich pr*cks that abuse the system to enrich themselves at everyone else's expense.
ejb999 5y ago
>>So in your opinion it was the companies fault that they didn't purposely leave a competitive advantage on the table while their competition surely utilized it? Are you OK with upper middle class and rich people getting in line at 'no questions asked' food banks? even though they don't need the help? taking away food from people that actually need it? If so, please explain the the difference.
- toolz 5y ago
  Nope, but I actually want to solve problems rather than start drama, which is why I blame the mis-allocation of public resources towards providing upper middle class with food from food banks. If you're looking for problems, blame is easy to throw around. If you're looking for solutions you have to start with the processes that can be held accountable and changed. You can wish all you want, but your moral judgement isn't going to change the actions of people you don't know. What _will_ work however is demanding that public resources are allocated appropriately. That's because the government works for us, but that person you want to denigrate owes you nothing.