This to me is one of the central stories about current US politics. The tech barons who decisively threw their support behind Trump wanted commercial benefits, of course; but even more, they wanted to discipline their own employees. That’s the real content of all the anti-DEI stuff. - ThreadSky

jwmason.bsky.social • 1 day ago

This to me is one of the central stories about current US politics. The tech barons who decisively threw their support behind Trump wanted commercial benefits, of course; but even more, they wanted to discipline their own employees. That’s the real content of all the anti-DEI stuff.

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bentarnoff.com•1 day ago

I think tech worker organizing had already been contained by the time of the 2024 election. But no doubt the memory of Trump 1 mobilizations played a role in the rightward move by certain figures

jwmason.bsky.social•1 day ago

Yes. This is a political move to consolidate and lock in gains being won on the ground.

blonicyouth.bsky.social•1 day ago

begging journalists to understand the difference between liberals and libertarians

jwmason.bsky.social•1 day ago

I think the journalists responsible for this piece did an outstanding job.

connorstedman.bsky.social•1 day ago

That’s right. The backlash is against their own employees.

katepa.bsky.social•8 hours ago

Have we ever seen a more spoiled, entitled bunch than the tech bros? Is it too late for them to grow the hell up and become adults with consciences?

mrcathands.bsky.social•19 hours ago

Exactly. They had to be nice during covid. They all wanted to do what musk did at twitter. Trump gives them permission to be evil.

smellsofbikes.bsky.social•22 hours ago

It is not a broad backlash. It is a very narrow backlash funded by some extremely rich people.
The whole reason so many people are shocked is precisely because it is such a narrow group of people pushing this.

jwmason.bsky.social•1 day ago

The headline of this Financial Times piece spells it out clearly: Tech Titans Stand with Donald Trump to Kill Activism in Silicon Valley https://on.ft.com/41c1hsl

madamehardy.bsky.social•1 day ago

I wish the headline had read "employee activism", because, of course, they are activists themselves.

jwmason.bsky.social•1 day ago

Abundant finance and a dependence on scarce skilled labor helped create a culture in tech where professional employees have more voice and more exit options than elsewhere, even without formal representation. The goal here is to roll that back - the functional equivalent of union busting.

jwmason.bsky.social•1 day ago

Reasserting the right of men to treat women like objects is directly connected to reasserting the right of bosses to treat workers like objects.

jwmason.bsky.social•1 day ago

Presumably part of why this happening now is that the balance of power in tech has shifted toward the bosses, thanks to weaker labor markets and increased use of H-1B indentured labor. Support for the Trump-Musk program is an effort to lock those gains in politically.

crzwdjk.bsky.social•1 day ago

Don't blame us immigrants for the actions of the oligarchs.

jwmason.bsky.social•1 day ago

The problem isn't immigrants - I believe in open borders! The problem is a legal system that deprives immigrant workers of the ability to quit their job and makes them much more vulnerable to exploitation.

gengiskhan.bsky.social•1 day ago

merijnknibbe.bsky.social•1 day ago

The meta message of the seemingly ridiculous Musk mails. But it's much broader than the tech bro's. There's a reason why I grasped the opportunity of early retirement even when liking teaching. Standardizing teaching, teachers and students alike.

leroylynch.bsky.social•12 hours ago

A somewhat similar dynamic?
https://bsky.app/profile/leroylynch.bsky.social/post/3kae7yd6v2b2s

adriancjr.bsky.social•1 day ago

Curious non-US citizen here: the US federal laws against discrimination in hiring and in the workplace are still on the books, aren't they? In a hypothetical discrimination lawsuit could this flurry of anti-DEI activities be used proof of an environment conducive to discrimination?

sheogorath.bsky.social•13 hours ago

still illegal, but funding has been cut to agencies that investigate employment discrimination

and discrimination was already rampant even with DEI hiring policies so now it’s only going to get worse

tehdeminz.bsky.social•1 day ago

The people in charge of enforcing those laws are the ones breaking them.

adriancjr.bsky.social•1 day ago

Meta is a private company, they are not in charge of enforcing the law. In case of private companies, isn't there a civil litigation path?

tehdeminz.bsky.social•1 day ago

My mistake, I misread your question. There is in theory a civil litigation path, but I doubt there's a lot of people brave enough to go up against Meta's lawyers and money in the current political environment.

bellamy.bsky.social•8 hours ago

It's actually not about bravery there, it is about access to legal relief, which is not immediately present because of the way in which the law recognizes rights. A right has to exist in order to sue, and Meta knows how to play smarter and harder at making sure it's just out of reach.

nodeadweight.bsky.social•8 hours ago

The enforcement of statues and laws depends on an independent judiciary and a functioning judicial system and well… we are rapidly losing that.

gcrust.bsky.social•6 hours ago

As with anything, follow the money. The techbros who have had a hard shift to the right in recent years are all those who have invested HEAVILY into dead-end areas of tech development. Their support is self-preservation, an easily impressed/flattered idiot who will allow them their present lifestyle

groda.eu•14 hours ago

https://bsky.app/profile/amunicipalfox.bsky.social/post/3livrf2f5ak2c

jamesjamerson1.bsky.social•20 hours ago

those people live in a world that is 90% liberal
they are rebelling against their own and think that gives them some kind of connection to the real MAGA population in America
they couldn't survive a month in a small Arkansas town before fleeing back to their safe spaces

hagenblix.bsky.social•1 day ago

Just wrote about that for Jacobin, too - the rightward shift of tech is an attack on their workers, and it's all about their bet on AI

https://jacobin.com/2025/02/tech-workers-silicon-valley-trump

aabbeedd.bsky.social•22 hours ago

Nidal, my 9-month-old son, is gravely ill. 🙏 Your help would make a world of difference. Thank you. ❤️😥😵♥

bradlovett.bsky.social•19 hours ago

"The beatings will continue until morale improves"

pauljdavies.bsky.social•1 day ago

Andreessen was fairly explicit about this in his interview with Douthat recently. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/17/opinion/marc-andreessen-trump-silicon-valley.html

jwmason.bsky.social•1 day ago

Yes that’s a great text for this stuff

gpthacker.bsky.social•21 hours ago

Joining their team is Not gonna stop the Nazis from tossing Zuck out a window.

He chose … poorly

Leopard, faces etc…

dcharlie.bsky.social•8 hours ago

Zuch is in that "now I've had some karate lessons, i am now a hard man who makes big boy nasty decisions" bracket of unfit-to-lead Chob that seems to be on the rise

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