This is why software engineers should also study some humanities.
The end result is that they're fired from Google for being too uppity about raising ethical issues.
Who wants to trade their nice, comfortable, upper middle class lifestyle, in favor of joining the lines with the middle class or maybe even the poor depending on what happens? Jobs that provide an that sort of lifestyle are not as plentiful as people believe. I'm really uncertain whether or not people are truly aware of how much a Google engineer can make? Contrast a family's lifestyle in the presence of that sort of salary, against the very real fact that being middle class or poor these days entails a lot of uncertainty. At least in the US.
I'm just saying that there's a lot at play here, and it takes a certain kind of person to follow his/her convictions no matter the cost. It's definitely a case where it's easy to be critical, and at the same time a bit tough to empathize. But I think empathy leads to a better understanding of some of the important human dimensions of these issues.
However, that doesn't make it ethically supportable.
https://blog.apaonline.org/2019/12/10/why-arent-ethicists-mo...
I'm not saying that's what everyone's story is at NSO, but I also don't think that company is full of soulless software engineers who skipped out on humanities classes.
As someone who was raised in Israel - your idea of how Israelis think of working in high-tech is a figment of your imagination.
"Everyone" never falls into any one category anywhere, but are you somehow suggesting that the engineers at these organizations are somehow exceptionally more in tune with ethics and the humanities than the rest? Because we are deficient across the board.
This entire sub-thread is so absurd. I can't tell if it's a wisecrack that people have run with, tongue in cheek, or if its lack of self-awareness is truly genuine.
"If everyone wrote more book reports on 'Catcher in the Rye', then no one would take jobs in the defense industry"? Come ON, people.