
Tim Cook: Technology companies need to take responsibility for chaos they create - wpasc
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/16/apple-ceo-tim-cook-stanford-commencement-speech.html
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duxup
I think there is a real erosion to people's perception to the valley (more of
a general term there) and tech companies in general. Move fast and break
things seems to be a goal unto itself. Opaque privacy standards / no privacy
standards. The Gig economy is just pushing risk onto customers and
contractors.

It's not a good look and I worry it is poisoning the well for others in the
future.

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Neostrategos
Companies need to take responsibility for chaos they create.

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Deinos
... and if they can't, the society they impact needs to force their hand.
Unfortunately, we have a much larger problem when it comes to regulation, as
our representatives are more beholden to the companies that fund them than the
electorate they purport to represent... I don't see this changing in my
lifetime.

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jaredklewis
Yes, corruption is a problem, but I disagree that it is the heart or bulk of
the problem.

A 2018 Gallup poll found that only 25% of Americans thought there was too
little government regulation. Another 33% thought we had the right amount, and
39% thought there was too much.

A more recent poll about the tech companies specifically, while much closer,
still found that a minority thought the tech giants should be subject to more
regulation ([https://thehill.com/hilltv/what-americas-
thinking/433482-pol...](https://thehill.com/hilltv/what-americas-
thinking/433482-poll-americans-not-interested-in-extra-regulations-for-big-
tech)).

So I would say that for the most part, while the representatives are not
representing your views, their views are consistent with the majority of
America.

I say this as someone that believes the US desperately needs more
environmental regulation. I would also love if congress could create some
common sense regulations to standardize website/app TOS and privacy policies.
But that's just me.

I think there is a trend to blame "politicians" for all of our problems as if
they were some exogenous force. Unfortunately, for the most part I think they
represent us just fine. If democracy is a government by the people, we can't
reasonably expect that it will be much different from the people in it.

I dislike when politicians are reflexively held responsible for our societal
ills, because I feel it is a kind of mental laziness to avoid having to engage
with the large portion of the nation that disagrees.

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trobertson
> A 2018 Gallup poll found that only 25% of Americans thought there was too
> little government regulation. Another 33% thought we had the right amount,
> and 39% thought there was too much.

The question of "Is there enough regulation" is the wrong question. The right
question is "Is there enough _enforcement_ of regulation?". I suspect that
answer is very different.

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chewz
Mr Cook. I am happy to fix some mess Apple had made. Please give me right to
repair.

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benologist
Cook wants tech companies to take responsibility for the consequences of
various data and privacy transgressions, while he's withholding taxes on $285
billion until a lower rate can be coerced and using offshore banking to avoid
other taxes, the direct consequence of which is $10s of billions removed from
public coffers around the world.

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thegayngler
Why are you conflating what Apple is doing with tax treatments and loop holes
(that every business tries to take advantage of in one form or another) with a
message about taking responsibility for protecting people's privacy and their
data?

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the_common_man
Some people expect one to be a saint and be totally flawless if one preaches
something. They see the preachers as hypocrites otherwise. The classic "but
what about ... <another unrelated issue>".

In fact, for some, even saints are not good enough. Mother Teresa gets called
on her mis-deeds all the time if you point anything good about her. Gandhi
gets called on for his personal relationships etc.

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maxxxxx
I think if you preach about something you first should clean your own house.
For example I would have liked Cook to address the recent keyboard problems
openly or discuss the TouchBar that nobody seems to like. I feel like he is
opportunistic in the sense that he talks loudly about things that are of less
concern to his company and make his competition look bad. That's good business
but I don't think he should get much credit for doing it. I am sure he would
have no qualms about selling out his users if it fit his business.

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scarface74
You mean by offering extended warranties?

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maxxxxx
Extended warranty is bullshit if you have to waste time going to the Genius
Bar and then having your keyboard break after the warranty. That was the
minimum possible thing they could do to avoid lawsuits.

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scarface74
So exactly what are they suppose to do about a product defect except for
correct it?

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maxxxxx
Correct it by shipping keyboards that don't break.

