Rarely does news of a multi-billion dollar company firing one of its mid-level employees make headlines.

Then again, rarely are employees fired for merely politely expressing their opinion, either.

However, in today’s world, where everything from the movies we watch to the type of coffee we purchase in the morning is considered a political statement, both of these facts came true this week.

On Monday, the technology juggernaut Google fired one of its engineers, James Damore, after a memo he had written explaining why he believed the company had created a left-wing echo chamber among its ranks was leaked to the media. The document, which he had originally directed to several employees inside the company, was excoriated by many, who took offense to his claims that the company’s unequal balance of men and women employees could be explained not by sexism in the workplace, but by general behavioral and biological differences between the sexes.

Leaders with Google decried Damore’s arguments, claiming they perpetuated harmful stereotypes about women in technology. The company’s CEO released a statement saying the terminated engineer’s views were “offensive” and “not OK.”

Anyone who actually read Damore’s document would find his views hardly resembled ramblings of misogynistic male chauvinist. He said repeatedly in his paper that he supported the company’s efforts to recruit more women and ethnic minorities, and even suggested ways that the company could address the barriers to women entering the fast-paced and competitive world in Silicon Valley.

However, for his Milquetoast opinion, Damore was given his marching orders — ultimately proving his point that Google’s culture actively discourages its employees from expressing opinions outside approved polices of the progressive-wing of the American left.

Does Google have the right to terminate employees whose politics lie outside the rest of the company? Yes.

But for a company that claims to be pro-diversity to fire people for having the “wrong” opinions actually flies in the face of that mission.

What good does having employees from every conceivable ethnic and cultural background among your ranks when they all share the same set of beliefs, if for no other reason than going against the grain will get them tossed out the front door?

If Damore had insulted his female coworkers or acted belligerent to his superiors than yes, can him. But we believe that a company that fires employees for their thoughts and not their actions is hardly a place worth working for, and will eventually lead to trouble down the line.

Hopefully whatever job Damore lands next has a more enlightened attitude toward diversity than his last employer does.

Opinions expressed are those of the editorial board consisting of General Manager Ambrosia Neldon and editors Scott Novak and Ted Yoakum.