<![CDATA[The class solidarity argument has been a part of “AI” discourse in many fields for a while now.]]>The class solidarity argument has been a part of “AI” discourse in many fields for a while now. It doesn’t settle the debate but it’s a rationale many will acknowledge even if they disagree

Except in coding. Mention it to software devs and most will look at you as if you just spoke in tongues

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/topic/5bd3f5ec-234f-41f4-8247-c5b775cb650f/the-class-solidarity-argument-has-been-a-part-of-ai-discourse-in-many-fields-for-a-while-now.RSS for NodeFri, 15 May 2026 07:44:33 GMTSun, 03 May 2026 10:43:17 GMT60<![CDATA[Reply to The class solidarity argument has been a part of “AI” discourse in many fields for a while now. on Sun, 03 May 2026 12:48:00 GMT]]>@baldur I'm reading Scott's "Seeing Like a State" and the chapter on the agricultural collectivisation after the Russian revolution made me think about how Lenins attitude towards the peasants are similar to many software architects' attitudes towards users (and developers for that matter).

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.sdf.org/users/mrg/statuses/116510718745463480https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.sdf.org/users/mrg/statuses/116510718745463480Sun, 03 May 2026 12:48:00 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The class solidarity argument has been a part of “AI” discourse in many fields for a while now. on Sun, 03 May 2026 12:20:00 GMT]]>@iain@kolektiva.social @baldur@toot.cafe I forgot to share the interview, which is free (modulo some skippable ads): https://newbooksnetwork.com/the-social-codes-of-tech-workers

You can get a decent sense of what he's arguing in the book from this interview.
]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://buc.ci/abucci/p/1777810800.022508https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://buc.ci/abucci/p/1777810800.022508Sun, 03 May 2026 12:20:00 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The class solidarity argument has been a part of “AI” discourse in many fields for a while now. on Sun, 03 May 2026 12:16:43 GMT]]>@iain@kolektiva.social @baldur@toot.cafe Ugh, yes. It's slightly less expensive at MIT Press, but still pricey. I wish these academic books were more accessible. It's possible your library has it or could be convinced to order it.
]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://buc.ci/abucci/p/1777810603.730966https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://buc.ci/abucci/p/1777810603.730966Sun, 03 May 2026 12:16:43 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The class solidarity argument has been a part of “AI” discourse in many fields for a while now. on Sun, 03 May 2026 12:02:52 GMT]]>@baldur Game devs seem to be breaking that mold. But yeah, I mentioned unions on a meetup once, it didn’t go well.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://toot.community/users/slotos/statuses/116510541223686396https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://toot.community/users/slotos/statuses/116510541223686396Sun, 03 May 2026 12:02:52 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The class solidarity argument has been a part of “AI” discourse in many fields for a while now. on Sun, 03 May 2026 11:09:02 GMT]]>@abucci That’s interesting, thanks. I hadn’t come across that book before.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://toot.cafe/users/baldur/statuses/116510329554534245https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://toot.cafe/users/baldur/statuses/116510329554534245Sun, 03 May 2026 11:09:02 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The class solidarity argument has been a part of “AI” discourse in many fields for a while now. on Sun, 03 May 2026 11:07:06 GMT]]>@geraldew Thanks! Edited. 🙂

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://toot.cafe/users/baldur/statuses/116510321955103838https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://toot.cafe/users/baldur/statuses/116510321955103838Sun, 03 May 2026 11:07:06 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The class solidarity argument has been a part of “AI” discourse in many fields for a while now. on Sun, 03 May 2026 11:00:36 GMT]]>@baldur@toot.cafe I listened to an interview with Robert Dorschel, the author of this book, and found it illuminating: https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-social-codes-of-tech-workers-a-contradictory-middle-class-in-the-making-robert-dorschel/b207a34d1660255b

The Social Codes of Tech Workers
The book identifies tech workers as a contradictory class formation, oscillating between a spirit of emancipation and yet another spirit of capitalism.
The oscillation is a degree of freedom allowing tech workers to take up or avoid solidarity-oriented perspectives as convenient. There's lots of space for bad actors.
]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://buc.ci/abucci/p/1777806036.591144https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://buc.ci/abucci/p/1777806036.591144Sun, 03 May 2026 11:00:36 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The class solidarity argument has been a part of “AI” discourse in many fields for a while now. on Sun, 03 May 2026 10:57:53 GMT]]>@baldur sorry to nitpick, but by "emphasise" did you perhaps mean "empathise"?

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://fosstodon.org/users/geraldew/statuses/116510285738021955https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://fosstodon.org/users/geraldew/statuses/116510285738021955Sun, 03 May 2026 10:57:53 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The class solidarity argument has been a part of “AI” discourse in many fields for a while now. on Sun, 03 May 2026 10:52:17 GMT]]>@baldur Agreed, although I'm not sure about "most", I think this is very bubble specific. Some bubbles of devs will fully understand and agree, and others will defend their sycophantic "assistant" until the end of the earth.

That said, there's definitely an empathy problem in the industry, coming from us being pitted against each other, and discouraged from unionising, by the above average wages we historically got. Making it a very "got mine, fuck you" industry, that is now speedrunning the consequences of that attitude.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://social.ainmosni.eu/users/ainmosni/statuses/01KQPQFCK1WJYX5HTFVQYAA22Hhttps://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://social.ainmosni.eu/users/ainmosni/statuses/01KQPQFCK1WJYX5HTFVQYAA22HSun, 03 May 2026 10:52:17 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to The class solidarity argument has been a part of “AI” discourse in many fields for a while now. on Sun, 03 May 2026 10:43:18 GMT]]>This is a long-standing characteristic of the field and it explains a lot of what’s been going on in tech. If you can’t even empathise with people doing the same job as you—that share your circumstances—what are the chances of you caring about the end user or the effects of your work on society?

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://toot.cafe/users/baldur/statuses/116510228349774670https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://toot.cafe/users/baldur/statuses/116510228349774670Sun, 03 May 2026 10:43:18 GMT