> I have come to think these exercises are is a test of supplication, and of whether you can convincingly and competitively debase yourself better than your next peer.

I sold you and you sold me under the spreading chestnut tree.

In corporate environments, more often than one would hope, one runs into an extortionist gatekeeper who just wants their ego placated. But that HR story...what's horrifying is that they probably thought they were really helping.