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Comment by glitcher | Hacker News Reader

> just weird that people demand that their job adheres to whatever weird thing they like

What about "weird" things like not being comfortable with taking on a new project with the military that ultimately helps kill people, or amassing as much personal data on the entire population as the NSA?

I mostly agree with your sentiment on the surface. Dont talk politics or religion at work, do your job, and things usually go just fine. But life is way too complex to label individuals' moral objections to employers crossing into controversial territory as weird.

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Speaking to the complexities of life, it seems simplistic to say helping the military do anything helps them kill people.

If you're not comfortable doing that project, ask to be re-assigned; most good managers will make that accommodation for an excellent employee. If you're not comfortable working at a company that does that, don't work there. On the other hand, I have no issue working on a military project; your actions could cost me a job if the project gets cancelled. Don't force your views on others; let me keep showing up and doing my job. I shouldn't end up un-employed because of your personal ethical issues.

> Don't force your views on others

Don't you think that civilians who die due to the military project think the same thing about the people who worked on it?

There's more to the world than you losing your job because people protested a military project. You participating in the project also has ramifications on other people's lives.

Well, I find this completely unconvincing despite not being the sort of person who cares about the politics of my fellow committer (I'll accept a patch from Hitler). Why is this any more worthy of a view than "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing".

In fact, to demonstrate with an extreme, if you go all the way to building gas Chambers (just as an illustration), I'm totally okay having you be unemployed because I have a personal ethical issue with this.

> Don't force your views on others; let me keep showing up and doing my job. I shouldn't end up un-employed because of your personal ethical issues.

This perspective is antithetical to democracy.

Tyranny of the majority

Shut up and work, comrade!

>Don't force your views on others

That's funny, since that is all the military does. I think what you meant to say was: "Don't force the view that you shouldn't force your view on others onto others"

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