'The Just-Say-No Engineer Was a ZIRP Phenomenon' — Sean Goedecke Essay Hits r/programming

r/programming·medium signal

GitHub engineer Sean Goedecke's essay argues that engineers who built reputations on saying 'no' to projects thrived during ZIRP (zero interest rate policy, 2008-2022) when companies hired abundantly for low-risk projects. Post-ZIRP, these engineers face pressure to lower standards as AI-generated code floods in from managers and VPs who are 'politically difficult to say no to.' The essay drew 64 upvotes on r/programming and lively discussion on Lobsters about shifting engineering culture.