Hacker News Reader

Comment by bko | Hacker News Reader

I want to feel safe at work and feel like I'm contributing to the mission of the company. Then log off and live my life.

I don't want politics discussed at work, it's annoying and a distraction. I don't want people badmouthing their job or work or company. All of these behaviors are toxic and I would guess 80% of people are like me.

That's what "feeling safe at work" means to me. Just mission focused. Happy hour is a different story, but at least with that you can choose to go and who to chat with.

View on HN

> I don't want politics discussed at work, it's annoying and a distraction

This would be a ridiculous expectation if you were working for the federal government. Politics affect your work to an extreme level there. Not discussing politics at all is not discussing your job.

> I don't want people badmouthing their job or work or company. All of these behaviors are toxic and I would guess 80% of people are like me.

If your company was involved in something really bad, you'd rather just not know? If you worked for Theranos, Nikola, or Enron, you'd rather be able to continue on with your nose down than know what's going on?

I want to know the truth about my company. I don't want to be complicit in crimes or things that I consider unconscionable, and I don't consider willing ignorance a good excuse for partaking in unethical or illegal activity.

> I don't want politics discussed at work, it's annoying and a distraction.

This is a lot trickier when politics won’t stay out of your work. For example, almost every business is affected by the tariffs because such a massive tax increase affects almost everyone. On the article’s topic, someone at the EPA hired for professional skills around pollution, climate change, etc. under the current administration will regularly be faced with the choice between denying reality/law and being seen as political.

Some things really are bad, and "badmouthing" and pointing that out can be a productive thing. Thinking that anything that is against the "mission of the company" is toxic is a stance that I do not share.

It feels like your opinion is "boss is always right, just do what they say" (I apologize if I'm misreading that). The truth is that bosses are often wrong and need to be corrected.

…how is it possible to work for a political entity without discussing politics at work?

Reply on news.ycombinator.com