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> Maybe this is less of a thing on the coasts, but where I live people have families, friends, churches, bars, clubs, and many other outlets that are designed for this kind of personal reflection and mourning. We don't expect our workplace to provide it for us because we don't live at work. We go into work to earn money to provide means for us to live our lives outside of work. To the extent that we want our coworkers to be involved in those spaces, we invite them to be.

Yet corporations are eager to show allyship and support to the cause of the moment whenever it provides benefits in term of image and recognition.

At my company the CEO sent out a long email after October 7 lamenting how horrible and unjustified it was. Did the same occur at any of these BigTech MIC puppet companies?

Yes, the MS CEO made several statements:

https://www.geekwire.com/2023/microsoft-ceo-heartbroken-by-a...

Microsoft was also very recently working on this:

https://www.timesofisrael.com/microsoft-launches-ai-platform...

Right, so, the Silicon Valley workplace is in fact a forum for political perspectives, as long as they're in line with the imperatives of the MIC and the profits to be made from selling to it.

Except that Microsoft does organize spaces for many other issues, causes and such.

You can argue whether they should or shouldn't, and I think that's valid. But when it gets selective, it gets muddy.

> the death of the third space on the West Coast must be well and truly complete

100% gone. I've been wondering lately if companies might benefit from investing in getting the third space back; increase in employee creativity would offset the drop in overtime hours.

Welcome to Corporate Orthodox Church & Bowling Center. We are really glad you’re here. Everyone in accounts receivable is down on Lanes 12-14, and the software engineers are practicing choir right now. Have a seat anywhere you’d like and grab some kool-aid. You’re allowed one drink, but you’ll need to authenticate to the VPN first.

exactly! my org had one of those bowling trips a few years ago for a holiday party, and it was a lot of fun. just need a way to quantify the benefits to productivity...

I see you don’t recognize dystopian sarcasm

i see you dont recognize advanced dystopian sarcasm ;-)

I hate this take.

Expecting employees to compartmentalize their personal lives completely during work is unrealistic and dehumanizing.

I’ve worked with American companies for years and sat through countless meetings where U.S.-specific events were addressed—9/11, BLM, elections, Black History Month, Thanksgiving, natural disasters, even sensitivity and active shooter trainings. Outside of local disaster/issues, none of these are directly relevant in my country, yet we empathize, because it’s human to care.

Here’s the problem: When divisive topics arise, companies either censor them entirely or let them play out. Censorship may be inhumane, but it’s efficient. Or, a company can solicit feedback and allow employees to hold non-disruptive, neutral events outside of work hours.

If this is the path, it has to be consistent. No exceptions for topics like the war in Ukraine or U.S. cultural movements. This approach avoids corporate bias while enabling individual expression without disturbing business.

Publicly held or large companies shouldn’t hold positions on sensitive issues, but employees should have the freedom to engage, with policies that prevent harm or offense.

And, by the way, a vigil doesn’t count as harmful.

The issue is that Microsoft does active business with Israel. It's not just completely non sequitur.

That is a different complaint and not the one they're fronting. They are framing this event as a personal mourning space, not a protest against company policy.

If they need their personal mourning space to be provided by their employer, that's indicative of a major gap in their non-work support networks.

If they're camouflaging a protest against company policy as personal mourning space, then they're abusing people's support of emotional wellness to justify hosting a protest on private property.

I think it can still be both; Lack of outside life and internal protest.

>Hossam Nasr, said the purpose of the vigil was both “to honor the victims of the Palestinian genocide in Gaza and to call attention to Microsoft’s complicity in the genocide” because of the use of its technology by the Israeli military.