[0x12]

Hey Andrew,

I don't know you and you more than likely don't know me. But still I feel that I have to respond to you because the way you carry yourself here is in my opinion doing a disservice to yourself, to the community and to your employer.

If you take up a position that is going to be this un-popular you should at least try to do a better job of explaining your reasons why than you have done in this thread.

In principle, you have a point. Before Amit Gupta knew that he had leukemia, he in all likelihood would not have been nearly as motivated to improve the state of the art.

But such is human nature. Strangers are statistics, people are tragedies. We can only relate to that which we ourselves have direct knowledge of, and the second best thing next to that is that someone that we know or care for has direct knowledge of.

That is what makes things personal. And I think that is where you're missing the beat here. Amit Gupta is personal for a large enough number of people here (who likely aren't even in the right demographic to help him) that you are wrong about this being 'shameless'. It would be shameless if none of us had ever heard about Amit Gupta in the first place.

And even though plenty of people here (likely including you, but I can't be sure of that) have never heard of him, lots of people have.

We also have a lot in common with Amit Gupta. We're all either working in the IT business, working on start-ups and we're likely all at risk of being blindsided by a disease like this. Which is typically not on your radar when you're a 20 or 30 something working hard on your startups.

So, just like it isn't proper to talk bad about people on their funeral it isn't proper to piss on those that have landed a very bad lottery ticket indeed and that are currently - with the help of some dedicated friends - trying to change the odds in their favor.

Whether it will work or not is unknowable for now, and even if it does work it will likely be a thing with a very significant impact on the lives of Amit and those near him.

If Amit should die you may come to regret your harsh words here quite a bit.

In the meantime I hope that a match will come up and that Amit will be allright and that this will raise the awareness of how fragile life is, even when it seems as though you're doing just fine.

If one day there will be a website titled andrewmoffatneedsyou.com then I will not hold any of this against you.

[AndrewMoffat]

> Whether it will work or not is unknowable for now, and even if it does work it will likely be a thing with a very significant impact on the lives of Amit and those near him.

This alludes to my original comment. I hope he continues promoting this kind of thing if it helps him, but for other people, given that he has such a broad reach and lack of modesty. Is that so wrong to say? I know it is unpopular to say, but is it wrong to hope for?

I have no problem with what is being done, just how it is being done. I don't wish Amit dies. I don't even know him. It is a tragedy that he has leukemia. But given the platform and reach he so clearly has, is he grateful and humbled for his ability to seek help on such a massive scale, that many dying people will never have? Doesn't sound like it.

He wants life, but it doesn't sound like he has much respect for it. It sounds like he wants to live, but sounds like he only tangentially gives a damn about the cause which will save him (bone marrow transplants). It's very "me me me."

As for my community and my employer, don't bring them into it. I'm my own person, with my own opinions, and those are whose opinions I express.

[0x12]

> This alludes to my original comment. I hope he continues promoting this kind of thing if it helps him, but for other people, given that he has such a broad reach and lack of modesty.

When you've received something that is effectively a slightly delayed death sentence 'modesty' goes right out the window. You need help. Trust me, having to ask for help is not the greatest thing to do but sometimes there is no way around it. As I'm sure Amit has found out in the hardest way possible. Having to go cap-in-hand to the world at large to ask them to do something potentially invasive on your behalf is a fairly humbling experience.

> Is that so wrong to say?

Yes, I believe it is. I doubt Amit had half or even 10% of the reach that he had a year ago than he has right now because those that know him and like him are the megaphone through which is case is broadcast to the world. Before he was this gravelly ill his ability to reach people was only a small fraction of what it is today. The posted link is testimony to that.

I don't see Amit himself doing any of this on his own, it's more that enough people know him and care about him that causes this to happen. That alone should give you some pause, how many people do you know that would get that kind of response? If the answer is 'none' then you can probably attribute that to some positive factors working to Amit's advantage, such as being a relatively decent human being.

> I know it is unpopular to say, but is it wrong to hope for?

No, it is not wrong to hope for that. But that could be brought in a way that does not drag Amit or those that try to help him down. You are making your point in a uniquely negative way.

> I have no problem with what is being done, just how it is being done.

Why? How it is being done is simple: in the most effective way possible, given the short amount of time available and the difficulty of finding a match in that particular demographic the only chance there is for Amit is for some as yet unknown person to be a match. Without that, it's game over. If you have a better way of achieving that goal then I'm all ears.

> I don't wish Amit dies. I don't even know him.

Well, then before you made your original statement you should have probably invested some time in that. I don't know him either but I do know about him and what I know about him makes me think that he's a nice enough person that if I had a small chance of a match that I'd happily get myself tested.

> It is a tragedy that he has leukemia.

You bet.

> But given the platform and reach he so clearly has,

Has now.

> is he grateful and humbled for his ability to seek help on such a massive scale, that many dying people will never have?

I don't know. Have you asked him?

> Doesn't sound like it.

You are extrapolating a lot from very little. The only person that can shed light on that is Amit himself and I think that currently he has other worries. But after this is all over and he hopefully survives this ordeal you'll be in an excellent position to ask.

> He wants life, but it doesn't sound like he has much respect for it.

Again, what do you use to come to that conclusion?

Has he done anything at all that warrants that conclusion?

> It sounds like he wants to live, but sounds like he only tangentially gives a damn about the cause which will save him (bone marrow transplants). It's very "me me me."

That's the nature of disease. It hits you, you personally or someone that you know or care about. Until then it is abstract. So the only times that you will hear about a disease where it will actually hit home is when it affects someone that is not just a fragment of a barchart. For every Amit Gupta there are 1,000's of people that haven't got a chance and of course it would be great if we knew about them and if we could do something about them. The fact is that without Amit's plight I would not even realize that his demographic is underrepresented in the banks.

My own major issue with blood donations and so on is that this is big business, the donated blood products are sold at enormous profits by companies specializing in harping on your conscience and getting you to give them their raw materials at no cost, then process them (which does cost some money), turn around and make a killing.

One of my ex girlfriends worked in blood processing for a facility that will remain nameless but you can rest assured that they were not worried what they were going to pay their heating bill from.

There are lots of things wrong in this world that you could get a head of steam up about but by going after Amit Gupta personally you are making a huge mistake.

It's not his fault he landed this particular disease and you can't blame him for doing what he can (and I have yet to see Amit doing something, all this is done by others, presumably with his consent) to survive this.

What comes after will take care of itself once it is known that there is an after.

> As for my community and my employer, don't bring them into it.

You brought them into it. When you speak in a public forum with your own name and a bunch of links in your profile you have to realize that you are doing nominally on your own account but that there are lots of people that will be offended and that that will radiate to those that you associate with.

You may not like that but that is human nature too.

> I'm my own person, with my own opinions, and those are whose opinions I express.

Well, if I were your employer I'd ask you to please remove that link to my company as long as you decide to make a fool out of yourself in public.

I can't see anything positive coming out of it.

Anyway, I think I'm occupying enough lines in this thread and it does not seem like I am making much sense to you so I will leave it here.

[AndrewMoffat]

I stand by my original post. People can blow it out of proportion all they want, but I was speaking truthfully. I'll be sure to send my bosses a link to it so they can fire me over the great shame it brings them.

[zheng]

Could you post their replies? I know this was sarcastic, but I'd like to see what your bosses have to say about it. Honestly, what you're saying is controversial, but worth discussing. However, your attitude towards anyone who disagrees is shitty, and it does reflect on your company poorly. It doesn't matter that it shouldn't, it does. You might want to keep this in mind, fwiw.

[AndrewMoffat]

"andrew's opinions made from his personal accounts on the web does not represent the opinion of panopta.com, its management, its affiliates, or any other of its employees. he's free to speak his mind online and when he does so, represents only himself. we know andrew can come off offensive at times unintentionally, but he means well and isn't trying to hurt anyone."

[zheng]

Thanks, upvoted. What I said still holds, but it seems they aren't too worried about the effects of your conduct so I'm not either.