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Comment by losteverything | Hacker News Reader

< But this groupthink terrifies me when it’s used to bully people for exercising their right to free speech. How will we know what people are truly thinking if we rush to silence them?

This is called growing up.

We dont need to know how everyone thinks. We dont want to know either.

We tailor our words to our audience. We avoid saying or typing dumb things.

We only say what we really feel to our confidante.

These outwardly stupid writings are simply that: bad childish judgement.

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Growing up is being able to hear an opposing viewpoint without automatically dismissing their intelligence or morality. Growing up is understanding that no one is immune from the influence of their peers, upbringing, or background. Growing up is engaging in a constructive conversation instead of shaming someone into silence or unfriending or firing someone in a knee jerk manner. Growing up is accepting and appreciating our differences in thought and understanding that the vast majority of people actually mean well.

Are there limits to this line of thinking? Sure, if someone is being a completely disrespectful asshole, that's when they deserve to be shut down. If someone puts forward a thoughtful essay...even a half thoughtful essay...even if that rocks you to your core...growing up is realizing that even your values are not absolutely correct.

Discussion is the only way we ever get to engage with other points of view. Discussion is an invitation and opportunity to be persuaded otherwise.

The dude was fired. Bad judgement.... Not some significant philosophical issue here..

I bet a 45 aged techie would know better and still have a job

Let's be honest. Many companies and people - such as yourself - don't want dissent. And that's fine. You'll have total agreement and get a lot done.. for a while.

But then the clueful people will leave and be replaced with yes (wo)men who know what productive work looks like but are incapable of actually doing useful things. A great organization that makes leaps and bounds will turn into an okay company that grows by a couple points a year.. and then get wiped out when the new thing/idea comes along.

The author used the word "terrified" groupthink bullies. I say it is not a fear as being grown up means outlandish words are understandable ( ie not grown up)

Its not about dissent...

I put opinion texts in the same category as amazon reviews: the first few are not to be believed.

I tend to refer to Chistopher Hitchens on this topic. >https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyoOfRog1EM

That's nice but how does what Hitchens says apply here?

The Manifesto writer apparently still works at Google. No one is silencing him. A whole shit ton of people are disagreeing with what he says. The remedy to be applied is more speech, not enforced silence. No one is enforcing his silence, though in CA, Google as a corporation could dispense with his employment at will.

Are you saying that we shouldn't disagree with him, that we should be silent, and that you'll cite Hitchens for that? Really?

No. I'm saying that you don't have to agree with him, but he has the right to speak and others have the right to hear him. Perhaps re-digest 1:25-3:07.

No one is questioning the manifesto writer's right to say what he wishes to say nor others to read what he writes, although if he says what he said while in the employ of Google to others who are also in the employ of Google, he can't hang his future employment there on rights. His right to speak is with respect to the govmint and not his employer.

Again, how does what Hitchens says apply here? I think the good Christopher is on my side, not yours.

Added: I might be wrong about Google's right to fire the manifesto writer [1]. That would be something for lawyers to work over.

[1] https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/07/it-may-be-illegal-for-google...

> We dont need to know how everyone thinks. We dont want to know either.

So ignore it?

You must hate graffiti.

I need to know how my relative thinks, not my neighbor's sister.

Yes. Tuning out people what i do.

Some people might see that as sexist.

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