The Tech Worker Blues
Twitter-fueled depression
Disclaimer: Opinions my own.
I joined tech because I wanted to make the world a better place.
I’m sure a lot of other people joined for similar reasons too. Tech is the one field that consistently revolutionizes the world every few years.
From personal computers to the Internet, to data centers and cellphones — tech has brought about an exponential change in the last few decades that almost makes 300k years of (modern) human history seem like a picnic. Amazing, right?
But every day, I am more disillusioned.
Despite teeming with intelligence, tech workers seem to be too short-sighted. The solution to problem A creates problems B, C, and D.
But who cares, I guess, because #unicorn #IPO.
We’re building cool things with disregard for the consequences.
I hypothesize it’s because we’re far removed from the results of our work.
As a defense contractor, you don’t have to watch your code power the drones that raze villages and bomb people.
As a robotics engineer, you don’t have to talk to the people your robots put out of work.
