The AI bubble is temporary, but the knowledge that your boss does not value your work is forever.
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@reformed_content_marketer @complexmath
Correct, in capitalism its all about numbers and rationalization of cruelty
@cyberquixote @complexmath I don’t know that it’s even down to capitalism, although that doesn’t help. So many systems throughout history have failed to value work/workers, even to the point of slavery. The problem is that humans who get to make decisions rarely care much about anything other than their personal profits and immediate families. I’m probably a special idiot for thinking that decisionmakers in *marketing* of all industries were better than that.
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@cyberquixote @complexmath I don’t know that it’s even down to capitalism, although that doesn’t help. So many systems throughout history have failed to value work/workers, even to the point of slavery. The problem is that humans who get to make decisions rarely care much about anything other than their personal profits and immediate families. I’m probably a special idiot for thinking that decisionmakers in *marketing* of all industries were better than that.
@reformed_content_marketer @complexmath
The system pays managers to dehumanize their workforce. It is by design. If you are reducing humans to cost centers I am not sure what else you can call it.
Sadly no, not even in Tech are we immune from that sort of thing, and I was really really hoping otherwise…
If you defer to the system and not your humanity you’re rewarded, I don’t know what else to call it except dehumanizing
Also you’re not a special kind of idiot, many of us chose to follow ideals and leaders that didn’t care about us, only about power.
It is unfortunately why we are where we are, but these were the choices we were given at the time, or at least we were promised shit that never was going to happen…
You’re taught to trust the system and never question its fallibility. Blind trust…
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Right, but hasn't that been true, since, like, at least the industrial revolution, and also going back to the serfs of the Middle Ages?
I think those in power have always been anti-labor.
LLM-gen-AI is just the latest fad to give those in power an excuse to mistreat the working class.
Cc: @Ashedryden
@bkuhn
> hasn't that been true, since, like, at least the industrial revolution […]True for centuries, yes. But the *awareness* is now driven home to workers in #BigTech and other IT fields.
For at least several decades, those workers thought they were especially favoured; well paid, good working conditions, easy to find a better job whenever they wanted. Most thought this was because they were not working class.
The past few years have collapsed that delusion.
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@bkuhn
> hasn't that been true, since, like, at least the industrial revolution […]True for centuries, yes. But the *awareness* is now driven home to workers in #BigTech and other IT fields.
For at least several decades, those workers thought they were especially favoured; well paid, good working conditions, easy to find a better job whenever they wanted. Most thought this was because they were not working class.
The past few years have collapsed that delusion.
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The AI bubble is temporary, but the knowledge that your boss does not value your work is forever.
@complexmath
testify.We were not informed one was joining our ranks. Above us. I do not believe any of us was offered the position.
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2024 Boss: Ha! We replaced you with an AI agent named Larry. YOU'RE FUCKING FIRED loser
2025 Boss: oh no what is happening why is everything bad and money go bye
2026 Boss: ..can you pwetty pwease come back we miss you
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2024 Boss: Ha! We replaced you with an AI agent named Larry. YOU'RE FUCKING FIRED loser
2025 Boss: oh no what is happening why is everything bad and money go bye
2026 Boss: ..can you pwetty pwease come back we miss you
@ralfmaximus @complexmath "Sure, I can come back... [calculates former salary + cost of benefits, et al = PayRate] ... as a consultant. My hourly rate is [10*PayRate], first month's fee paid in advance."
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2024 Boss: Ha! We replaced you with an AI agent named Larry. YOU'RE FUCKING FIRED loser
2025 Boss: oh no what is happening why is everything bad and money go bye
2026 Boss: ..can you pwetty pwease come back we miss you
@ralfmaximus @complexmath 2026 Employee: FU!!!

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The AI bubble is temporary, but the knowledge that your boss does not value your work is forever.
@complexmath Which means that après l'effondrement, recruiters and employers will be blowing a lot of sunshine up people’s asses about how they value employees
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Thanks, dad! Or mom.
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They never have. We've always been a _necessary evil_ to them.
@401matthall @complexmath but now, at least in their minds, not as necessary
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@complexmath That is very true.
See, my boss has dyslexia. He has a hard time writing down his thoughts in sentences everyone who doesn‘t have his thoughts can understand.
Before ChatGPT was a thing, I proofread his mails. That still didn‘t make the text completely his own words but at least I tried to figure out what he actually wanted to say in the first place.
Now he asks ChatGPT. His mails are bad.
And I think he values the convenience of the bot more than expressing his thoughts in a clear way. Which is pretty sad. (Also, I don‘t think he understands how much work it was to write those mails for him.)Also, I don‘t think he understands how much work it was to write those mails for him.
This is the common theme for all the sloppushers. They don't appreciate the actual craft, never did, and wouldn't know the difference between it done properly and it done poorly. So for them, there really is no difference, as long as the money keeps rolling in, and regulations don't force them to have standards.
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The AI bubble is temporary, but the knowledge that your boss does not value your work is forever.
@complexmath Of course, it also works the other way, for the businesses that demonstrate they value the worker's work.
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@401matthall @complexmath but now, at least in their minds, not as necessary
If it didn't mean my potential unemployment... I'd kinda like to watch the chaos that ensues.
LLM-driven development is seductive for a reason. It _feels_ like it's working initially. Just like any sloppy code implementation done in a hurry.
It _feels_ productive to close tickets.
This has _always_ been a failure of measurement on the part of 'management/leadership.' They've never chosen meaningful metrics. They've chosen _easy_ metrics.
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If it didn't mean my potential unemployment... I'd kinda like to watch the chaos that ensues.
LLM-driven development is seductive for a reason. It _feels_ like it's working initially. Just like any sloppy code implementation done in a hurry.
It _feels_ productive to close tickets.
This has _always_ been a failure of measurement on the part of 'management/leadership.' They've never chosen meaningful metrics. They've chosen _easy_ metrics.
The failure to genuinely understand the problem and the goal is a long-term failure. Since most measurements are taken on a quarterly basis the negatives don't show up until failure is systemic and overwhelming.
This is the _perfect_ mind space for LLM driven development, if you're selling it.
<shrug>
If metrics and targets don't change we'll not be encouraged to build good systems. We'll build them _in spite_ of not because of leadership.
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Right, but hasn't that been true, since, like, at least the industrial revolution, and also going back to the serfs of the Middle Ages?
I think those in power have always been anti-labor.
LLM-gen-AI is just the latest fad to give those in power an excuse to mistreat the working class.
Cc: @Ashedryden
@bkuhn @complexmath @Ashedryden yes, it's forever in both directions
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The AI bubble is temporary, but the knowledge that your boss does not value your work is forever.
@complexmath time to join a union
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@ralfmaximus @complexmath "Sure, I can come back... [calculates former salary + cost of benefits, et al = PayRate] ... as a consultant. My hourly rate is [10*PayRate], first month's fee paid in advance."
An ex actually did something like this!
They terminated her IT contract prior to a huge holiday event, then realized they had nobody to run cables or set up the AV equipment. Reached out to her with a heyyyyy, would you...?
She responded with an eye-watering consultant fee. Non-negotiable. Figured they would Fuck Off.
THEY PAID IT
So my ex made like $11,000 for a weekend's work because these asshats fired her.
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Right, but hasn't that been true, since, like, at least the industrial revolution, and also going back to the serfs of the Middle Ages?
I think those in power have always been anti-labor.
LLM-gen-AI is just the latest fad to give those in power an excuse to mistreat the working class.
Cc: @Ashedryden
@bkuhn It seems like there were a lot of computer programmers who didn't get the memo til now, hence, "the knowledge" in the original post
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Thanks, dad! Or mom.

