IBM employees questioned the company’s ties to the Israeli military. CEO Arvind Krishna’s answer raised even more concerns.
  • RegalPotoo@lemmy.worldEnglish
    38·
    4 months ago

    Tbh, given how out of their way IBM went to enable the holocaust, I don’t think they really should be weighing in on this one

  • deadbeef79000@lemmy.nzEnglish
    18·
    4 months ago

    We try to operate with the principles that are encouraged by the governments of the countries we are in. We are a U.S. headquarter company. So, what does the U.S. federal government want to do on international relations? That helps guide a lot of what we do. We operate in many countries. We operate in Israel, but we also operate in Saudi Arabia. What do those countries want us to do? And what is it they consider to be correct behavior?

    Who’s to say genocide(or anything for that matter) is bad when we can enhance shareholder value?

      • Lightscription@lemmy.worldEnglish
        1·
        3 months ago

        They made a mistake. As history proves, a big one. But any technical company could. So did the makers of cyclon. Apple or Windows could. The AI could exterminate us all as useless humans with low worth. The values of the current CEO should matter if they translate into real world policies, such as, defending human rights.

    • k_rol@lemmy.caEnglish
      5·
      4 months ago

      According to the Global Slavery Index 2023, an estimated 21.3 in every thousand people were in modern slavery in Saudi Arabia at any point in 2021. In other words, 740,000 people experienced forced labour or forced marriage in Saudi Arabia in 2020. Saudi Arabia ranks 4th globally and 1st within the Arab States.

      This is considered correct behavior so we see no issue, right?

      • deadbeef79000@lemmy.nzEnglish
        4·
        4 months ago

        I kind of get the idea.

        It’s not [company’s] role to change the way [country] operates. But [company] can choose to not operate in [country].

        IBM’s chief executive psychopath obviously had this explained to him but stopped listening half way through.

  • Flying Squid@lemmy.worldMEnglish
    181·
    4 months ago

    This is extremely similar to Elon Musk’s “clarification” on what he means by free speech:

    • cmhe@lemmy.worldEnglish
      7·
      4 months ago

      Right, they saying “We are just following the law.” as if that was an apolitical statement. While they still get to choose whom laws to follow by deciding where to make business, which are political decisions.

      As you see with Twitter or starlink, they decided to be do business in Brazil, but when the country actually have laws against uncontrolled mass propaganda and hate speech, they are suddenly against the law, and do not try to stop or limit doing their business there, when they do not want or can’t abide by these laws.

      • Flying Squid@lemmy.worldMEnglish
        7·
        4 months ago

        That was the point. He was defending his deleting posts and accounts at the behest of Turkey and India. Suddenly he had to come up with some reason why his claim of supposed free speech absolutism wasn’t all that absolute.

        • symthetics@lemmy.worldEnglish
          3·
          4 months ago

          Ah, makes sense. I wonder how long he can slither around like this until it finally bites him hard.

  • geneva_convenience@lemmy.mlEnglish
    111·
    4 months ago

    For many workers, the question of where IBM might draw the line with foreign governments is particularly fraught given the company’s grim track record of selling computers and services to both apartheid South Africa and Nazi Germany.

  • sleepmode@lemmy.worldEnglish
    10·
    4 months ago

    Arvind regularly makes it clear in meetings that he doesn’t give a flying flip what the employees think or feel and that he knows best. So this is not shocking. He’s made similar bootlicker comments before. I’m sort of surprised more of his terrible takes aren’t made public.

      • k_rol@lemmy.caEnglish
        2·
        4 months ago

        The shareholders disagree seeing the stock prices… I do though, she was more human.

    • k_rol@lemmy.caEnglish
      3·
      4 months ago

      I can confirm the same as well. I left IBM in part because of him. The more he spoke, the less I felt like an IBMer.

      I’m surprised too that he has not gone viral yet on his takes.