drpp's comments

The argument in the article is:

"A testament to the strength of a system is the measure of what intensity of challenge it can endure and survive. The challenges of the past year have exposed a lot of flaws, which will take time to fix, nationally and globally, independently and collaboratively.

Arguably this reasoning could have been applied at various other moments in recent history, such as the end of WW2 or 9/11. We often speak of a post-world war era or a post-9/11 era.

What is different now is that all of humanity has found itself on the same side against a common adversary. The virus was first detected and its genetic code mapped around the new year transition of 2020. 2020 now becomes the new year zero. This year of uncertainty found us living “out of time”. We engaged in a “global arms race” ... to create a cure."

I do agree, the world is always changing. But I don't see how that's an argument for sticking to the same timeline. I think it's a good reminder that we can choose how to count our time and define new beginnings. Honestly, would you rather live in 2021 or year one of a new era? In a sense it's arbitrary, but it would feel different psychologically. How would you prefer to feel?

This is an example butterfly kaleidoscope design: https://eschersket.ch/s/aff6c357dc17153fe3d973ca23f9a0c2

A) This was a pretty unusual experience for me. And I think it is unusual for the readers.

B) I can see your point. She did ask me to take photos and to tell her story. I have not been in touch with her in a while. I will deliberate for a bit and consider taking down her photos.

There is no profit motive. I am not paid for this story.

Yes, on this trip I had many Police encounters. Most of the time, the best course of action was to feign ignorance and speak very loudly and excitedly in English, "Good Morning Officer!" and just keep repeating that and smiling. Then they would give up on you and move on to easier targets. I tried that at first here, but then changed tactics.

Everything you say is true. I fully acknowledge that. I hope it's not implied otherwise.

Some have tried to hide this, and there are links to such accounts. But, "Na’ama is direct. She’s not the kind of person to pretend about anything. In the third trimester, her condition is nearly impossible to hide anyway. And yet surprisingly, most investors have scrupulously avoided discussing the fact."

I wrote an article about how my co-founder is pregnant and raising funding for our company, Sourcery. Investors are hesitant to bring up the issue in conversation for fear of coming off as an insensitive brute who questions a women's commitment to her company, but this is an important issue to address upfront. I try to lay out how we are preparing for this moment together.

World is small. I spent a winter there, working with the Synergy Strike Force. One thing led to another and I ended up coaching the regional basketball team:

https://nplusonemag.com/basketball-diaries-afghanistan/

Here are some photos of home base:

https://www.flickr.com/search?user_id=68877611%40N00&text=ta...

One of my best basketball players, an Afghan, and SSF member, is now a Fulbright in the US:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/ifl/13007763495

@rdl don't believe we've met but nods to you.

yes, i see that: http://tmsearch.uspto.gov/bin/showfield?f=doc&state=4809:92q... but the use is

Goods and Services IC 009. US 021 023 026 036 038. G & S: Computer software for electronic design automation; computer software for creating, debugging, profiling, analyzing and optimizing embedded computer systems. FIRST USE: 20110713. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 20110713

which is to say there doesn't seem to be a conflict.

interesting. got a link?

also here: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8406714

@joshfraser - http://sourcery.us/ can help you with streamlining your sourcing, as well as surfacing the upstream supplier and location information (where available) just give us a shout!

Silicon valley extravagance or sound biz decision? And how's the food at your startup? Best I've had was at DropBox.

I'm the OP. It takes some persistence with paperwork and followup, and a recording costs 30$, but here is the form: http://sfdem.org/modules/showdocument.aspx?documentid=1268

I changed the photo to prevent this misconception. I fear that I may have received more sympathy and readership because of the false notion that I'm the attractive female in the photo. You can see me in the photo where I'm being loaded into the van. I'm a Soviet born Jew who immigrated to the US in the late 80s. At the time, I also had a beard. Here is a more flattering photo of me: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sgoralnick/6128547691/in/photos...

I (the author) understand the comments above and the reasonable skepticism about my self interest in portraying only one side of the story. I'm not an angel. This was avoidable. I can even understand the police perspective and sympathize with the difficulty of their job. For full transparency, I'm preparing a followup post with all of the assembled documentation, including the police report. And yet, this still should not have happened.

But at the time, it was all very sudden. I was being yelled at while my friend (and co-founder of a yc company) was being manhandled. The fact that I was "obstructing with the emergency response" didn't enter the realm of possibility, as I was on the periphery of the scene and far away from the medics. The fact that I was at risk of being arrested didn't cross my mind until the moment I was tackled from behind.

I tried to resolve my issue directly with the police. Mediation would have quelled my anger. Only when I felt that I wasn't being heard, I published. I didn't expect 365k views (and counting).

I think that these situations are common, but rarely do the victims take the time to write the story in full detail. I've seen it happen to others, and felt powerless to interject. And now that it happened to me, I felt an obligation to do my best to write it as accurately as possible. In the least, it's an anthropological case study, and I hope you felt it was an informative story that was worth your reading time.

Coincidentally, I (the author) have had experience bribing police in Kazakhstan: http://www.offsilkroadin.com/2009/11/the-last-hurdle/

Trying out a new platform. I had some support from the editors. It looks nice. I wanted to get it off my chest and it was a path of least resistance. Some other outlets wanted me to do much more rewriting.

Coincidentally, I (the author) have had experience bribing officials in countries where it's not against the social norm: http://www.offsilkroadin.com/2009/11/the-last-hurdle/

I was going to post it here. I wrote it. But you beat me!