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Let's face it. Silicon Valley has hit the big time. The sheer size of our industry coupled with the impact it has on everyday non-technical citizens means we ar
by jfasi 12y ago
Let's face it. Silicon Valley has hit the big time. The sheer size of our industry coupled with the impact it has on everyday non-technical citizens means we are a political force to be reckoned with. Monetarily speaking, we're not quite as powerful as, for instance, oil and defense, but we more than make up for that in the respect we generally afforded by the population. However, the industry's rhetoric and attitudes haven't caught up to that fact, hence these sort of blunt political statements.
- vonmoltke 12y ago> Monetarily speaking, we're not quite as powerful as, for instance, oil and defense Apple alone has more cash on hand than Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics, Northrup Grumman, and Raytheon are worth combined. They have plenty of money; what they lack is the knowledge and motivation to use it effectively for political purposes. The attitudes expressed on this site a few weeks ago about refusing to play the game with respect to state and national politics is the reason oil and defense have far more influence in Washington than tech.
- gaius 12y agothe respect we generally afforded by the population Really? Here in the UK Apple and Google are notorious for tax dodging and sleaze.
- jgalt212 12y agoI'd say SA's political influence is diminished by the fact that SA companies employ less people per unit of output than almost all other industries. Some may champion this fact as efficiency and strength, but for the most part, people = votes. So given a tech firm and an old economy firm, the old economy firm has way more clout b/c its workers have way more votes. My thesis above is somewhat diminished by today's very loose campaign finance restrictions.