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So why do you believe that achievements of Blacks in basketball is a result of their higher ability, but not the same for Whites in tech?

Iftheshoefits 12y ago
For starters, "Whites in tech" generally start out with the advantage of being white. In America, at least, that's an incredible advantage, even in today's "enlightened" age. It's like getting a head start in a foot race. Secondly, the tech industry is filled with just as much of a "network effect" as any other industry. That is, like any other industry, who one knows is at least as important as what one knows, and is often far and away the most important thing. For all its anti-intellectual accoutrement, sport is generally far more merit based than other industries, even if it's not perfect. That's because results tend to be black-and-white (har) and easily measured in a way that doesn't exist in our industry.
dragonwriter 12y ago
I would say that its quite likely that both are a result of higher ability at the time that they are hired, and that, in both cases, those ability differences are also a result of economic injustice that disfavors blacks in society, as discussed in my other post in this subthread: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8100861 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8100861
- gfodor 12y ago
  So what you are suggesting is that this economic injustice causes downstream divergence in ability. Then the solution certainly cannot be affirmative action in hiring, since by that point the ratio of unskilled minority workers is not inherently discriminatory, it's a reality created by discrimination that led to a lack of skill development. I would tend to agree and would argue that the way to address this problem is to increase access to skill development, not hire un or under qualified people.
anigbrowl 12y ago
I'm not making any copmment about white people in technology. Did nobody read the last sentence in the comment above before getting bent out of shape and downvoting it? I have no opinion on that. I was responding to the specific claim in the grandparent post about bringing diversity to areas like sports.

Iftheshoefits 12y ago

For starters, "Whites in tech" generally start out with the advantage of being white. In America, at least, that's an incredible advantage, even in today's "enlightened" age. It's like getting a head start in a foot race. Secondly, the tech industry is filled with just as much of a "network effect" as any other industry. That is, like any other industry, who one knows is at least as important as what one knows, and is often far and away the most important thing. For all its anti-intellectual accoutrement, sport is generally far more merit based than other industries, even if it's not perfect. That's because results tend to be black-and-white (har) and easily measured in a way that doesn't exist in our industry.

dragonwriter 12y ago

I would say that its quite likely that both are a result of higher ability at the time that they are hired, and that, in both cases, those ability differences are also a result of economic injustice that disfavors blacks in society, as discussed in my other post in this subthread: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8100861 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8100861

gfodor 12y ago
So what you are suggesting is that this economic injustice causes downstream divergence in ability. Then the solution certainly cannot be affirmative action in hiring, since by that point the ratio of unskilled minority workers is not inherently discriminatory, it's a reality created by discrimination that led to a lack of skill development. I would tend to agree and would argue that the way to address this problem is to increase access to skill development, not hire un or under qualified people.

anigbrowl 12y ago

I'm not making any copmment about white people in technology. Did nobody read the last sentence in the comment above before getting bent out of shape and downvoting it? I have no opinion on that. I was responding to the specific claim in the grandparent post about bringing diversity to areas like sports.