[beaker]

Probably will get downvoted for this, but I didn't really think this was as vile as apparently everybody else does. Sure it's a bit cheesy and stupid, but the dancers seem to be wearing shorts and a full shirt (essentially standard dance attire) and not doing anything particularly suggestive. As to the lyrics, again stupid attempts at humor but not any worse than what you might see on an evening TV sitcom. Maybe I am just old..

[powertower]

Pretty much a non-event/non-issue for me.

It looks like a regional thing (half the world away), from a subsidiary, and was not signed off by Redmond.

People will always interject themselves into things like this, making something out of nothing, tweeting and posting about how outraged they are.

When Microsoft is involved, the narrative is to always play the victim being oppressed by a giant.

I've see worse things than this on family tv stations during the daytime.

To me this is just a dumb two or three minute skit in a 3 hour event, that will get someone fired.

[petercooper]

That's forgetting context. On a sitcom, sure. What if it were at a funeral or as part of a job interview? It's similarly inappropriate at a programmers' conference where we should be avoiding activities and messages that reinforce male privilege. Don't believe me, believe women who have responded about it, e.g. https://twitter.com/serendipitousP/status/211470656242589698

[psykotic]

> What if it were at a funeral

Ask and ye shall receive.

Strippers and other scantily clad dancers are not unheard of at country-side funerals in Taiwan.

http://io9.com/5819625/in-taiwan-you-can-hire-a-stripper-for...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYxOBoHHJ9M

When I first came across this phenomenon years ago, I managed to find a thread on a mailing list (I think it was for East Asian studies) that included personal reports from researchers as well as some interesting suggestions about why they might do this. The consensus seemed to be that this was akin to how the Taiwanese might sacrifice a pack of the deceased's favorite cigarettes or a bottle of his favorite liquor at his funeral.

Such dance shows are also offered up as tribute to the deities at temple festivals. As bizarre as that is, I can't help but be amused by the thought of their gods appreciating a flagrant display of T&A. It sure turns the Hermetic motto "As above, so below" on its head, doesn't it?

> as part of a job interview

Taking a male job candidate to a strip club isn't unheard of in the US. In South Korea (and I presume other parts of East Asia), it's commonplace to go to hostess bars on the monthly hwaeshik outing with coworkers; sometimes they will continue the night at straight-up prostitution joints for sam cha. I wouldn't be surprised if job interviews were often conducted similarly to entice candidates. I know for a fact that Korean salespeople often seal deals by taking customers out for "entertainment".

To be clear, I'm not condoning any of these practices, just saying they're out there and probably more commonplace than you realize.

[nailer]

The Twitter poster you mentioned says the main issue is that Microsoft assumed all developers are men. Which they didn't.

She also says the shorts are skimpy. Watch the video and see if you agree.

Finally people who tell me about my life based upon my gender with terms like 'male privilege' are themselves being sexist and rude.

[hellerbarde]

it's not the things they did or any particular word or formulation that ticks me off. It's the sentiment and (if it succeeds) the baseline of emotions it seeds for that event or evening.

Now we can all say that everyone needs to grow thicker skin or something, but in the end it's simply bad taste to alienate significant parts of the crowd. That being said, if I would have been there, I would have been more embarrassed at the stereotype they apparently decided to appeal to than offended, because it was so over the top stupid.

YMMV.

[technoslut]

I wouldn't downvote and I probably would have a laugh with my kid sister at how inept MS is.

However I do have concerns for young girls who are interested in programming and technology and believe this is how women are perceived in this field. This is especially true of those who don't have a sound parental foundation or looking to define themselves.

[RommeDeSerieux]

I think female peer pressure and the fear of ostracization for getting outed as a geek is a much bigger deterrent to women entering the IT field than some silly jokes that a mature adult sure can deal with.

[overgryphon]

Does anyone else think it odd that being a software developer automatically means you're a "geek"? I never thought of myself that way, still don't, and am surprised that a career choice automatically confers such an odd label. It makes no sense.

[listrophy]

Where is the goddamned outrage? Stop being such a member of the intelligentsia and get angry.