throwaway1979

I don't see a big deal with 1 year tenures. Under 1 (3-4 months seems suspicious). I imagine people leave after 1 year if they took a job that wasn't a nice place but they had some incentives requiring them to stay a year (sign on bonuses are typically vested at 1 year; moving assistance also needs to be paid back if an employee leaves within a year).

So ... if a person leaves at the 1 year mark, it was likely they who chose to leave. Given the stories about bad employers in tech and the fact that there are many good employers too these days, I would say good for the moving employee!

Every update of the game I've encountered seems to make things worse. With the tracker debacle and a few new bugs that come up when come up when catching pokemon, I've almost stopped playing. Really sad where this game could have been as opposed to where it is. Also, it seems these guys are putting more effort stopping third parties fill in holes in their game rather than actually fix/improve the game itself.

I've lived in both the Bay area and NYC. I can tell you the culture in NYC is very strong and hard to match. My spouse and I often look back fondly at the fun times we had in NYC. Chicago also has a very fun vibe depending on where you are. The Bay area is weak in that department IMHO.

Err .. how does one get an SS statement? I'm 37 .. don't recall seeing one. Do you have to request it? As far as I know, I contribute into SS every paycheck.

As a single, insignificant data point: I just bought my first Windows laptop after 2008. I kept waiting for Apple to release Skylake professional machines. Just gave up waiting for them. Ended up getting a Windows Signature machine, which came with a free tablet. Guess I don't need to wait for the iPad Air refresh anymore as well.

I think Apple has lost its way. It has forgotten about its power users. I think they are trying to be a luxury brand now ... limited function devices that overpriced (but look really nice). I'm a bit bitter as I say this since I was a huge Apple fan.

How does 500K USD seen affordable? Also, try raising two kids in that condo.

Given that current prices were completely out of whack, and that the govt kept warning that something will be done ... people who bought at the peak deserve what they got. I've been sitting on the fence (since the math didn't make sense) for years. All we got for being prudent was annual moves and seeing other people's homes paying them more than a 1%er's yearly salary. I welcome this move by BC. Ontario needs this stat for the GTA. We also need to tax the gains from home sales. The situation has gotten so bad, young people are leaving in disgust.

I am not sure about the work less/work less hard comments. I get paid a decent, fair wage by my employer. I personally consider it "justice" if I do my best and give them my best. As a new father, I have to fight to work hard and also give my family time.

This is not correct. The weather in San Diego is a lot better than the Bay area but the cost of housing is a lot less. The tax is access to high-paying tech jobs.

Can you elaborate? Is this some kind of xenophohia like we see in other parts of the world? Or is it they want to learn how to do everything in the entire vertical chain (with a focus towards moving up the value chain)? Or something else entirely?

I see Chinese tech companies open up R&D shops in North America, and I'm curious what they really want out of it.

You are correct in principal ... we should all have it better. However, now that I'm a bit older, I ask questions about productivity and such. If we are earning more than we are actually producing, someone is paying the bills. It is either someone else (which is not fair), or coming from the pockets of our children (incredibly not fair). I think the previous generation screwed us badly. It is our responsibility to not pass it on. But you are definitely right about issues like CEO pay being unfair and beyond any true productivity.

According to the book (the author did do some financial analysis but I forget the details), if these states sell a small fraction of their assets, they will be able to pay off all their debt. I'm definitely not agreeing with the author's point of view, but that is something I had not thought about before. i.e. while your debt may be a lot higher than your income, if you have sizable assets, you an get away with it for a while.

I'm not well-versed in EU politics but I find some parts of what you say surprising. After Brexit, there were reports of racist signs some idiots had put up. These weren't against syrian refugees, but rather against a particular former eastern bloc country.

It isn't just sale of public institutions. In many cases, it is attempts to maintain the status quo when circumstances have clearly changed. Public sector pensions are a perfect example of this. I think most software engineers don't realize how good public servants have it. In a time of very little safe asset growth, defined benefit pension plans are simply unsustainable without massive increases in contributions. Yet everywhere it seems that contributions are not going up and the people are employing various tricks to keep things going. In a fair market, the new reality would be accepted and pension plans would change. But here we are.

Btw ... in the book Fate of the State, the author suggests states to privatize their assets to meet their funding shortfalls. So the neoliberals will truly profit while things get worse. Sad.

I just disabled forced update on my box. It was shocking that MSFT did not make the process straightforward. Ended up downloading a third party tool. Shocking!

Recent MSFT behavior was making me think they've changed. I guess not. This genius acquisition indicates the old MSFT is alive and well. Given the dollar amount, the good news is that they can't do too many of these moves without sinking their ship.