Larry GarfieldI may regret this at some point, but I felt the need to put down in writing how I feel about this moment in the tech industry.
It is not kind. You may well be insulted by it. If you are... then you really should question yourself.
krig@Crell Here's something that rubs me the wrong way: "At some point soon, I will have to figure out how to work with AI coding tools" - No, you don't. That's a choice you are making. In the end, you are making the same choice as those who say "It is what it is". You choose personal convenience over your convictions. Someone has to be the first to refuse. Someone has to be the one to shoulder the burden. What makes you think that someone isn't you?
Justin Macleod@krig @Crell While I don't disagree, that's a huge ask. If someone does a thing to pay the bils and everyone else is doing that thing faster with AI, those "convictions" could land them and their family without pay or benefits. That's a big gun to stare down the barrel of. That's the fear. That's what needs to be addressed. It may well be a false narrative, time will tell, but it's a big leep of faith to ask anyone to take.
@JustinMac84 @Crell First off, other people are already losing their jobs regardless of the choices they make personally, so to even have a choice puts them in a privileged position. Second, what are their principles worth if all it takes is to threaten with hypothetical (not real) joblessness? How about making an attempt at a principled stance before caving in? Third, the whole point of the article is that he looks down on those choosing personal convenience over conviction, yet here he is doing the same.
@krig @Crell I think, to say "Pfft. You're weighing the risks and choosing, because you're genuinely worried about the impact your choices might have on your ability to provide for your family? What a sell-out!" is quite holier than thou and self-righteous. If you make the jump and find out after it all goes wrong that it went wrong, it's too late, the damage is done. Weighing risks and giving weight to your obligations when making a decision is not wrong.
@JustinMac84 @Crell You are arguing against something I never said. I think saying ”I will have to use it ” is a cop-out. Be honest. Say ”I am making the choice because the personal cost to refuse is too great for me”. Do that, and realize that you and those you criticise are the same. Then think about what it will take to break out of the spiral of rational individual choices with negative systemic effects. Who, if not you, will sacrifice themselves?
@krig @JustinMac84 Quoting the article: "But, at this point, it's become obvious that I have to either compromise on that, or leave tech entirely. And every time I think about that, I get angry."
Every time someone else says "it is what it is," it makes it harder for me NOT to. *That* is the problem. Every "it is what it is" forces me to choose between my daughter's present and my daughter's future, which is an agonizing choice.
@Crell @JustinMac84 I am in the same position. I too have a daughter and worry for what the world she will grow up in will look like. I am also increasingly angry. I’m sorry to have taken some of that anger out on you.