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Comment by rcarr | Hacker News Reader

I think the point is that the prototypical coder, according to the narrative, is a left-leaning lawful good person that wants to change the world for the better. Think early google with “don’t be evil”. The fact that one of the most high profile VCs are now courting Saudi Arabian money is basically the final nail in the coffin of this narrative and that the tech industry is just as immoral, dirty and corrupt as any other. Just in case all the scandals from the past decade hadn’t quite got the point across.

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Based on my experience, some developers might be, but executives are not. And the higher up you go in an org, the more obvious it is that "changing the world for the better" is promoted by the organization specifically to attract people willing to work hard to make a positive difference, while the only actual goal is money in the bank.

At a certain level, the person giving the speech about "making a positive impact" is lying, the audience knows they are lying, and the speaker knows the audience knows they are lying, yet everyone plays along because the veneer of altruism is still important.

See: SBF talking his big game about "radical altruism" to make people feel good about their jobs which were effectively promoting a pyramid scheme to make him and the other top dogs wealthy beyond measure.

> making a positive impact" is lying, the audience knows they are lying, and the speaker knows the audience knows they are lying, yet everyone plays along because the veneer of altruism

You don’t need to be altruistic to make the world better.

Only the tech industry thinks of itself that way.

Outside the tech industry, everyone thinks of us as investment bankers - overly paid, out of touch clowns surviving largely on cheap money.

You should see the sheer glee online after every round of layoffs.

Yeah but that’s what I’m saying, even the tech industry doesn’t see itself that way any more.

“An era can be considered over when its basic illusions have been exhausted.” - Arthur Miller

It doesn't help that the letter meant to help prop up svb to potential buyers was not signed by many "web3" companies. You'll notice a16z is not on this: https://docs.google.com/document/d/13h84RV5MXZpImXxelaYOcI6B...

You have to wonder at their motives when the stated goals of "web3" include undermining usd.

The crypto crowd is something else. While I’m sympathetic to the foundational ideas, wishing for the destruction of the national currency and the pauperization of tens of millions just so your magic internet hashes can be worth more is just…awful, awful behavior.

Certainly doesn’t sound like an argument to use their tech. Sounds more like a screed one might hear on a street corner from someone needing medical attention than sound financial advice.

The same industries who said they would divest from all things Russian court Saudi Arabian money? I guess words like “unelected dictator who has been carrying on a brutal war and bombing campaign of a neighboring country with 40 million people” only apply when someone isn’t our ally?

Once Saudis make peace with Iran and join BRICS, we may change our rhetoric.

It’s easy:

Anti-Russia is the current thing

Anti-Saudi Arabia is not the current thing

I do the current thing because I am a moral person, and none of that other stuff matters because I am good person because I support current thing.

If you’ve read the Twitter musings of Andreessen, you’d have be disabused of this notion long ago.

These guys aren’t young anymore.

This industry has taken plenty of SA money via softbank.

I thought that was a Japanese company

Their Vision Fund got 45 billion from the Saudi sovereign wealth fund and 15 billion from the Emirati sovereign fund (out of $100 billion raised).

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