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Comment by Maxious | Hacker News Reader

> Most articles I've read say he had epilepsy. If that's the case, he could have had a fatal seizure in the shower on any given day, regardless of work schedule.

Uhh no.

> Sleep deprivation is the second most common trigger of [epileptic] seizures. In some cases, it has been responsible for the only seizure a person ever suffers

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If he knew he had epilepsy, and he voluntarily pulled six all-nighters in two weeks, then surely he bears some responsibility for his own death?

Usually the first time you realise you have a form of epilepsy like Juvenile myoclonic epilepsy is when you pull an all nighter in college (perfect hat trick of bad lighting, drinking and sleep deprivation at the age when symptoms are likely to first appear). What just seems like clumsiness or aloofness in your personality develops into traditional seizures.

How is it voluntary if everyone else is pulling crazy hours and you need to keep up (or pull ahead) to stand a chance of making the jump from Intern to Real Employee?

Directly from the article:

“Sure, you may not be achieving much by midnight, but do you really want to be one of the first in the team to leave your desk?” George Herbert at PolicyMic asks. “If you’re always the one who leaves first will your boss question your commitment when it comes to calculating your annual bonus or deciding whether to take you onto a regular contract?”

Yes, he bears some responsibility. His sociopathic employers, and his co-workers who bid conditions down to that level, also bear some responsibility.

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