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A tech investor was fired after making offensive remarks on the Israel-Hamas conflict
Business Insider ^ | 11/14/2023 | By Shona Ghosh

Posted on 11/15/2023 2:16:29 PM PST by NohSpinZone

Venture capitalist Kenneth Ballenegger has been suspended from the US investment firm he cofounded, Oyster Ventures, after making offensive remarks on X on the Israel-Hamas conflict.

According to screenshots shared with Business Insider, Ballenegger wrote on Sunday: "After the war, Israel should handle Gaza like China handles Xinjiang. Full surveillance state. Re education camps. Sterilizations. It's warranted and the only way to pacify the jihadi population."

Responding to criticism from a former colleague, Ballenegger continued: "They reproduce like rabbits and raise them to be terrorists, creating more poverty misery and terrorism. Why should we allow that. The world would be a much better place if they didn't reproduce."

Ballenegger's X account was set to private at the time of writing, though not before his remarks were spotted and condemned by other users. The X posts also remain visible on Google search.

"Absolutely disgusting genocidal rhetoric from someone who apparently works in the VC world," wrote Yashar Ali, a widely followed US political journalist, on X.

Ballenegger's cofounding partner at Oyster Ventures, Sophie Liao, issued an initial statement on X distancing the company from his remarks. Liao did not initially condemn Ballenegger or suggest he would be fired.

"Any employee's personal or political opinion does not reflect the values of Oyster Ventures or myself. Oyster Ventures does not tolerate any behavior that disrespects individuals or groups of people," the statement read.

(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Constitution/Conservatism; Culture/Society; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: hamas; oyster; sterilization; vc
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Not defending this guy's comments whatsoever but it is interesting how quickly companies take action against anti-Palestinian comments vs. the other way. What he said was not cool though.


1 posted on 11/15/2023 2:16:29 PM PST by NohSpinZone
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To: NohSpinZone

Sterilizations was going too far, but Israel is going to have to govern them with an iron fist until they can repair the population.


2 posted on 11/15/2023 2:18:41 PM PST by Jonty30 (It turns out that I did not buy my cell phone for all the calls I might be missing at home.)
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To: NohSpinZone

I stand with Mr. Ballenegger.


3 posted on 11/15/2023 2:19:34 PM PST by Nervous Tick ("First the Saturday people, then the Sunday people...": ISLAM is the problem!)
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To: NohSpinZone

I’m not offended.


4 posted on 11/15/2023 2:21:14 PM PST by ArcadeQuarters (You can't remvove RINOs by voting for them!)
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To: NohSpinZone

The IDF has many excellent educators.

Their Arab pupils are generally lousy learners.


5 posted on 11/15/2023 2:23:43 PM PST by Brian Griffin
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To: Jonty30

>> Sterilizations was going too far,

I’m pro-choice in this matter. Give whatever males are left alive the choice of lethal injection or sterilization.

Making your conquered enemy into eunuchs is good governance that has stood the test of time. ๐Ÿ˜‰


6 posted on 11/15/2023 2:24:38 PM PST by Nervous Tick ("First the Saturday people, then the Sunday people...": ISLAM is the problem!)
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To: Nervous Tick

#metoo


7 posted on 11/15/2023 2:25:08 PM PST by moovova ("The NEXT election is the most important election of our lifetimes!โ€œ LOL...)
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To: NohSpinZone

“the only way to pacify the jihadi population”

Does his former employer have an alternate suggestion?


8 posted on 11/15/2023 2:26:25 PM PST by Brian Griffin
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To: NohSpinZone

This case, vs the Kurush Mistry case where he told someone Jewish to “go back to your country” will be good test cases of how employment discrimination and “hostile work environment” laws are applied.

My advice to conservatives: don’t get your hopes up.


9 posted on 11/15/2023 2:37:12 PM PST by Reverend Wright ( Everything touched by progressives, dies !)
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To: NohSpinZone

Stop being disingenuous. The media is full of stories of people being fired for anti-Israeli / Jewish comments. This is one from just today.

https://nypost.com/2023/11/15/news/wall-street-banker-fired-after-telling-jewish-man-to-go-back-to-your-country/

This is literally the first story i’ve seen of someone being fired for Anti-Palestinian comments.


10 posted on 11/15/2023 2:39:05 PM PST by bigdaddy45
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To: NohSpinZone

Nothing he said was untruthful.


11 posted on 11/15/2023 2:46:04 PM PST by falcon99 ( )
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To: NohSpinZone

The thing is, there is a model for how to deal with Gaza within (barely) living memory. How did we deal with Germany and Japan after the war? First of all, we beat the living crap out of them, so that messing with us again didn’t look that good, even to the hard core.

We put their leaders on trial for war crimes/crimes against humanity and after they were found guilty we hanged them. Lesser figures got lesser prison sentences. We purged their education system of Nazism/Japanese expansionism, and modeled democratic ideas.

Was it perfect? Hardly. But how much trouble have Japan and Germany given us lately?


12 posted on 11/15/2023 2:47:00 PM PST by hanamizu ( )
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To: ArcadeQuarters

Makes sense to me.


13 posted on 11/15/2023 2:56:31 PM PST by Hiddigeigei ("Talk sense to a fool and he calls you foolish," said Dionysus - Euripides)
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To: ArcadeQuarters

Makes sense to me.


14 posted on 11/15/2023 3:23:26 PM PST by Hiddigeigei ("Talk sense to a fool and he calls you foolish," said Dionysus - Euripides)
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To: falcon99

“Nothing he said was untruthful.”

He was wrong when he said it would pacify the jihadi population.


15 posted on 11/15/2023 3:24:19 PM PST by TexasGator
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To: Jonty30

no need for Sterilizations if they are all dead.


16 posted on 11/15/2023 3:24:52 PM PST by TexasFreeper2009
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To: NohSpinZone

He didn’t say anything that isn’t true. I think ethnic cleansing of all Arab Muslims from Gaza would be a better solution.


17 posted on 11/15/2023 3:33:43 PM PST by FLT-bird
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To: NohSpinZone
A tech investor was fired after making offensive true remarks on the Israel-Hamas conflict

fixed it

18 posted on 11/15/2023 3:40:24 PM PST by kiryandil (China Joe and Paycheck Hunter - the Chink in America's defenses)
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To: hanamizu

To accomplish this, we would need to make Islam illegal.


19 posted on 11/15/2023 3:40:30 PM PST by SauronOfMordor (Either you will rule. Or you will be ruled. There is no other choice.)
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To: NohSpinZone

His comments are one hundred percent accurate. I donโ€™t see the problem


20 posted on 11/15/2023 4:36:46 PM PST by Nifster ( I see puppy dogs in the clouds )
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