wp-plugin-hostgator domain was triggered too early. This is usually an indicator for some code in the plugin or theme running too early. Translations should be loaded at the init action or later. Please see Debugging in WordPress for more information. (This message was added in version 6.7.0.) in /home4/scienrds/scienceandnerds/wp-includes/functions.php on line 6114ol-scrapes domain was triggered too early. This is usually an indicator for some code in the plugin or theme running too early. Translations should be loaded at the init action or later. Please see Debugging in WordPress for more information. (This message was added in version 6.7.0.) in /home4/scienrds/scienceandnerds/wp-includes/functions.php on line 6114Source: https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/2022\/6\/15\/23170227\/kraken-crypto-exchange-hiring-employees-racism-crypto-free-speech<\/a> With the price of Bitcoin, Ethereum, and almost every other cryptocurrency tumbling dramatically, major crypto companies like Coinbase<\/a> and Crypto.com<\/a> have laid off hundreds of workers in the past few days alone. But one company is on a hiring spree \u2014 just not for employees who will call out racism, transphobia, or label other kinds of workplace behavior toxic.<\/p>\n The Kraken cryptocurrency exchange, ranked in the top five globally by trade volume, announced in a blog post<\/a> Wednesday that it was hiring more than 500 new staff, as long as they fit with the company\u2019s vision of a \u201ccrypto-first culture.\u201d Another document linked in the post outlines the fundamentals of that culture<\/a> divided into sub-sections that summarize a particular vision of crypto-libertarianism associated with controversial CEO Jesse Powell.<\/p>\n One pillar is that \u201ccrypto is for everyone,\u201d and another is that \u201cbelief in The Mission<\/em> is a must\u201d \u2014 the mission being to accelerate cryptocurrency adoption worldwide. Another section, labeled \u201cLife, Liberty and the Pursuit of Sound Money,\u201d explains that Kraken is founded on belief in the constitutional basis for free speech, free markets, and armed self-defense.<\/p>\n But apparently, the right to free speech at Kraken is not absolute because the next section \u2014 \u201cSomeone Must be Offended, Some of the Time\u201d \u2014 explains that employees \u201cdo not call someone\u2019s words toxic, hateful, racist, x-phobic\u201d and must instead \u201ccalmly challenge ideas with logic, reason and better ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n If there was confusion about the kind of work environment Kraken promotes, Powell gave his own summary of the culture in a tweet thread<\/a> published early on Wednesday morning, claiming that there were only \u201c20 people out of 3200 [employees] who are totally not on board.\u201d<\/p>\n The things that made these 20 people a bad fit, per the thread, included concerns over \u201cDEI\u201d (diversity, equity and inclusion), \u201cpronouns,\u201d and \u201cwhether someone can identify as a different race and be allowed to use the N-word.\u201d Powell entertained discussion on these topics for a while, but in his words, \u201cpeople get triggered by everything and can\u2019t conform to basic rules of honest debate.\u201d<\/p>\n 5\/ What are they upset about? FWP<\/p>\n \u2014 Jesse Powell (@jespow) June 15, 2022<\/a>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n Kraken\u2019s public culture briefing was likely an attempt to preempt reporting from The<\/em> New York Times<\/em><\/a> that referenced chat logs, videos, and other internal documents that showed Powell driving a \u201cculture war\u201d within the company. The documents now published by Kraken are reportedly an abridged version of a longer culture document that was sent to employees earlier in June, with the instruction that they should quit if they disagreed with the values contained within it.<\/p>\n According to the Times<\/em>, Powell posted comments in one company Slack channel calling American women \u201cbrainwashed\u201d in a discussion over female intelligence. He also reportedly started another channel specifically for the purpose of debating whether people should be able to choose gender pronouns that were not assigned to them at birth. Many employees are said to have pushed against Powell strongly but were told that company culture would not meaningfully change.<\/p>\n Kraken did not respond to The Verge\u2019s<\/em> request for comment by time of publication.<\/p>\n The Kraken story has strong parallels with a previous controversy at the Coinbase exchange. In June 2020, following the death of George Floyd, a group of employees walked out after CEO Brian Armstrong refused to make a public statement in support of Black Lives Matter<\/a>. Armstrong later declared that Coinbase was a \u201cmission focused company\u201d that would not engage with issues unrelated to the core mission and offered a generous exit package<\/a> to employees who disagreed with his position.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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* DEI (Silicon Valley’s version)
* pronouns, whether someone can identify as a different race and be allowed to use the N-word
* whether differences in human sex exist at all
* being respected and unoffended
* being “harmed” by “violent” words<\/p>\n