When outsourcing goes bad, part 10 of 16
The Taj Mahal was built with blood
Since it was rare for everyone to get together in Boston, a dinner was organized. We went to a restaurant, I forget the name, a local place that was similar in style to an Applebees or a TGIF but perhaps because it was local the waiters were more willing to accommodate a request that several tables be pushed together. As there were 15 of us, they rearranged the main room for us.
I was sitting on one side of the table. Across from me was Arwin, and then Stratton, and then Lucy. And then this conversation happens:
Arwin: So, Lucy, you were in India, did they take you to see the Taj Mahal?
Lucy: Yes, we went out there. It was really fascinating. Not as big as I thought, but the detail work was really beautiful.
Arwin: So, you heard the story? The Emperor built it for his wife, who had died in childbirth.
Lucy: Yes, they told us. And they used the white marble, from nearby quarries. It's said to be the hardest marble in the world.
Arwin: But they were going to build a second tomb.
Lucy: That's right, they were going to import a black marble from Europe. I'm not sure of the symbolism. Black and white. But that never happened.
Arwin: The project stalled, and then he died.
Lucy: Right, our tour guide told us. You were there too?
Arwin: I went over there about 7 years ago, and DevModeMax took me to all of the major sites, including the Taj Mahal. I thought the architecture was an incredible achievement for the times, but what stuck with me was the history of what happened afterwards. The crazy thing is, when it was completed, the Emperor was dazzled by the craftsmanship, but he was also jealous of that craftsmanship, and so he didn't want the workers to build another tomb like that for any other prince. So he rounded up all of the workers and he had his soldiers cut off their hands.
Lucy: Yes, I heard that. Can you imagine? It's just horrifying.
Arwin: I mean, what kind of reward is that? These workers do this amazing work, year after year, they create something incredible, something that dazzles the whole world, and what is their reward?
Lucy: I can't imagine that kind of psychology. He should have been grateful.
Arwin: By our standards today, he should have been grateful. By our moral understanding of the universe, he should have been grateful. But that’s not how they thought back then. They thought an Emperor should never be grateful for anything, nor to anyone. Being grateful to someone suggests that you recognize that they are human. He couldn’t allow that, it would undercut his prestige as an Emperor.
Lucy: As they say, power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
Arwin: But can you imagine what the process is? How does absolute power effect the human mind? What is it about power that allows a person to get to that point, that they can cut off the hands of thousands of people, to protect their own prestige?
Lucy: The problem is when you need other people, but you’re in a position where you cannot allow yourself to admit that you need other people.
Arwin: When you need other people? I guess that’s the thing about power, the way it convinces you that you don’t need other people. And I suppose that's the reason the black tomb never got built? I mean, who would want to work for him after that? Can you imagine? He starts asking for workers to build a new tomb, and everyone is like, uh, no thank you, we know what happens when people do good work for you.
Lucy: He shattered any trust that might have existed. I'm sure that's why workers avoided him after that.
Arwin: I think so. That's why he wasn't able to build anything any more.
So... this conversation is going on, and poor Stratton is sitting in the middle of them, looking more and more miserable. And, if you’ll forgive the metaphor, I was thinking that this story of the Emperor, the abuse of power, the shattering of trust, in some ways resembled what Arwin had done to the old team at Luganesk: they had done amazing work and he punished them for it. And I think poor Stratton was sitting there and thinking the same thing. But I don't think Arwin realized how much his words applied to himself. Or maybe he did. The idea of having that kind of absolute power clearly fascinated him.
Read the whole series:
1. But what do these glib little bullet points mean?
2. When the CTO does not trust their own team
3. Everyone is under pressure, everyone is too busy to help
4. They lie. They lie flagrantly. They lie all of the time, about everything.
5. That place is a total sweatshop!
7. I am very, very proud of you. The work you are doing is amazing.
8. I blame you. You suck. You are the problem.
9. We just got $10,000 dollars!!!!
10. The Taj Mahal was built with blood
12. Where are my story points, Gujurat?
13. We are the best people to help him, so why doesn't he want our help?
14. Should a toilet be listed as an amenity?
15. I am simply telling you how things work in India
16. Too big to fail: when you've no option but to brazen it out