4 ms·

Oh please. You know exactly what the article is saying. You chose to attack the publication instead of their arguments which boils down to Thiel and friends are

by _8j50 4y ago

Oh please. You know exactly what the article is saying. You chose to attack the publication instead of their arguments which boils down to Thiel and friends are very much anti-regulation and if it wasn't their money they would resist government interference. Perhaps you could talk about the quoted comments from those billionaires and correct the article?

DrBazza 4y ago
> Perhaps you could talk about the quoted comments All the quotes are barely one sentence, and with zero context, and no link back to when or where they were said. I know modern journalism is lazy and just quotes tweets, but the author could have put a bit more effort in. > when Zuckerberg came up with his mantra, “move fast and break things”, he didn’t just mean code. > Thiel himself is so committed to libertarianism that he has established an eponymous foundation to “defend and promote freedom” > Larry Page, the co-founder of Google, has previously suggested a “limit” on laws to “some set of pages”. “When you add a page, you have to take one away,” he said. > “This is an extinction level event,” warned Garry Tan, the CEO of Y Combinator. > “Where is [the chairman of the Federal Reserve, Jay] Powell? Where is [the Treasury secretary, Janet] Yellen? Stop this crisis NOW,” tweeted the venture capitalist David Sacks
- nayroclade 4y ago
  The article assumes an audience sophisticated and informed enough not to require extensive evidence that Peter Thiel is a libertarian, or that he and associated VCs are generally opposed to government regulation, because those assumed to be established facts. The quotes aren't intended to prove these facts, simply to provide a flavour of the types of rhetoric and attitude they have historically displayed. So what exactly is your argument here? That Thiel and co. aren't libertarians? That they are generally pro-regulation and government bailouts? Or that the article's thesis is invalid simply because it didn't meet your standard of empirical representation, regardless of whether it's true or not?
- nerdponx 4y ago
  The last one at least was literally just a Twitter post with no other context.
soumyadeb 4y ago
As far as I know, haven't seen any tweet/quote from Peter Theil asking for a bailout. Shouldn't the onus be on the article author to do more research on their primary target. Can't blame him for being friends with people who asked for it.
- PM_me_your_math 4y ago
  Wait, you want "of the left and for the left" "journalists" to do research?
  - soumyadeb 4y ago
    haha
- Thuggery 4y ago
  > Can't blame him for being friends with people who asked for it. If he has not denounced those Libertarian friends, yes you can. If he has not lobbied the government with his disproportionate power and privilege to not socialize investment losses the way he has lobbied in the name of pro wealthy elite anti state "intervention" in the past, yes you can. It is an incongruity in values.
Dma54rhs 4y ago
Thiel got his money out, where is he asking for bailouts? These techbros are imaginary characters invented for clicks and outage.
- sharemywin 4y ago
  I agree he shouldn't have been the center piece of the article. Because I don't think he was calling for a bailout. But there are alot of laws that favor tech and most of the tech billionaires take lots of credit for winning with a stacked deck. And call for less regulation. - sales tax exemptions for ecommerce. - green credits - section 230 - lack of stricter anti trust
  - PM_me_your_math 4y ago
    The author doesn't understand the topic or the event, and just picked a boogeyman who they perceive is a threat to their activism.
  - ch4s3 4y ago
    Section 230 was just a carve out in the mostly overturned Communications Decency Act to allow for moderation. It isn't special protection, it clarifies that for the purposes of some pearl clutching censorship laws that moderating and hosting comments doesn't incur the liability of having said or published the thing in question. The rest of that law was basically whole sale tossed out by the Supreme Court for being prior restraint on speech. Section 230 is a red herring pushed by know nothing culture warriors.
JaimeThompson 4y ago
>Thiel and friends are very much anti-regulation Anti-regulation on the business side, their political donations show they are very much into regulations when it comes to people and ideas that aren't "typical" and or "straight".
- KoftaBob 4y ago
  "straight" as in sexual orientation? That would be particularly ironic given that Peter Thiel is gay.
  - JaimeThompson 4y ago
    yep. He has donated 10+ million to various anti-gay politicians. He appears to think, most likely correctly, that his money will protect him.
    - Slava_Propanei 4y ago
      [dead]
- _ktx2 4y ago
  Yeah, this is completely wrong. https://www.protocol.com/tech-company-pacs-2019-2020 https://www.protocol.com/tech-company-pacs-2019-2020 "Official" donations from the companies split them 50/50 between the major parties while worker donations are almost 99% Democrat. SVB itself primarily donated to Democrats, despite it being maligned as "libertarian".
  - JaimeThompson 4y ago
    One can't be friends with a PAC. Thiel has donated 10+ million dollars to people who would treat those like himself as second class citizens as documented in the GOP political platforms. https://www.politico.com/news/2021/05/17/peter-thiel-senate-megadonor-488799 https://www.politico.com/news/2021/05/17/peter-thiel-senate-...

by _8j50 4y ago

DrBazza 4y ago

> Perhaps you could talk about the quoted comments All the quotes are barely one sentence, and with zero context, and no link back to when or where they were said. I know modern journalism is lazy and just quotes tweets, but the author could have put a bit more effort in. > when Zuckerberg came up with his mantra, “move fast and break things”, he didn’t just mean code. > Thiel himself is so committed to libertarianism that he has established an eponymous foundation to “defend and promote freedom” > Larry Page, the co-founder of Google, has previously suggested a “limit” on laws to “some set of pages”. “When you add a page, you have to take one away,” he said. > “This is an extinction level event,” warned Garry Tan, the CEO of Y Combinator. > “Where is [the chairman of the Federal Reserve, Jay] Powell? Where is [the Treasury secretary, Janet] Yellen? Stop this crisis NOW,” tweeted the venture capitalist David Sacks

nayroclade 4y ago
The article assumes an audience sophisticated and informed enough not to require extensive evidence that Peter Thiel is a libertarian, or that he and associated VCs are generally opposed to government regulation, because those assumed to be established facts. The quotes aren't intended to prove these facts, simply to provide a flavour of the types of rhetoric and attitude they have historically displayed. So what exactly is your argument here? That Thiel and co. aren't libertarians? That they are generally pro-regulation and government bailouts? Or that the article's thesis is invalid simply because it didn't meet your standard of empirical representation, regardless of whether it's true or not?
nerdponx 4y ago
The last one at least was literally just a Twitter post with no other context.

soumyadeb 4y ago

As far as I know, haven't seen any tweet/quote from Peter Theil asking for a bailout. Shouldn't the onus be on the article author to do more research on their primary target. Can't blame him for being friends with people who asked for it.

PM_me_your_math 4y ago
Wait, you want "of the left and for the left" "journalists" to do research?
- soumyadeb 4y ago
  haha
Thuggery 4y ago
> Can't blame him for being friends with people who asked for it. If he has not denounced those Libertarian friends, yes you can. If he has not lobbied the government with his disproportionate power and privilege to not socialize investment losses the way he has lobbied in the name of pro wealthy elite anti state "intervention" in the past, yes you can. It is an incongruity in values.

Dma54rhs 4y ago

Thiel got his money out, where is he asking for bailouts? These techbros are imaginary characters invented for clicks and outage.

sharemywin 4y ago
I agree he shouldn't have been the center piece of the article. Because I don't think he was calling for a bailout. But there are alot of laws that favor tech and most of the tech billionaires take lots of credit for winning with a stacked deck. And call for less regulation. - sales tax exemptions for ecommerce. - green credits - section 230 - lack of stricter anti trust
- PM_me_your_math 4y ago
  The author doesn't understand the topic or the event, and just picked a boogeyman who they perceive is a threat to their activism.
- ch4s3 4y ago
  Section 230 was just a carve out in the mostly overturned Communications Decency Act to allow for moderation. It isn't special protection, it clarifies that for the purposes of some pearl clutching censorship laws that moderating and hosting comments doesn't incur the liability of having said or published the thing in question. The rest of that law was basically whole sale tossed out by the Supreme Court for being prior restraint on speech. Section 230 is a red herring pushed by know nothing culture warriors.

JaimeThompson 4y ago

>Thiel and friends are very much anti-regulation Anti-regulation on the business side, their political donations show they are very much into regulations when it comes to people and ideas that aren't "typical" and or "straight".

KoftaBob 4y ago
"straight" as in sexual orientation? That would be particularly ironic given that Peter Thiel is gay.
- JaimeThompson 4y ago
  yep. He has donated 10+ million to various anti-gay politicians. He appears to think, most likely correctly, that his money will protect him.
  - Slava_Propanei 4y ago
    [dead]
_ktx2 4y ago
Yeah, this is completely wrong. https://www.protocol.com/tech-company-pacs-2019-2020 https://www.protocol.com/tech-company-pacs-2019-2020 "Official" donations from the companies split them 50/50 between the major parties while worker donations are almost 99% Democrat. SVB itself primarily donated to Democrats, despite it being maligned as "libertarian".
- JaimeThompson 4y ago
  One can't be friends with a PAC. Thiel has donated 10+ million dollars to people who would treat those like himself as second class citizens as documented in the GOP political platforms. https://www.politico.com/news/2021/05/17/peter-thiel-senate-megadonor-488799 https://www.politico.com/news/2021/05/17/peter-thiel-senate-...