[jchw]

I worked at Google for a few years and moved back to the Midwest afterwards. At first I was afraid to mention it even if it came up directly, but honestly I've come to realize that this perception that everyone hates tech companies so much that there's a stigma against it is probably more paranoia than truth. Whenever it does come up, I think people are put off by how much I preface it as if it's something terrible. I've since stopped doing so.

The truth is, even if some of this could be explained by social pressure, I really think most people in the world just don't care as much as you think they do.

More than anything most people just seem annoyed by tech companies.

Actually, now that I think about it, the most unwelcome I've ever felt for working in tech was in California.