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It is still a place where the puppies are supposed to give their lives to the big dog for a smattering of praise and/or a bit of food. Same as everywhere else.
Dunno what you thought this place was, but it's always been capitalist to the core. Sure, they have workplace policies that try to promote diversity and such (with dubious results) and give some money to charity, but this place has always been all about the dollar. And even on the "lazy liberal" meme..you should see the workaholic hours people put in here.
So what's the big reveal? Conservatives should look up to this place; it fulfills their ideals! This is where the capitalistic high rollers really make it big. Take a look at the list of richest people on the planet...how many are in tech?
They are not republicans. They give a lot of money to dems and liberal causes that are in opposition to conservative ideals. Their bosses meet with Soros to plan who knows what. Thus, conservatives will not support them just because they like to make money. Think conservatism is just about capitalism? Not at all.
Dunno what you thought this place was, but it's always been capitalist to the core. Sure, they have workplace policies that try to promote diversity and such (with dubious results) and give some money to charity, but this place has always been all about the dollar. And even on the "lazy liberal" meme..you should see the workaholic hours people put in here.
So what's the big reveal? Conservatives should look up to this place; it fulfills their ideals! This is where the capitalistic high rollers really make it big. Take a look at the list of richest people on the planet...how many are in tech?
I am assuming you consider yourself a liberal, since you seem to hold out conservatives as different from yourself. Correct me if I am wrong.
One of the big reasons that Trump was elected was because gentry liberals turned their backs on the working class. If you see no contradictions between being a bare knuckled capitalist and being a liberal or progressive, even when the abandonment of the working class has led to the American left being at the lowest political ebb in 90 years, how are you not deluding yourself?
They are not republicans. They give a lot of money to dems and liberal causes that are in opposition to conservative ideals. Their bosses meet with Soros to plan who knows what. Thus, conservatives will not support them just because they like to make money. Think conservatism is just about capitalism? Not at all.
You can be a capitalist without being a conservative Republican. Who knew??
You can be a capitalist without being a conservative Republican. Who knew??
When building a majority political coalition this doesn't really work. You need to pick sides wisely or you end up being excluded from the conversation.
Nonetheless I will gladly accept the normalization of capitalism on the left as the peace dividend of victory in the Cold War.
So, all of a sudden, the most spectacularly successful part of the post-WWII American economy is now the Bad Guy. The epitome of American entrepreneurialism, can-do and know-how has become part of some Evil Empire. The Valley That Changed The World And Ushered In The Computer Revolution is a miserable failure. Do the cons here have any idea how much less "great" the US would be now if it weren't for Silicon Valley? Ironic they keep chanting MAGA but when it comes to the place which, probably more than anywhere else since WWII has made - and can continue to make - America great, they have little more than ridicule for it. Sad!
Well said James, i suspect most of these righties havent a clue what Silico Valley is or its admirable contributions to the world of high tech,rather than be scorned it is something Americans should be proud of../ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silicon_Valley
I am assuming you consider yourself a liberal, since you seem to hold out conservatives as different from yourself. Correct me if I am wrong.
One of the big reasons that Trump was elected was because gentry liberals turned their backs on the working class. If you see no contradictions between being a bare knuckled capitalist and being a liberal or progressive, even when the abandonment of the working class has led to the American left being at the lowest political ebb in 90 years, how are you not deluding yourself?
On most social issues, I see my self as a moderate, although around here no doubt I am seen as an extreme liberal.
I generally dislike American conservatives.
One of the things you miss is that it's not strictly liberals who turned their backs on blue collar workers; it's capitalists at large, including conservative ones. Cons pushed globalism about as much as libs did. Look at all the corporations of America; they are all multinationals who optimize their overseas work assets. Where is all of Donald and Ivanka's **** made that they sell to you? Bet his MAGA hat is made in China. Trump is a capitalist who started pretending to give a damn about American workers when he realized the populist appeal.
So what you're really saying is that you have a problem with capitalism. As technology grows and new means of productivity become viable, capitalists exploit it. And why shouldn't they? The rule is: maximize your profits. And weren't conservatives always proclaiming how capitalism is the way to go.
Silicon Valley likes to see itself as a progressive place.
However their progressivism is skin deep and only manifests itself for ancillary causes like gay rights that don't affect their bottom line.
In reality Silicon Valley is automating the economy and transferring massive wealth to capitalists. Elites get the first fruits of new technology, and industrial revolutions are usually accompanied by growth in income and wealth inequality.
Some firms are more or less coy about their true role in the world system. Uber is pretty bare knuckled about how they want to break up taxi cartels and drive down wages. Apple on the other hand cares deeply about its image and tries hard to obscure the fact that it's powered by Chinese wage slaves.
Silicon Valley has mastered the art of playing the progressive to get political cover for very aggressive business tactics and wealth accumulation.
In the end they are the primary agent driving income inequality, as their technology makes automation and offshoring possible. They will never admit to this though.
Your thesis, such as it is, is that Silicon Valley technologists are anti-progressives because their businesses, which improve productivity, increase income inequality.
This isn't the first time in human history in which automation displaced workers or favored capital over labor. The automobile, the spinning wheel in the 17th century, the steam engine, the railroads, the steel mills, the tractor, the telephone, radio, TV, have all improved productivity and favored capital over labor.
The barons 100 years ago were railroad moguls, steel plant owners, auto makers, bankers, etc. The issue with income inequality is how did government address it? Until FDR, government didn't address it and allowed the inequality to continue.
The middle-class growth didn’t evolve gradually or automatically. It was created, in a remarkably short period of time, by FDR and the New Deal. Income inequality declined drastically from the late 1930s to the mid 1940s, with the rich losing ground while working Americans saw unprecedented gains. Broadly shared prosperity, partly because strong unions, a high minimum wage, and a progressive tax system helped limit inequality.
Want to limit income inequality? Raise taxes on wealth instead of lowering it.
So, all of a sudden, the most spectacularly successful part of the post-WWII American economy is now the Bad Guy. The epitome of American entrepreneurialism, can-do and know-how has become part of some Evil Empire. The Valley That Changed The World And Ushered In The Computer Revolution is a miserable failure. Do the cons here have any idea how much less "great" the US would be now if it weren't for Silicon Valley? Ironic they keep chanting MAGA but when it comes to the place which, probably more than anywhere else since WWII has made - and can continue to make - America great, they have little more than ridicule for it. Sad!
Help me remember, liberals. Is this the week we demonize the 1% or worship them? I can’t keep up.
I don't have a problem with capitalism, and I don't believe workers are subjected to systemic injustice. So we both consider capitalism to be a fair system. The difference is that liberals also claim the rhetoric of the common man, while conservatives are less likely to do so. This makes a liberal capitalist more of a hypocrite than a conservative capitalist. That's the point of this thread.
I was echoing populist rhetoric in the OP not to voice my own opinions, but to point out the contradictions of the liberal gentry.
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