← Back to context

Comment by kstrauser

2 days ago

When I've found myself being publicly tsk'ed by the people around me, I've taken a moment to try go figure out why they disapprove of what I'm saying. It's been a useful life exercise.

Sometimes you're right, sometimes they are. Sometimes, as the Rick & Morty quote goes, "Your boos mean nothing, I've seen what makes you cheer."

  • For sure, but then the followup question is "do I want to spend my time and energy around a bunch of people I think are wrong?'

    • Often times, you comment not to change the mind of the person you're replying to, but to provide a rebuttal for the readers at home. If nobody challenges problematic ideology or corrects misinformation, it can spread like a disease.

Shouldn't that be directed to those with an agenda who and are flagging certain posts?

Those of us who complain about this highly targeted flagging just want to avoid censorship. I can't see how we need to reflect on this.

  • Forums like this are "censored" and that's a really good thing. We don't need a steady stream of (for example) hate for women, minorities, and trans people that you see on truly uncensored forums.

    • This is correct. For the people who disagree, go read Slashdot at -1 for a while. Then pretend that you're one of the people who are targeted by that vitriol, and think about how much you'd read the HN comments if they were like that.

    • All illegal speech should be hidden from public discussion.

      However, it would be disconcerting if stating biological facts led to censorship on a forum that focusses on science and technology.

      The definition of "hate" has been stretched a lot over the last few years, and if that restricts discussion of facts and ideas, then it is harmful.

      7 replies →

  • They are flagging posts that they see as pushing an agenda. There isn’t some official separation of agenda-less and agenda-full ideas.

    • Posts that break guidelines should be flagged, and the bar should be pretty high.

      I don't think there is a guideline that bans posts from "pushing an agenda" (which would be very subjective)

      6 replies →

I don't think the person getting flagged is always deserving of the dogpile. Your comment implies "you should take this time in timeout to think about your actions" which is just a gentler form of rhetorical struggle sessions, and not always warranted.

  • For sure. I've had comments flagged that I thought were perfectly reasonable and non-controversial. My first reaction was to be angry and annoyed. But then my kinder angels suggested that perhaps I phrased my idea poorly and people misunderstood that I was largely agreeing with them, or at least very respectfully disagreeing. And then I decided to be more careful with my phrasing next time.