3 ms·
> Do not fall into the trap of anthropomorphising Larry Ellison. You need to think of Larry Ellison the way you think of a lawnmower. You don't anthropomorphize
by mbo 2y ago
> Do not fall into the trap of anthropomorphising Larry Ellison. You need to think of Larry Ellison the way you think of a lawnmower. You don't anthropomorphize your lawnmower, the lawnmower just mows the lawn, you stick your hand in there and it'll chop it off, the end. You don't think 'oh, the lawnmower hates me' -- lawnmower doesn't give a shit about you, lawnmower can't hate you. Don't anthropomorphize the lawnmower. Don't fall into that trap about Oracle. — Brian Cantrill (https://youtu.be/-zRN7XLCRhc?t=33m1s https://youtu.be/-zRN7XLCRhc?t=33m1s)
- chris_wot 2y ago[flagged]
- EMIRELADERO 2y agoI started to dislike that quote somewhat. Why should we celebrate the fact that our society doesn't place moral pressure onto executives? Why should we find it acceptable that this is the status quo?
- dwheeler 2y agoI urge you to watch the video to see the context. Cantrill does not think this is acceptable, never mind celebrated.
- Terr_ 2y agoYou could interpret it the other way: Such executives don't have moral protection.
- robertlagrant 2y agoNo one is celebrating anything.
- bcantrill 2y agoI am glad to see that many people are being correcting you, but just to put a sharp point on it: I am using that metaphor to condemn Ellison, not to condone or accept him. Unfortunately, since that talk in 2011, what was an aberration (albeit a broadly unspoken one) has since -- tragically -- become the norm. I refuse to accept this, however: I will continue to speak my truth about the moral decay in tech, and why we must hold ourselves to a higher standard.[0][1][2][3][4] And I obviously agree with your indignation that poor corporate behavior should not be the status quo! [0] Principles of Technology Leadership, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QMGAtxUlAc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QMGAtxUlAc (2017) [1] Andreessen's Corollary: Ethical Dilemmas in Software Engineering, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0wtvQZijPzg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0wtvQZijPzg (2019) [2] (Anti-)application Video for YC120, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=px9OjW7GB0Q https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=px9OjW7GB0Q (2019) [3] Coming Of Age, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VzdVSMRu16g https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VzdVSMRu16g (2022) [4] Intelligence is not Enough, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQfJi7rjuEk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQfJi7rjuEk (2023)
- EMIRELADERO 2y agoWelp. I'm officially sorry. I guess my indignation with the ethics status quo at the moment blindisded me and I read the quote in the wrong light/context. Definitely gonna take a look at those videos too, thank you so much for everything!
- bcantrill 2y agoNothing to apologize for! Especially if you had only seen the quote, it's an entirely reasonable inference. And I am frankly embarrassed about how much mores in tech have shifted since 2011 -- and what would have been inferred as obvious decrying then is much less obvious now!