6 ms·
> while the bits posted to social media could be interpreted as “inflammatory,” Did anyone actually find them inflammatory, or was the justification that "some
by aestetix 3y ago
> while the bits posted to social media could be interpreted as “inflammatory,”
Did anyone actually find them inflammatory, or was the justification that "someone" "might" find them inflammatory? If some individual raised a complaint that's one thing, but sounds like a massive overreaction.
- gotoeleven 3y ago[flagged]
- aestetix 3y agoThe distinction matters because it is the difference between random hypotheticals and real world events. To draw an analogy: should the TSA assume everyone might have a weapon and do a "special" search on every airline passenger, or wait until there is evidence that someone has a weapon (such as using an x-ray) and then escalate? I'm sure you could potentially find someone to be offended by even the most tame Dad joke, but that doesn't mean you should stop telling Dad jokes.
- danmur 3y agoI remember having to rename all our branches but when I asked whether the term 'master data' should also be retired there were crickets. No that one's different
- pydry 3y agoMicrosoft pulled that branch bullshit to deflect from the flak it got for wanting to keep ICE as a customer from its employees. Ever since then Ive kind of considered renaming master to main to be a symbol not of one's sensitivity to "problematic language" but of trying to be "woke" while refusing to boycott concentration camps.
- ttyprintk 3y agoTheir job descriptions still say Masters Degrees rather than something like Better Degrees.
- blipvert 3y ago[flagged]
- istultus 3y agoTwo fallacies in one, nice. First an appeal to authority. And then Godwin himself with a salience bias - since the socials have a tendency to present only the extreme voices, it's not a good place to sample, no matter what statistical framework you use. But since the word itself is controversial (including what it means) it makes perfect sense never to use it, as Ackman for example successfully did in his spiel, only referring to DEI by name.
- andrepd 3y agoHumour is not your strong suit, that much is clear :)
- MeImCounting 3y agoI remember when the term "woke" used to refer to taking too many psychedelic mushrooms and having a "transcendent experience" How far we have fallen
- leereeves 3y agoCalling people who disagree with you 'fuckheads' is really not appropriate here, and doing so by quoting an intermediary doesn't make it better. When disagreeing, please reply to the argument instead of calling names. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
- blipvert 3y agoI shall pass on your sentiments to Mr. Godwin
- leereeves 3y agoHe posted that on X, the ex-Twitter, where that kind of behavior is entirely appropriate (for better or worse). You posted it here, where that behavior is not appropriate. If you really want to engage in childish snark, there are lots of sites that welcome it.
- chongli 3y agoThe courts rarely use such a low bar. The test is usually the reasonable person or “the man on the street.” Does a reasonable person find them inflammatory?
- imadierich 3y agothe average person was not this unreasonable just 7 years ago
- chongli 3y agoThe "reasonable person" from law is not an average or typical person. It's an idealized person who doesn't change very much over time because the concept is rooted in common law. The average or typical person can change dramatically as social norms and movements go, but common law moves very slowly by accumulation of precedent.
- ttyprintk 3y agoI think that’s his point: the legal fiction goes back to Roman law and is specifically invariant when used for questions of constitutional equality or egalitarianism.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- andrepd 3y ago[flagged]
- atlantic 3y agoPersonal experience is useful. All kinds of groups were mistreated, historically speaking. If we keep pulling up old grievances, society remains perpetually divided. How many lynchings did you witness yourself? Or hear from first-hand witnesses?
- alpaca128 3y agoThe company found an interpretation that could be inflammatory enough to fire him, which is the only thing they care about. Also their social media policy is not that great apparently: > The arbitrator said that he read this policy as not incorporating a “reasonable person” standard, meaning that workers “must be vigilant not to post anything on social media that could conceivably be interpreted as inflammatory even by highly sensitive and thin-skinned individuals without an appreciation for irony or satire.”
- roenxi 3y agoThese jokes are definitely inflammatory. It is a brand of humour that identifies things other people think are important then points out that they are ridiculous. His colleagues could be quite upset. I would expect being fired from most tech companies for making the observations in the "Kind of Racist" routine; although I have the wrong skin colour for it so the ice is presumably thinner for me than for him. There is some real girl from HR that was doing that in his company who is probably quite committed to the work.
- blairbeckwith 3y agoIt’s certainly believable that there actually was a real girl who was doing that at his work, but we should also probably stop taking comedic storytelling as truth without question. See: recent Hassan Minhaj controversy, etc.
- master-lincoln 3y agoOne could argue the steps the HR person did in the "Kind of Racist" sketch are inflammatory themselves... At least in Germany I think it would be unacceptable for an HR person to ask if somebody considers themselves a person of color in an official context.
- op00to 3y agoYou are asked to self identify race as a part of US employment. I think it’s important to ask people how they view themselves.
- andrepd 3y agoI'd say it's irrelevant whether it caused "inflammation" or whether it might do so. That in itself is no grounds for any attempt at censorship. Not very long ago in developed countries "agitating for women's suffrage" or "kissing a person of the same sex" or "a white woman marrying a black man" would be inflammatory. In many places it still is.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- op00to 3y agoThe justification, if you read the source document, is that it could possibly be found inflammatory to the most thin skinned person.
- throwaway0x4 3y ago[dead]