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Comment by svnt | Hacker News Reader

I’d hazard a guess that you’re being downvoted because of your lack of empathy, which is the point of the post, but also because of your gotcha position around variable comp.

If you work for a startup and reject variable comp, you are wasting your time. Go get a safer, easier, better-salaried position.

If you aren’t working for a startup, you’re in no position to comment on the validity of the approach people take there working with variable comp.

You just walked into a funeral for people who got hit by a train and said “what’s the big deal? I never cross train tracks, they’re too risky.”

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We don't know about the OP. He didn't say what his situation was. For the hypothetical situation of my parent my stance stays even if voted into oblivion. And I knew it would likely happen given the overall sentiment on HN. Like with variable renumeration itself knew what I was getting into. FWIW I have a variable mortgage and I knew what might happen and is now happening and that is why I didn't buy at the top of what the bank would give me.

If you work for a startup, like you say, there's usually no option to get more base comp. Absolutely understood. You do that when you are young and take a chance to hit it big. Don't complain if you don't hit it big though.

I never said I applied at a startup though and the example I made is more indicative of Amazon or Google.

The way I see the parents example the appropriate analogy would be a funeral for people that liked standing on the train tracks knowing a train was coming and trying to jump before it hit them and I wonder why everyone is surprised that it happened.

I’m not saying your position is wrong or irrational. You chose not to participate in an upside which can be a lottery ticket. It’s a fairly rational position. You asked why you were being downvoted so I tried to explain the reason, which it seems like you were already mostly aware of.

And even if the funeral is as you describe, my point is that people don’t usually want to be told at a funeral why the deceased was wrong. It’s for emotional support. Like this post.

Fair enough. Just to be clear tho, I was asking for a rational discussion (or as I put it "substantiated reply as to why this isn't true", not for why I was being down voted ;)

And again fair enough that in this situation it is very easy to not apply this to the original poster's question and situation (which analogy wise would be shouting at the entire group of people gathered at the funeral that it's this guy's fault for crossing the tracks vs. having a side conversation w/ someone who posited that maybe the guy was one of the ones that actually stands on tracks for thrill when he knows the train's about to be there ;))

Except it’s not a funeral at all, they likely still make well over median income.

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