[vinceguidry]

> In some cases, that's probably true - Terry Davis very likely being one of those cases.

It's less because Terry couldn't make a useful contribution and more that he not really interested. He's had jobs in the past where he was no more or less ill. From what I've read of his life history, he walked away rather than got fired.

[FlannelPancake]

Maybe. I think it would cause a very serious disruption to bring a guy like Terry into a normal team dynamic. The CIA delusions alone would make most people understandably uncomfortable, to say nothing of the racism.

With a very patient and understanding manager, a very isolated workspace or maybe a couple very patient and understanding coworkers, and probably someone filtering all of his communication, it would be workable. I can see why Terry would not want to be an environment like that, of course.

That's not to say that someone wouldn't take a chance on him given his strong technical ability, but I'm not sure most people would look on that decision in retrospect as a good one.