Saying "no" is a hard stance to take. Google undoubtedly does have some very smart people and some very interesting work, so it's difficult to throw that away because one perceives them as brain damaged when it comes to relationships and interviewing.

And of course there's always the "if you say 'no', there's always someone who will take your spot happily."

I dunno. They seem acquire more than they build. The success stories at Google seem to always be in spite of Google rather than because of them.