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Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by pcwalton on Friday November 11, 2016 @02:03AM (#12928609)
> As might be expected, Trump is now giving governmental positions to those who didn't distance themselves from him during the election. I don't find that surprising.

Cronyism "might be expected" from politicians. (In fact it's very expected from self-serving, hubristic politicians like Donald Trump.) That doesn't make cronyism OK.

Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by dlss on Friday November 11, 2016 @02:56AM (#12928815)
Cronyism in my understanding is essentially hiring friends who are unqualified for a given job. In this case, it looks to me like what's going on could better be described as not hiring otherwise qualified candidates who publicly denounced you. Or maybe more tactfully 'limiting the applicant pool to people who share the same vision.'

To make this more concrete, in GGP Robert Gates is brought up as a respectable republican who Trump presumably would have appointed were he not engaged in cronyism. Google "Robert Gates Trump" then let me know if you really think cronyism is the best explanation for why Robert Gates didn't get the job.

Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by pcwalton on Friday November 11, 2016 @03:51AM (#12929031)
We should expect the most powerful office in the world to hire the best people for the job. Saying that Donald Trump is "beyond repair" (which is a statement I happen to agree with) is not disqualifying. The idea that it is disqualifying has a word: cronyism.
Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by michaelt on Friday November 11, 2016 @05:38AM (#12929493)
For political appointees who are implementing your promises that determine whether you get re-elected, loyalty is a very important qualification.

We all know how easy it is for political promises to be broken - there are any number of ways to sabotage an effort you're in charge of, while appearing to act in good faith.

You don't even have to do it deliberately - you just need to give 100% in a job that needs you to give 110%.

Who do you think has more incentive to deliver your vision? A guy who hates you, and who thinks he'll get a better boss (maybe even be boss himself) if you're out of the way? Or a guy whose ship is tied to yours and if you go down, he'll never achieve such heights in his career again?

Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by guptaneil on Friday November 11, 2016 @09:42AM (#12930983)
If you were working at a startup, your argument would be the equivalent of advocating hiring individuals who need you for their job and therefore won't be a threat to you. I would much rather hire and work with people smarter than me who can help me grow. You're only as good as your weakest link.

There's certainly value for passion about the mission, but it shouldn't be confused with desperation.

Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by torrances on Friday November 11, 2016 @10:04AM (#12931204)
But what if those people smarter than you don't share your vision? What if they want to pivot to some other market?
Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by guptaneil on Friday November 11, 2016 @12:55PM (#12932744)
I would stop to re-evaluate my mission and whether they know more than me (which they should if I did my job right).
Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by DefaultUserHN on Saturday November 12, 2016 @01:22PM (#12939280)
>But what if those people smarter than you don't share your vision?

I find someone who's smart and also share my vision then.

Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by gm-conspiracy on Friday November 11, 2016 @07:20AM (#12929963)
What about Pete's character in Mad Men?
Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by tomp on Friday November 11, 2016 @07:31AM (#12930019)
What good is the "best person for the job" if you can't trust him/her?
Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by rbcgerard on Friday November 11, 2016 @10:52AM (#12931703)
"best" is pretty subjective based on criteria - just ask someone what the "best" car is...

That being said, please tell us which recent administration did not engage in the practice?

Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by rdtsc on Friday November 11, 2016 @10:42AM (#12931590)
Wondering, who do you think is the most qualified for that job?
Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by Chris2048 on Friday November 11, 2016 @10:47AM (#12931649)
Does the best person for the job burn their bridges like this?
Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by torrances on Friday November 11, 2016 @10:01AM (#12931174)
Is it really cronyism? It seems like most of the "qualified people" don't share his vision, so why would you hire someone that is so opposed to what you're doing?

If Trump were a Silicon Valley CEO, we would be saying he's not hiring them due to a "cultural fit."

Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by Mikeb85 on Friday November 11, 2016 @10:05AM (#12931213)
Hiring qualified loyalists is different from giving favours to unqualified friends.
Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by DefaultUserHN on Saturday November 12, 2016 @01:25PM (#12939299)
Agreed.

Hiring the best qualified people who wants to Make America Great Again is different from giving favors to unqualified foreigners who wants to screw over the American people.

Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by grzm on Saturday November 12, 2016 @01:30PM (#12939333)
"giving favors to unqualified foreigners who wants to screw over the American people."

Would you expand on this? There's so much going back and forth that I sometimes have a hard time knowing what people are referring to.

Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by DefaultUserHN on Saturday November 12, 2016 @01:43PM (#12939398)
Talking about Hillary and the Saudis.
Re:Peter Thiel To Join Trump Transition Team by grzm on Saturday November 12, 2016 @01:49PM (#12939434)
Gotcha. Thanks for clarifying.