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Politics requires moral compromise, something many technologists find down right impossible. Thats not a bad thing, but it means that if you put the most import

Politics requires moral compromise, something many technologists find down right impossible. Thats not a bad thing, but it means that if you put the most important technologists in the country on the same political group, its bound to dissolve and splinter. Successful movements focus on ideas, not people. FWD.us is too focused on people.

michaelt 13y ago
Perhaps I'm being dense here, but what do oil pipelines have to do with Facebook? Facebook isn't an oil company, how are Facebook's interests served by campaigning for an oil pipeline?
- grimtrigger 13y ago
  > but what do oil pipelines have to do with Facebook Nothing. > how are Facebook's interests served by campaigning for an oil pipeline? They aren't. ----- Facebook is only tangentially related to FWD.us. Its the political project of Mark Zuckerberg.
  - jonknee 13y ago
    I'd argue that Facebook's interests are served by campaigning for an oil pipeline because there are some powerful people who are for both the oil pipeline and for expanding visas for foreign workers. They are swapping favors, but chose a tremendously controversial issue to do so with. > Facebook is only tangentially related to FWD.us. Its the political project of Mark Zuckerberg. Somewhat, but Zuck started it so that he could get access to more cheap foreign engineering talent to help build Facebook.
  - scarmig 13y ago
    As someone who has experience in both tech and politics... this is off-base. I say this as someone who thinks Keystone XL is an abomination that needs to be shut down by any means possible (that does not result in the loss of life) and who has no love for Facebook. The stated goal of Facebook in this is to push for immigration reform. Elite Republicans are, all told, fairly pro-immigration reform. They don't need convincing. The "base," however, is virulently anti-immigrant (the same is true to a lesser extent of the less-educated white and black portions of the Democratic base as well). Running ads praising Republican politicians for supporting immigration reform is not going to be effective and more likely than not would cost them votes. If Zuck wants to make sure he has their support for his policy agenda, he's got to have something of actual value for them. It's not going to be votes, but it has to be something you can easily convert to votes. Money is that, but you can't just spend money on anything and expect to automatically get value for your dollar.
- beat 13y ago
  Facebook's interests are served by trading favors. FB has money and branding - that's its currency in Washington. And in Washington, legislators have complex agendas and constantly trade favors. So in order to get some legislator's support for the immigration reform they want, they offer to support something they don't care about normally (in this case, the Keystone pipeline). If you only think about your own interests in a narrow sense, you will be continually steamrollered by those with broader minds and agendas.

michaelt 13y ago

Perhaps I'm being dense here, but what do oil pipelines have to do with Facebook? Facebook isn't an oil company, how are Facebook's interests served by campaigning for an oil pipeline?

grimtrigger 13y ago
> but what do oil pipelines have to do with Facebook Nothing. > how are Facebook's interests served by campaigning for an oil pipeline? They aren't. ----- Facebook is only tangentially related to FWD.us. Its the political project of Mark Zuckerberg.
- jonknee 13y ago
  I'd argue that Facebook's interests are served by campaigning for an oil pipeline because there are some powerful people who are for both the oil pipeline and for expanding visas for foreign workers. They are swapping favors, but chose a tremendously controversial issue to do so with. > Facebook is only tangentially related to FWD.us. Its the political project of Mark Zuckerberg. Somewhat, but Zuck started it so that he could get access to more cheap foreign engineering talent to help build Facebook.
- scarmig 13y ago
  As someone who has experience in both tech and politics... this is off-base. I say this as someone who thinks Keystone XL is an abomination that needs to be shut down by any means possible (that does not result in the loss of life) and who has no love for Facebook. The stated goal of Facebook in this is to push for immigration reform. Elite Republicans are, all told, fairly pro-immigration reform. They don't need convincing. The "base," however, is virulently anti-immigrant (the same is true to a lesser extent of the less-educated white and black portions of the Democratic base as well). Running ads praising Republican politicians for supporting immigration reform is not going to be effective and more likely than not would cost them votes. If Zuck wants to make sure he has their support for his policy agenda, he's got to have something of actual value for them. It's not going to be votes, but it has to be something you can easily convert to votes. Money is that, but you can't just spend money on anything and expect to automatically get value for your dollar.
beat 13y ago
Facebook's interests are served by trading favors. FB has money and branding - that's its currency in Washington. And in Washington, legislators have complex agendas and constantly trade favors. So in order to get some legislator's support for the immigration reform they want, they offer to support something they don't care about normally (in this case, the Keystone pipeline). If you only think about your own interests in a narrow sense, you will be continually steamrollered by those with broader minds and agendas.