DFighter Posted July 17, 2016 Share Posted July 17, 2016 145 tech power players penned an open letter to the world about Donald Trump. "We have listened to Donald Trump over the past year and we have concluded: Trump would be a disaster for innovation," they wrote in a Medium post posted thursday The authors of the letter hail from some of tech's most powerful companies like Google Facebook and Apple as well as startups, venture capital firms, nonprofits and universities. "We believe in an inclusive country that fosters opportunity, creativity and a level playing field. Donald Trump does not," reads the letter, which was signed by well-known names like Apple cofounder Steve Wozniak, , IAC 's Barry Diller, and Wikipedia's Jimmy Wales. A disclaimer at the bottom notes that their views don't reflect those of their companies. The authors take issue with Trump's "anger, bigotry, fear of new ideas and new people," calling out specific examples, including his stance on immigration. Trump's immigration believes are in clear opposition to those of many Silicon Valley leaders, who havepushed for comprehensive immigration reform to keep foreign founders in the U.S. Roughly 50% of the country's "unicorns" -- or private companies valued at $1 billion or more -- have at least one immigration founder. "His reckless disregard for our legal and political institutions threatens to upend what attracts companies to start and scale in America. He risks distorting markets, reducing exports, and slowing job creation," reads the letter, which was published by Katie Jacobs Stanton, chief marketing officer at Color Genomics and a former VP at Twitter . Moreover, Trump has shown "poor judgment and ignorance about how technology works," they wrote, citing his proposal to "shut down" parts of the Internet and the fact that he has revoked reporters' press credentials. In May, Trump said that there was a tech bubble "We stand against Donald Trump's divisive candidacy," the letter concludes. "We embrace an optimistic vision for a more inclusive country, where American innovation continues to fuel opportunity, prosperity and leadership." It's not the first time tech leaders have spoken out against Trump. In June, Sam Altham called out the candidate for his "casual racism, misogyny, and conspiracy theories." He asked others in the tech industry to speak out about their political beliefs. "'The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing'" Altman quoted a famous saying in his post. "This would be a good time for us all -- even Republicans, especially Republican politicians who previously endorsed Trump -- to start speaking up." CNNMoney (New York)First published July 14, 2016: 12:58 PM ETsource:http://money.cnn.com/2016/07/14/technology/tech-industry-open-letter-trump/index.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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