Wall Street woes? Silicon Valley is hiring

I caught a great post by Claire Cain Miller on the New York Times' Bits blog last night about the upswing, so to speak, of the current economic crisis: that is, that if you can't keep a job on Wall Street, Silicon Valley will take you:

Laid off from your Wall Street job? East Coast venture capitalists and start-ups want you to know they are hiring.

Josh Kopelman at First Round Capital, a Philadelphia-area venture firm, started LeaveWallStreetJoinAStartup.com on Monday, after waking to hear the news that Lehman Brothers was filing for bankruptcy protection and Bank of America would buy Merrill Lynch. Like any good investor, he saw opportunity in the pain.

His plea to the 150,000 financial sector employees who could be laid off: “You might want to consider joining a start-up. These days, start-ups are more stable than Wall Street (seriously).”

More stable than Wall Street? I suppose so, given the recent news, and it's certainly known that Silicon Valley and Wall Street both compete for the highest level of brain power with regard to their employees. I guess it's a glass-half-full, glass-half-empty thing.

Of course, not all is created equal:

Of course, start-ups still cannot offer Wall Street’s annual bonuses, free meals and chauffeured cars. But Mr. Kopelman and Mr. Wilson listed some alternative benefits, like stock options, the chance to participate in the creation of something new and an escape from endless meetings and bureaucratic companies.

But hey, we can still dream, can't we? It's the workplace of the future: great workplace culture, rather than luxury perks.

What do you think? Should Silicon Valley hire Wall Street's réfusés? And what would you rather have: Wall Str

UPDATE: Fellow blogger Tom Foremski thinks the fallout from Wall Street will chill innovation in Silicon Valley.