Master/Slave

Originally posted by Trexter Ziam
Texas IS a fire at will state. Anything except discrimination can get you the pink slip.

Could it be argued that by firing her at the mere mention of possible racial offense is discrimination.

My personal opinion is that it's a small fix to make an employee happy. There aren't that many employees at the company, and not many who would make a big deal about things. And, since the fix only took 4 guys about a day to fix, no big whoop.

The moment the company becomes a hard ass about these things is the moment that the employees thoughts and opinions don't matter anymore. And, what's the point of hiring the best and the brightest if you're not going to listen to their opinions.

Although the company would likely win any lawsuit, it would still cost more to litigate the process than to just make the change. Not only would it cost more, but it would humiliate everyone involved and the press would have a field day.

Past that, I don't see what the big deal was about the u/p combination, but then again it could be because of my experience with computers. However, I could see how someone who doesn't have any computer experience could see Master/Slave as a bad joke by someone with a slightly racist sense of humor.

In the end, the password has been changed to something easier to remember and more secure. The user is happy, IS is happy, HR is happy and I'm just a day behind at work. And, the people the most upset about the incident are on a forum message board. For some reason, I think that's really funny.

Originally posted by Rasobasi420

And, the people the most upset about the incident are on a forum message board. For some reason, I think that's really funny.

Can we slap you now?

I'm glad we aren't controlled by the PC police down here in Texas.

Heh, ever since I first learned of the master/slave designation of harddrives I've been waiting to hear something like this.
Maybe the person found it offensive because of the insinuation that as a employee they are slaves? Eh. It's still rediculouse.

Originally posted by RuneSpider
Heh, ever since I first learned of the master/slave designation of harddrives I've been waiting to hear something like this.

Automotive industry - brakes - master and slave cylinders.

Electronics - the male or female receptacles. Let's yell "sexist!"

Heck, I bet you could make an entire thread on just industry-related words that might be targeted by the PC police.

I remember reading about something like this years ago on Slashdot:

Slashdot | L.A. County Bans Use Of "Master/Slave" Term

The possibility of a lawsuit is very real -- here's the memo:

Subject: IDENTIFICATION OF EQUIPMENT SOLD TO LA COUNTY
Date: Tue, 18 Nov 2003 14:21:16 -0800
From: "Los Angeles County"

The County of Los Angeles actively promotes and is committed to ensure a work environment that is free from any discriminatory influence be it actual or perceived. As such, it is the County's expectation that our manufacturers, suppliers and contractors make a concentrated effort to ensure that any equipment, supplies or services that are provided to County departments do not possess or portray an image that may be construed as offensive or defamatory in nature.

One such recent example included the manufacturer's labeling of equipment where the words "Master/Slave" appeared to identify the primary and secondary sources. Based on the cultural diversity and sensitivity of Los Angeles County, this is not an acceptable identification label.

We would request that each manufacturer, supplier and contractor review, identify and remove/change any identification or labeling of equipment or components thereof that could be interpreted as discriminatory or offensive in nature before such equipment is sold or otherwise provided to any County department.

Thank you in advance for your cooperation and assistance.

Joe Sandoval, Division Manager
Purchasing and Contract Services
Internal Services Department
County of Los Angeles

Here's a CNN article:

'Master' and 'slave' computer labels unacceptable, officials say

Edit: Though the Slashdot title says they 'banned' it, the CNN article says they didn't, they just strongly discourage it. Dunno about the current status, though (the articles are from 2003).


[edit on 30-5-2008 by Ian McLean]

reply to post by Ian McLean


Boy, we have grown into a nation of spoiled brats haven't we? OOPS! Politically incorrect! I started that sentence with the word "boy"!

Originally posted by Trexter Ziam
Boy, we have grown into a nation of spoiled brats haven't we? OOPS! Politically incorrect! I started that sentence with the word "boy"!

Yea, really -- what's next? Should we ban all male/female connectors on power cords, equipment cables, etc? They discriminate against the transgendered! Wall sockets should each have one prong and one socket, and they should be reversible!

Seriously, though, this really is bad engineering -- the same mentality that gives no thought to user experience makes hardware and software that is impossible for a normal person to use effectively, with informationally useless failure states such as the "Blue Screen of Death".

reply to post by Rasobasi420


if she is offened,give her the job of changing the files herself. i have always seen this kind of attitude as the most common form of racism. you have to be racist to think like that IMHO.

I will turn your face to alabaster

When you find your servant is your master