> “Microsoft Corp. board members decided that Bill Gates needed to step down from its board in 2020 as they pursued an investigation into the billionaire’s prior romantic relationship with a female Microsoft employee that was deemed inappropriate, people familiar with the matter said.”
Would you say the same if you were in the back of a police patrol car and the officer “asked” you to have sex with them? The problem isn’t that they had sex. It is that someone in a position of power misused their power with an “implication”.
Like someone at Google said to one of the co-founders (don’t want to name names, I’m going by memory from what I read online so probably not accurate) “they are your employees to work, not to fuck”.
There was no abuse of power here as far as we know from the article. Again, if eating, recreation etc are ok, fucking should be as well. Basic human need, absolutely normal.
> Ms. French Gates had been working with lawyers at several firms since at least 2019 to unwind the marriage
Also this:
> Members of the Microsoft board became aware in late 2019 of the letter from the female engineer, who demanded changes to her Microsoft job and also shared details of her relationship with Mr. Gates
The affair happened around 2000, and supposedly ended shortly after, but the timing of their divorce and Gates stepping down from the boards of Microsoft and Berkshire Hathaway on the same day in 2019 seems more than just a coincidence.
Yes, in the big picture. IANAS ("...not a Sociologist"), but there seems to be an unspoken social rule that "the usual" sexual misbehaviors of an alpha male are pretty much ignored, so long as (1) his wife quietly tolerates them, and (2) no other alpha wants them aired. In this case - Mrs. Gates' filing for divorce made him fair game. Hence the recent deluge of stories about Mr. Gates' (seemingly) many and varied transgressions, stretching back decades.
(I could speculate that this social rule is due to too many romantic dreamers not wanting their fantasies spoiled, other alphas and alpha wanna-be's not wanting "the usual" perks of that status lost, etc. But again, IANAS:)
Yeah I don’t feel like meeting someone at work is automatically a problem (although it’s still a potential landmine). Attempting to start a relationship someone at work when you’re already married is more of a problem.
> A spokeswoman for Mr. Gates said, “There was an affair almost 20 years ago which ended amicably.” She said his “decision to transition off the board was in no way related to this matter. In fact, he had expressed an interest in spending more time on his philanthropy starting several years earlier.”
Bill’s done a lot of stuff that I think is pretty horrible, but could be kinda justified from a business perspective, like embrace, extend, extinguish. But for me, the thing that has always branded him as an irredeemable asshole on a personal level was when he tried to reduce Paul Allen’s share in Microsoft upon learning that he had cancer. I just literally cannot conceive of a “good person” even being able to take that kind of action.
Convicted sex offender Epstein and Bill Gates started hanging out in 2011, three years after Epstein pleaded guilty to soliciting prostitution from a minor. It is known that Melinda Gates wasn't exactly happy about her husband spending so much time with a sex offender and there is speculation that this is why their marriage ended.
I'm kind of happy for him, the wife seemed kind of like she was in it for the money and I'm glad he got a moment of human love or lust before dying on his pile of money.
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[ 3.5 ms ] story [ 87.5 ms ] threadEDIT: Found the same article content elsewhere: https://outline.com/B8P42Z
Who are “people familiar with the matter”?
https://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/24100/what-is-t...
Like someone at Google said to one of the co-founders (don’t want to name names, I’m going by memory from what I read online so probably not accurate) “they are your employees to work, not to fuck”.
> Ms. French Gates had been working with lawyers at several firms since at least 2019 to unwind the marriage
Also this:
> Members of the Microsoft board became aware in late 2019 of the letter from the female engineer, who demanded changes to her Microsoft job and also shared details of her relationship with Mr. Gates
The affair happened around 2000, and supposedly ended shortly after, but the timing of their divorce and Gates stepping down from the boards of Microsoft and Berkshire Hathaway on the same day in 2019 seems more than just a coincidence.
(I could speculate that this social rule is due to too many romantic dreamers not wanting their fantasies spoiled, other alphas and alpha wanna-be's not wanting "the usual" perks of that status lost, etc. But again, IANAS:)
20 years ago. Jeez.
That is when it began, not when it ended.
I had assumed he was an asshole when it came to biz stuff, but now it’s clear he’s been hiding his personal assholishness pretty well.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.forbes.com/sites/fredericka...
https://archive.is/Q9Z2w
"Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power."