ITH Poker Forum

[Fenris78]

So guys, I am going to join the workforce next year. Now I got a question about a job offer I got. The woman got my info over my internet profile and phoned me yesterday and we talked a bit. They are looking for physicists/engineers, ideally with an Ph.D., and the offer sounded really nice. It's in the R&D department and the work itself would be very challenging and also very interesting, mostly optoelectronics. The salary would be quite a bit over average and the company itself has won several awards from the Great Place to Work Institute. Sounds great, so what's the drawback? The company is developing missile systems. And I really don't know whether I develop stuff that is exclusively used to kill people. Hope that doesn't sound crazy, but I am a quite peaceful guy and I wouldn't ever have considered working for the arms industry. Still the job offer is very tempting. What would you do? Raise, call or fold?

[Bullajami]

Presumably you're not being offered a job in Iran or North Korea, right?

I don't know that anyone but the man-in-the-mirror can answer your question. I have made peace with my role as war profiteer, but I can't speak for you or anyone else.

[Dogs]

I may be a little naive, but I was under the impression that missiles are also used in defence systems (for example, if some ne'er-do-well fires a missile at people, someone else might fire a missile at the first missile to destroy it before it does any killing).

Another question you might ask yourself is whether the area you'd be working in would bring advancements that could benefit the greater good. Perhaps clutching at straws and possibly kidding yourself, but I'm not going to pretend to know where else you might apply optoelectronics.

[leofric]

Having worked somewhere "similar" although only in finance I can add that a lot of what ends up being developed in the name of the military does end up with benefits in the civilian world. Thermal imaging cameras were developed to aid night combat but ended up saving lives finding people buried in earthquakes etc.

[kinnipak]

First I will have to google "optoelectronics" and find out what the hell that is...

I hate the thought of war and innocent lives being harmed. But there will ALWAYS be conflict among nations on our world. It is a long proven historical fact. Unless some Trekian-like Utopia forms in the future, I believe that having and needing a form of self defense for one's nation will be needed to some degree.

The worst thing you can do is bring a knife to a gunfight...

If I were in your shoes, I don't think I would have a problem being a part of such a company.

Besides, if it gets to the point where missiles are being fired, there will probably be bigger problems to worry about..

[darvon]

I also have been employed in war profiteering. Seriously, if you have strong objections to these types of company, you probably already know you do.

If you don't know, you probably don' t have much of a problem with it.

There aren't any hidden justifications. The issues are pretty straightforward.

[Fenris78]

Thanks for the thoughts. First of all, we are talking about both defense and attack missiles. And just as an explanation, "optoelectronics" is only a technical term for several very well known devices, such as light-emitting diodes, photodiodes, photoresistors or laser-diodes. You just need to know a bit about semi-conductors and a bit about optics. In missile systems optoelectronics are used as guidance systems.

[toom]

Improve the optics of a missile, increase its accuracy, limit collateral damage. The missiles are no less likely to be fired in due course whether you take the job or not. If you save one life of an innocent person because your work made that missile somewhat more accurate, well then...

Good luck with your decision and career.