De-Bug: Voices from the Underside of Silicon Valley

by Raj Jayadev

Stories of the dot-com boom-from everyone but the techies

No shuttle buses De-Bug, a new collection of true stories from the social justice organization of the same name, shows a side of working in Silicon Valley that you won't read about in the business section. As tech moguls land the cover of Forbes, the South Bay's working class is making ends meet as metal scrappers, factory workers, club bouncers, hairstylists, rickshaw drivers, ice cream cart pushers. The stories in De-Bug are poignant, often very funny accounts of bootstrapping in the land of angel investors and thought leaders. A construction worker predicts which of his customers are about to strike it rich and which are on the edge of bankruptcy based on the states of their swimming pools. A "secondhand hustler" travels the garage sale-flea market circuit in search of treasures to resell online. A temp worker at a medical device manufacturer sells his blood, at the company's request, to test the equipment. These storytellers are frank when discussing their own flaws, but are equally up-front about the rigged system in which they operate.

Disruptive in the truest sense of the word, De-Bug offers valuable insight into California's latest boomtown.

145 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 5, 2016

Reviews

[Lavanya · Rating 5 out of 5]

So much perspective! I wish more people read this. These are real life stories from people who are probably going to bear the brunt of the the AI and robotics wave.

Many of them simply want an engaging, respectable way to earn a steady income, some are juggling school and multiple physically demanding jobs, several express a desire to pursue more education. One of the stories was about someone who salvaged metal scraps from landfills, and I was surprised to see that one of the things that kept her going was cleaning up the earth, a motivation that I thought was reserved for people who were well off enough to care.

Makes me wonder,
- why are they (especially Safeway employees, janitors, restaurant/ cafeteria/ coffee shop workers) paid so much less for physically demanding work that keeps the world running (unlike employees of many software companies whose value would go to nada as soon as every one turns off their smartphones and laptops.)
- given that many of these steady jobs too are being threatened, what can we do to reduce the barrier to entry for the remaining jobs? Does a software engineer really need four years of college? Could a trade school plus on the job training provide the same qualifications with a cost structure that everyone can afford.

Need to read this again and again

[carmen! · Rating 4 out of 5]

i'm glad i read this book because it's good to remember how different people's lives can be even when they're living right next to me.

also now i know about this really interesting organization that was behind writing this book, "silicon valley de-bug".

[Gregory P · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick read. Worked here long? Socialized? Some if these stories you will have met on their journey. Others are a great perspective to share to help understand whom you interact with all the time.

[Gayle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book gives you the stories about companies (some big, some small) from the people who are or have worked there. It also tells how these people have survived and struggled along the way. It is a very interesting book because this is in their own words and not sugar-coated by a company or business trying to look good. It's published by Heyday which according to the book is an independent nonprofit publisher.
I got this for free in a Goodreads Giveaway drawing.

[Elaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Personal stories of CostCo stockers, hairdressers, paleteros, factory workers and others whose voices are usually marginalized or muted by the loud-spoken techies of Silicon Valley. Told with humor, compassion, and wit.