cobbzilla

Reminds me of a line from Tron, where the other programs ask Flynn in disbelief:

> You fight for the users?

> Treating anti-micro-plastics as a "religion" rather than a subculture based on a meme deserves a bit more nuance.

Agreed, and I think we satisfy your two conditions and many more.

If I read you right, question 1 pertains to irrationality, and question 2 pertains to powerful storytelling.

OK here’s one example that shows you are on the right track, but there is still more.

My ex-wife is gluten free. This single choice never comes alone. in my ex-wife’s case, she also believes in the healing power of crystals and essential oils. (Irrationality checkbox); I cannot describe her vision of cosmic creation but I guarantee it involves witchcraft/folk magic and differs from traditional dogma (Storytelling checkbox).

BUT THERE IS AT LEAST ONE MORE VERY IMPORTANT CHECKBOX! A good religion also prescribes a proper way to behave and act in the world for maximum benefit in the afterlife. In these newer religions, the afterlife is “the health of the planet”, so one must do everything in this life to ensure you do not hurt that future.

here’s to you mrs robinson

> I don't get this whole attitude.

Sorry if I offended you; fwiw I was describing a phenomenon that I observe. My own attitude about this whole situation was left unspecified, so I’ll add a few notes here: I do actively pick up litter (sometimes bigtime: I cleared a derelict boat from a lake today!) and I try to not litter. I try to respect the planet. I do use a lot of plastic.

> requires buying a whole new set of things that distinguish them from their peers

No, it requires buying a whole new set of things to fit in with and be accepted by their peers, to distinguish themselves from the outgroup, the plastic users.

I don’t necessarily believe this is some emergent elitism; I see it more as a modern religion with many many rules about eating and consumption (using plastic is now a sin).

Like any religion, sinners (for example plastic users) are mostly pitied because they are ignorant, but those who know and choose to use plastic anyway, well, it’s OK to hate them.

For sure, there is a premium on youth, but I did meet many career-switch types who were older and equally accepted.

maybe that’s the point. in the SV mentality I wouldn’t refer someone solely based on their credentials or a superficial connection either. It would be because I had an engaging conversation that made me think of you, and then thinking that you would also find value in having conversation with that person.

Because I know you’re curious and want the latest new ideas, it’s perceived as a gift in SV-land. I wouldn’t offer an experience that wasn’t win-win.

EDIT: thinking further about this, it’s really a difference in sampling techniques to ascertain reality and strategy.

In SV, you want to gather as many wild and crazy ideas as possible. You’re not upset if you have the occasional low-value conversation, because you have so many conversations with so many people that you can synthesize a hi-res picture of what you’re looking at.

I feel maybe the East Coast mentality is the inverse: I want to sample from few sources, whose quality is guaranteed to be very high.

I had negative wealth and no meaningful connections when I moved to the SF Bay, so you’re wrong on that.

But I did know to move there, so you’re right on that.

And yes, while the pay-it-forward culture is still very much alive and you can find it if you look, I don’t think it has the ubiquity today that it did back then. You’re also right that the culture has shifted a bit.

And there are zero data centers in between facilitating anything?

the irony of making an implied point that data centers aren’t useful, by using data centers.

When I was first trying to start companies, I would ask everyone for advice. Some people are more engaging and helpful than others. Some people expect something in return.

In SV, in the 90s/00s, no one wanted anything in return. Everyone was there to help. We all understood that the entrepreneur’s path is a nearly impossible one, and if you have somehow followed it to success, you want to try to guide others to that successful place.

After ~20 years I’ve left SV but I retain the mentality :) AMA

so it’s changing mass/energy with itself? and the whole thing says constant? I guess that makes sense.

sad but that’s why I left. To use a tired DnD analogy, SV used to be kind of a chaotic/neutral place, I liked that. We all helped each other. Now it’s lawful/good but good implies moral choices, many of which I agree with but for some disagreement means shunning. So I left.

GigaOM was truly awesome at its best. Om was a special guy, I met him a few times during my years in the Bay Area. He really embodied that selflessly-helping side of the Valley: helping others with no expectations, just because it’s good. He helped one of my startups get some exposure. I keep trying to pay it forward. I will miss him.

I’ve seen rare places where the server has a handheld and every single item is always individually charged. Then they can keep things separate or combine it however you want.

But, I’ve seen that maybe twice in my entire life. Once might have been in Vegas. Everywhere else is as you say; it’s just not a reasonable post-meal request.

I also wonder this!

Some real physicist tell me what I’m getting wrong here:

neutrinos have mass but the magnitude is so infinitesimally small, and the oscillation smaller still, such that you’re bumping up against some fundamental properties of the universe and the oscillation is “borrowing” and “returning” some tiny amount of mass/energy from the vacuum.

in a perfect world, they look at their sales and notice that the games that are only available with no physical media are selling poorly

It wasn’t a hobby for them but it still may have been a hobby business for the founder. Rich dude LARPing tyrant CEO or Steve Jobs imitator is common.

+1 to this. I always make eye contact with the driver in any iffy scenario. If you’re going to commit vehicular manslaughter on me, you’re gonna have to look me in the eye while you do it!

Semantics. If the hobby business never makes a profit and is capturing losses for tax benefits, that’s a failing business. It can be failing indefinitely as long as there’s money to support it, but you can’t call it a successful business.

It’s so amazing how far assistive technology has come!

This is a fantastic article but I wish he would have included some wish list or constructive criticism, clearly there are areas of improvement!

But to discern an ask from his writings: At the end he mentions the complexities of working so many different purpose-specific tools— is this perhaps the next area of progress, tool integration and a cohesive experience?

fwiw, you’ve perfectly described the feeling of working for a “tax write-off” and how to recognize those vibes.

It could’ve been worse, it could’ve been a fraud! But it’s merely a business designed to lose money. It won’t land you in jail but it’s not a place anyone would advance a career.

> The owner was the son of an old school magnate out of PA.

If you have a lot of money it’s fun to LARP the startup life. The experience working for such a company is highly varied and completely depends on the personality of the founder. But even if it’s a healthy place, it’s usually a black hole from a career development POV.

I’m sorry if my comment came off poorly. Looking for work is certainly more important. If you can’t take care of yourself, you won’t be able to help anyone else. It’s actually required to put yourself first before you can volunteer.

All cultures have an elite segment. Elite segments are comprised of individuals who are generally well in control of their emotions and reasonably afraid of individuals who cannot control their emotions.

I do a lot of BMX trail riding. Some trails can be quite dangerous, especially at high speed.

I can identify with this “adrenaline junkie” definition, with qualifications. It’s probably different for everyone, but for me it’s more about “playing the edge”. I’ve crashed badly in the past going over that edge, but my-oh-my is it beautiful to approach, and get as close as you can, and look into the abyss for a moment. When the fear becomes too much, you back off. Over time (and survivorship bias!) you grow to have an immense respect for that edge.

Now, when I (rarely) go past the edge, I’m not flying past it to my death, my approach was appropriately calculated to produce a recoverable step-down or at worst a minor side-fall. I haven’t gone over the handlebars in years.

You can take calls for a crisis hotline from your home. There are many activities you can volunteer for short periods.

If you start with a dismissive attitude it’s easy to find ways to not have time.

If you start with love: “how could I help? there’s /something/ I can do, right?” then you’ll find the time.

It is truly about what we value.

lol apparently and unironically downvoters have the most time to spare!

Indeed. And when the C is unmanaged, creating needless work for others (review code that doesn’t work, etc), making a negative contribution to forward progress, then the rest of the As and Bs are looking around wondering why this person is not fired.