3 ms·

What makes Peter Thiel unethical and impulsive specifically? I can read tittle tattle and tribalistic nonsense on almost any website that allows comments, let's

What makes Peter Thiel unethical and impulsive specifically? I can read tittle tattle and tribalistic nonsense on almost any website that allows comments, let's try to get above that here by at least providing the substance behind such assertions.

georgespencer 3y ago
While we're at it we might also strive for people not requiring every aspect of a debate to be catered to their familiarity with the subject at hand It seems plausible that anyone using HN for discussion could probably read a little about Thiel and see why someone might believe him to be unethical, certainly. What he might describe as his political "strategy" is actually a bonfire for money often found to be burning in support of the most atavistic and reactionary candidates. I'm sure others would characterise it as a master plan but to me it seems impulsive and haphazard. (I accept that one clearing the hurdle of "set up a political action committee to funnel millions of dollars into hard line candidates" is not impulsivity in the same way that children exhibit it, but I hope that's clear.) If you're genuinely in the dark about why Palantir – a company which exists to help inexpert government agencies and QUANGOs to spy on their citizens and which I believe counted the CIA among its first institutional investors – is the sort of company an unethical man might start, then I'm happy to share my reasoning, but these are not contentious points. I was really just astonished that the current UK government keeps finding ways to make itself more unelectable with every passing minute.
- brigandish 3y ago
  As I wrote, I can read tribalistic nonsense anywhere. Perhaps if you put more time into trying to show some reasoning beyond if you read about it you'll feel like me unless you're evil or stupid then you wouldn't get these kind of questions.
hotnfresh 3y ago
Not sure what the parent meant by it, but he presents in public as a democracy skeptic and authoritarian technocrat (with the exact same “and by technocrat I mostly mean rich and sharing my opinions, of course” thing that nearly all such people end up at). He’s pretty up-front about it. Exactly the kind of person I’d like to see with no access to levers of power or anything else important. He appears to follow the same pattern as lots of other rich captain-of-industry authoritarians we’ve seen… well, since the advent of modern democracy, really, to a T. The background on it’s kinda a boring read, because it’s so familiar. Wikipedia’s got the gist and links to the details, but I’m sure someone out there’s got a site that catalogs the whole thing.
- brigandish 3y ago
  Thank you, your input is certainly more enlightening than what came before.

georgespencer 3y ago

While we're at it we might also strive for people not requiring every aspect of a debate to be catered to their familiarity with the subject at hand It seems plausible that anyone using HN for discussion could probably read a little about Thiel and see why someone might believe him to be unethical, certainly. What he might describe as his political "strategy" is actually a bonfire for money often found to be burning in support of the most atavistic and reactionary candidates. I'm sure others would characterise it as a master plan but to me it seems impulsive and haphazard. (I accept that one clearing the hurdle of "set up a political action committee to funnel millions of dollars into hard line candidates" is not impulsivity in the same way that children exhibit it, but I hope that's clear.) If you're genuinely in the dark about why Palantir – a company which exists to help inexpert government agencies and QUANGOs to spy on their citizens and which I believe counted the CIA among its first institutional investors – is the sort of company an unethical man might start, then I'm happy to share my reasoning, but these are not contentious points. I was really just astonished that the current UK government keeps finding ways to make itself more unelectable with every passing minute.

brigandish 3y ago
As I wrote, I can read tribalistic nonsense anywhere. Perhaps if you put more time into trying to show some reasoning beyond if you read about it you'll feel like me unless you're evil or stupid then you wouldn't get these kind of questions.

hotnfresh 3y ago

Not sure what the parent meant by it, but he presents in public as a democracy skeptic and authoritarian technocrat (with the exact same “and by technocrat I mostly mean rich and sharing my opinions, of course” thing that nearly all such people end up at). He’s pretty up-front about it. Exactly the kind of person I’d like to see with no access to levers of power or anything else important. He appears to follow the same pattern as lots of other rich captain-of-industry authoritarians we’ve seen… well, since the advent of modern democracy, really, to a T. The background on it’s kinda a boring read, because it’s so familiar. Wikipedia’s got the gist and links to the details, but I’m sure someone out there’s got a site that catalogs the whole thing.

brigandish 3y ago
Thank you, your input is certainly more enlightening than what came before.