5 ms·

There are a lot of red flags in this post.

0_____0 3y ago
I've known a few folks who have been homeless or had mental health issues, sometimes while working as a dev. Trauma and mental health concerns are good to consider but they're not necessarily showstoppers.
- fartfeatures 3y ago
  [flagged]
  - mattbee 3y ago
    Did ChatGPT write this? Yes, OP has troubles, they have spelt them out. Your "concerns" have zero insight, they are an appeal to heartlessness. Who are you writing them for?
    - fartfeatures 3y ago
      Yes I ran my comment through and asked it to take the rough edges off. I have no desire to worsen someone else's experience and my attempt at a comment was too cold. I simply want to warn people to have their guard up whilst helping.
      - mattbee 3y ago
        Well simply don't. It was unkind and degrading, with the kicker that you didn't even write it yourself.
        fartfeatures 3y ago
        I respect your opinion but disagree, my original comment was a lot clumsier.
        mattbee 3y ago
        ChatGPT wrapped an ugly outburst in corporate sleaze.
        fartfeatures 3y ago
        That is your opinion and you are welcome to it, I'd agree with you but then we would both be wrong.
  - Repulsion9513 3y ago
    > Extended Unemployment Despite Skills: They claim to possess in-demand technical skills but have been unable to secure employment for six months. This discrepancy is concerning and warrants a deeper understanding of the reasons behind it. It does indeed. Do you have that deeper understanding? Are you familiar with the job market for devs in Alberta? Have you attempted to understand what reasons there may be for that, or have you just taken a wild assumption (you know what that makes out of you and me)? > Questionable Survival Tactics: Mentioning social engineering to access hospital facilities and considering theft for food are alarming. While food banks do exist in Canada, their mention of theft instead of seeking such legitimate aid is troubling. No. If you truly believe any of that sentence please go do some Googling and reflection. There are many reasons why people avoid shelters and foodbanks. > Story Appealing to a Specific Audience: Their narrative seems particularly designed to resonate with readers of a tech-focused forum like Y Combinator. This targeted appeal could be genuine but also might be a strategy to elicit sympathy and assistance from a specific demographic. Or it could be that they're part of the same demographic. > Recurring Pattern of Issues: There's a consistent theme of conflicts and problems in various aspects of their life, including with government systems, psychologists, employers, and personal relationships. The fact that they are the common denominator in these issues is concerning. I think it's safe to say that most people have (or have had) conflicts with government systems, employers, and personal relationships; and it's quite possible to get a bad psychologist. I don't know who emilsedgh is but I think it's also safe to say that they read the same post you did. You're not providing any info here, you're just sharing your opinion on why OP should continue being homeless (which essentially boils down to "because he's honest", by the way: he could've easily lied and pretended he fits in perfectly everywhere and just had rotten luck).
    - fartfeatures 3y ago
      The goal of my comments is to encourage vigilance if choosing to help. I have not set out to encourage people not to help. I was also specifically asked to elaborate when I tried to be vague and point to generic red flags.
      - loa_in_ 3y ago
  - dennis_jeeves2 3y ago
    >Extended Unemployment Despite Skills: They claim to possess in-demand technical skills but have been unable to secure employment for six months. This is pretty common IMHO. So should not be regarded as a red flag.
  - sunsunsunsun 3y ago
    Is this chatgpt?
  - deleted 3y ago
    [deleted]
  - MeImCounting 3y ago
    "Mentioning social engineering to access hospital facilities and considering theft for food are alarming. While food banks do exist in Canada, their mention of theft instead of seeking such legitimate aid is troubling." No its really not. People need to eat and not freeze. Period.
random42 3y ago
What kind of red flags?
- jawns 3y ago
  > They tried to build their product from it and I wasn't able to tolerate that If I heard this while I was interviewing a candidate, I would write a note to myself: "Be prepared for more of this." > I also brought up the fact I had security concerns in regards to their systems when I went in person but that was brushed aside/ignored If I heard this while I was interviewing a candidate, I would wonder whether they lacked awareness of the need to follow established processes. > she kicked me out after my episode of psychosis So there's at least one occasion when the person had a break from reality, leading to them being kicked out of a house. I know it's important to avoid stigmatizing those with mental illness, but the person has indicated that they had a bad experience with treatment and are not currently in treatment, so it would not be unreasonable to expect that this psychosis could occur again. > I was able to social engineer myself into being a 'visitor' at a hospital for the past week Not exactly legal or ethical. Obviously, they're facing dire circumstances, which might mitigate their culpability, but would you want to hire someone who uses social engineering to deceive people? > I'm going to go and try to find/steal some food now Again, they're facing dire circumstances, which might mitigate their culpability, but they're also being quite open about being willing to steal, which is not exactly a desirable trait for most employers. Edit: My last point was not meant to suggest that under these circumstances, stealing a bit of food is reprehensible. Sometimes you've gotta do what you've gotta do. But broadcasting it is the red flag. It indicates a lack of discretion. I'm not trying to be callous here, but GP asked about red flags, so I was trying to describe some.
  - djbusby 3y ago
    Well, I try to remember that if you see someone stealing food...no you didn't.
  - Repulsion9513 3y ago
    > If I heard this while I was interviewing a candidate, I would write a note to myself: "Be prepared for more of this." I mean... ok? So don't try to make their FOSS product your own product? > If I heard this while I was interviewing a candidate, I would wonder whether they lacked awareness of the need to follow established processes. Ew. I would wonder why the staff wasn't able to tell him there is a process. > So there's at least one occasion when the person had a break from reality "years ago" in an unstable situation. > Not exactly legal or ethical. Obviously, they're facing dire circumstances, which might mitigate their culpability, but would you want to hire someone who uses social engineering to deceive people? I'm pretty sure "social engineer" here means something along the lines of "yeah I'm visiting my cousin" > Again, they're facing dire circumstances, which might mitigate their culpability, but they're also being quite open about being willing to steal, which is not exactly a desirable trait for most employers. Unless they're working for a grocery store or restaurant I don't think their employer will be worried about them stealing food.
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
dazc 3y ago
Maybe keep your suspicions to yourself unless you have evidence to the contrary? The guy's not asking for handouts and your negative posts my get in the way of someone being able to offer some real help. #1 reason for becoming homeless is not asking for help when you need to.
bayat 3y ago
Or perhaps our brains sometimes come up with excuses to look away from another human being’s suffering so that we feel less guilty?! I can see how this conclusion would be appealing from that perspective but I’d encourage anyone with this line of thinking, to think twice before posting something to cause doubt and potentially causing someone else to receive less help/attention that they would have otherwise received. Even if you think it’s plausible for someone to lie about something like a few years of open source contribution (which is very easy to verify for anyone who reaches out for them to help) please contemplate about the possibility of harm that this kind of comment might cause (a fellow human being suffering longer) vs the help you think you are providing by just casting doubt and uncertainty (potentially preventing someone more fortunate to send some money to someone else that didn’t actually need it?! Or they might be offered a job they might not have been offered otherwise?!). O.P. I’m really sorry for what you’re going through, and I admire your courage and honesty. I hope life becomes more stable very soon!

I've known a few folks who have been homeless or had mental health issues, sometimes while working as a dev. Trauma and mental health concerns are good to consider but they're not necessarily showstoppers.

fartfeatures 3y ago
[flagged]
- mattbee 3y ago
  Did ChatGPT write this? Yes, OP has troubles, they have spelt them out. Your "concerns" have zero insight, they are an appeal to heartlessness. Who are you writing them for?
  - fartfeatures 3y ago
    Yes I ran my comment through and asked it to take the rough edges off. I have no desire to worsen someone else's experience and my attempt at a comment was too cold. I simply want to warn people to have their guard up whilst helping.
    - mattbee 3y ago
      Well simply don't. It was unkind and degrading, with the kicker that you didn't even write it yourself.
      - fartfeatures 3y ago
        I respect your opinion but disagree, my original comment was a lot clumsier.
        mattbee 3y ago
        ChatGPT wrapped an ugly outburst in corporate sleaze.
        fartfeatures 3y ago
        That is your opinion and you are welcome to it, I'd agree with you but then we would both be wrong.
- Repulsion9513 3y ago
  > Extended Unemployment Despite Skills: They claim to possess in-demand technical skills but have been unable to secure employment for six months. This discrepancy is concerning and warrants a deeper understanding of the reasons behind it. It does indeed. Do you have that deeper understanding? Are you familiar with the job market for devs in Alberta? Have you attempted to understand what reasons there may be for that, or have you just taken a wild assumption (you know what that makes out of you and me)? > Questionable Survival Tactics: Mentioning social engineering to access hospital facilities and considering theft for food are alarming. While food banks do exist in Canada, their mention of theft instead of seeking such legitimate aid is troubling. No. If you truly believe any of that sentence please go do some Googling and reflection. There are many reasons why people avoid shelters and foodbanks. > Story Appealing to a Specific Audience: Their narrative seems particularly designed to resonate with readers of a tech-focused forum like Y Combinator. This targeted appeal could be genuine but also might be a strategy to elicit sympathy and assistance from a specific demographic. Or it could be that they're part of the same demographic. > Recurring Pattern of Issues: There's a consistent theme of conflicts and problems in various aspects of their life, including with government systems, psychologists, employers, and personal relationships. The fact that they are the common denominator in these issues is concerning. I think it's safe to say that most people have (or have had) conflicts with government systems, employers, and personal relationships; and it's quite possible to get a bad psychologist. I don't know who emilsedgh is but I think it's also safe to say that they read the same post you did. You're not providing any info here, you're just sharing your opinion on why OP should continue being homeless (which essentially boils down to "because he's honest", by the way: he could've easily lied and pretended he fits in perfectly everywhere and just had rotten luck).
  - fartfeatures 3y ago
    The goal of my comments is to encourage vigilance if choosing to help. I have not set out to encourage people not to help. I was also specifically asked to elaborate when I tried to be vague and point to generic red flags.
    - loa_in_ 3y ago
- dennis_jeeves2 3y ago
  >Extended Unemployment Despite Skills: They claim to possess in-demand technical skills but have been unable to secure employment for six months. This is pretty common IMHO. So should not be regarded as a red flag.
- sunsunsunsun 3y ago
  Is this chatgpt?
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
- MeImCounting 3y ago
  "Mentioning social engineering to access hospital facilities and considering theft for food are alarming. While food banks do exist in Canada, their mention of theft instead of seeking such legitimate aid is troubling." No its really not. People need to eat and not freeze. Period.

random42 3y ago

What kind of red flags?

jawns 3y ago
> They tried to build their product from it and I wasn't able to tolerate that If I heard this while I was interviewing a candidate, I would write a note to myself: "Be prepared for more of this." > I also brought up the fact I had security concerns in regards to their systems when I went in person but that was brushed aside/ignored If I heard this while I was interviewing a candidate, I would wonder whether they lacked awareness of the need to follow established processes. > she kicked me out after my episode of psychosis So there's at least one occasion when the person had a break from reality, leading to them being kicked out of a house. I know it's important to avoid stigmatizing those with mental illness, but the person has indicated that they had a bad experience with treatment and are not currently in treatment, so it would not be unreasonable to expect that this psychosis could occur again. > I was able to social engineer myself into being a 'visitor' at a hospital for the past week Not exactly legal or ethical. Obviously, they're facing dire circumstances, which might mitigate their culpability, but would you want to hire someone who uses social engineering to deceive people? > I'm going to go and try to find/steal some food now Again, they're facing dire circumstances, which might mitigate their culpability, but they're also being quite open about being willing to steal, which is not exactly a desirable trait for most employers. Edit: My last point was not meant to suggest that under these circumstances, stealing a bit of food is reprehensible. Sometimes you've gotta do what you've gotta do. But broadcasting it is the red flag. It indicates a lack of discretion. I'm not trying to be callous here, but GP asked about red flags, so I was trying to describe some.
- djbusby 3y ago
  Well, I try to remember that if you see someone stealing food...no you didn't.
- Repulsion9513 3y ago
  > If I heard this while I was interviewing a candidate, I would write a note to myself: "Be prepared for more of this." I mean... ok? So don't try to make their FOSS product your own product? > If I heard this while I was interviewing a candidate, I would wonder whether they lacked awareness of the need to follow established processes. Ew. I would wonder why the staff wasn't able to tell him there is a process. > So there's at least one occasion when the person had a break from reality "years ago" in an unstable situation. > Not exactly legal or ethical. Obviously, they're facing dire circumstances, which might mitigate their culpability, but would you want to hire someone who uses social engineering to deceive people? I'm pretty sure "social engineer" here means something along the lines of "yeah I'm visiting my cousin" > Again, they're facing dire circumstances, which might mitigate their culpability, but they're also being quite open about being willing to steal, which is not exactly a desirable trait for most employers. Unless they're working for a grocery store or restaurant I don't think their employer will be worried about them stealing food.

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]

dazc 3y ago

Maybe keep your suspicions to yourself unless you have evidence to the contrary? The guy's not asking for handouts and your negative posts my get in the way of someone being able to offer some real help. #1 reason for becoming homeless is not asking for help when you need to.

bayat 3y ago

Or perhaps our brains sometimes come up with excuses to look away from another human being’s suffering so that we feel less guilty?! I can see how this conclusion would be appealing from that perspective but I’d encourage anyone with this line of thinking, to think twice before posting something to cause doubt and potentially causing someone else to receive less help/attention that they would have otherwise received. Even if you think it’s plausible for someone to lie about something like a few years of open source contribution (which is very easy to verify for anyone who reaches out for them to help) please contemplate about the possibility of harm that this kind of comment might cause (a fellow human being suffering longer) vs the help you think you are providing by just casting doubt and uncertainty (potentially preventing someone more fortunate to send some money to someone else that didn’t actually need it?! Or they might be offered a job they might not have been offered otherwise?!). O.P. I’m really sorry for what you’re going through, and I admire your courage and honesty. I hope life becomes more stable very soon!