Bill Gates left Microsoft board amid probe into prior relationship with staffer | Hacker News Reader

Bill Gates left Microsoft board amid probe into prior relationship with staffer

wsj.com

63 pointsneom40 comments

> A spokeswoman for Mr. Gates said, “There was an affair almost 20 years ago which ended amicably.” She said his “decision to transition off the board was in no way related to this matter. In fact, he had expressed an interest in spending more time on his philanthropy starting several years earlier.”

20 years ago. Jeez.

"20 years ago. Jeez."

That is when it began, not when it ended.

I'm kind of shocked, I know Gates was a ruthless businessman but I always had him pegged as squeaky clean in his private life.

Captain America's premise:

"Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power."

Convicted sex offender Epstein and Bill Gates started hanging out in 2011, three years after Epstein pleaded guilty to soliciting prostitution from a minor. It is known that Melinda Gates wasn't exactly happy about her husband spending so much time with a sex offender and there is speculation that this is why their marriage ended.

Is this related to him getting divorced earlier this year?

Could be, but the affair was 20 years ago.

When his wife found out seems more relevant.

That seems likely:

> Ms. French Gates had been working with lawyers at several firms since at least 2019 to unwind the marriage

Also this:

> Members of the Microsoft board became aware in late 2019 of the letter from the female engineer, who demanded changes to her Microsoft job and also shared details of her relationship with Mr. Gates

The affair happened around 2000, and supposedly ended shortly after, but the timing of their divorce and Gates stepping down from the boards of Microsoft and Berkshire Hathaway on the same day in 2019 seems more than just a coincidence.

Details about his relationship with Epstein were published in late 2019 too. And it's been reported she was unhappy about it.

Yes, in the big picture. IANAS ("...not a Sociologist"), but there seems to be an unspoken social rule that "the usual" sexual misbehaviors of an alpha male are pretty much ignored, so long as (1) his wife quietly tolerates them, and (2) no other alpha wants them aired. In this case - Mrs. Gates' filing for divorce made him fair game. Hence the recent deluge of stories about Mr. Gates' (seemingly) many and varied transgressions, stretching back decades.

(I could speculate that this social rule is due to too many romantic dreamers not wanting their fantasies spoiled, other alphas and alpha wanna-be's not wanting "the usual" perks of that status lost, etc. But again, IANAS:)

> “Microsoft Corp. board members decided that Bill Gates needed to step down from its board in 2020 as they pursued an investigation into the billionaire’s prior romantic relationship with a female Microsoft employee that was deemed inappropriate, people familiar with the matter said.”

Who are “people familiar with the matter”?

basically unnamed sources

Could they be talking about his relationship with Melinda? She was his subordinate at Microsoft when he started their workplace romance.

No. A Microsoft spokesman said it happened in 2000.

"A spokeswoman for Mr. Gates said, 'There was an affair almost 20 years ago which ended amicably.'"

https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/?date=19930307&slug...

Paywall evasion link:

https://archive.is/Q9Z2w

Paywall..

EDIT: Found the same article content elsewhere: https://outline.com/B8P42Z

wasn’t his wife initially a Microsoft employee? This is how they met.

Yeah I don’t feel like meeting someone at work is automatically a problem (although it’s still a potential landmine). Attempting to start a relationship someone at work when you’re already married is more of a problem.

You die a hero, or you live long enough to become a villain!

Bill Gates has pretty consistently been a villain, actually...

Yeah, but in the past two weeks his personal life’s reputation has taken a massive hit.

I had assumed he was an asshole when it came to biz stuff, but now it’s clear he’s been hiding his personal assholishness pretty well.

Bill’s done a lot of stuff that I think is pretty horrible, but could be kinda justified from a business perspective, like embrace, extend, extinguish. But for me, the thing that has always branded him as an irredeemable asshole on a personal level was when he tried to reduce Paul Allen’s share in Microsoft upon learning that he had cancer. I just literally cannot conceive of a “good person” even being able to take that kind of action.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.forbes.com/sites/fredericka...

I'm kind of happy for him, the wife seemed kind of like she was in it for the money and I'm glad he got a moment of human love or lust before dying on his pile of money.

Why is this news? If Gates had lunch with her would anyone give a fuck? Sex is a basic human need just like eating.

Everything is about sex, except sex, which is about power. — Oscar Wilde (maybe)

Everything is about money, except money, which is about sex. — Me

I ran down the original source as the noted sociolost Robert Michels

https://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/24100/what-is-t...

Because the $XXX billionaire married key founder in a multi-trillion dollar leading industry was hitting on the help while married

He also did that before being married, i.e. Melinda was a Microsoft manager when she and Bill started dating.

Yes

Sleep is a basic human need, too. But we all understand it’s usually inappropriate to attempt to fulfill that need at work. Same goes for sex.

Um no, many people take a nap at work. Companies even have facilities for that. Why not sex?

Would you say the same if you were in the back of a police patrol car and the officer “asked” you to have sex with them? The problem isn’t that they had sex. It is that someone in a position of power misused their power with an “implication”.

Like someone at Google said to one of the co-founders (don’t want to name names, I’m going by memory from what I read online so probably not accurate) “they are your employees to work, not to fuck”.

There was no abuse of power here as far as we know from the article. Again, if eating, recreation etc are ok, fucking should be as well. Basic human need, absolutely normal.

"board members were concerned Mr. Gates's relationship with the woman had been inappropriate"

So? Their concern does not make it fact

They know more than you about it though.

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