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Was this just taken off the HN front page?

tptacek 10y ago
Almost definitely not; rather, the post was probably flagged by users. This happens all the time, and your question is a very common one.
- jondubois 10y ago
  'Flagged by users' - Interesting. Do some of these users happen to be friends with 'Jacob Appelbaum'? I understand, the whole system is rigged to praise rock stars and screw the plumbers.
  - tptacek 10y ago
    No. Not only don't they, but that argument (that a thread or story is being propelled in some direction by shillage) is per se uncivil on HN. You're not allowed to make it at all. It turns out to be one of our better rules. People flag stories for all sorts of reasons on HN. Some people don't want non-tech or political or current-events stories of any sort on the front page. Some people don't want to see threads descend into the inevitably shitshows that these threads descend into. Some people disagree with the story. If you think something's been flagged unfairly, rather than litigating it on the threads, you should mail hn@ycombinator.com. We have one of the more reasonable moderation teams on the Internet here, but they can't be everywhere all at once.
  - throwllll 10y ago
    I flag (using my non-throaway account) any article that only results in mob-and-pitchfork style discussion. Many comments in here are advocating that we should abandon the court and justice system (because its unfair to the victim, its too high requirements for conviction, ectra) in favor of just punishing the assumed guilty. I will keep flagging stories like this as long as that opinion still runs popular.
    - tptacek 10y ago
      Flagging stories because you think they're off-topic for HN, or should be because of the threads they'll create, is legit. Using the flag button as a downvote button for stories you disagree with, while allowing stories on the same topics you do agree with, is an abuse.
      - throwllll 10y ago
        I find mob-and-pitchfork style of threads and articles to be off-topic for HN. If someone posted an article about one of the accusers of JA and creating a mob-and-pitchfork threads against them, I would flag it equally the same as this one. If the only purpose of the submission is to attack people (see attack articles on Wikipedia for definition and concept), then its fail the first HN rule for the threads it will create, ie its not civil to have mob-and-pitchfork threads and its not something anyone would say in a face-to-face conversation with the accused or accuser. In a previous article discussion about JA, someone compared him to hitler. Do you think they would be perfectly fine say that in person? >> any article that only results in mob-and-pitchfork style discussion > "while allowing stories on the same topics you do agree with" If topic == mob-and-pitchfork; goto flag-article(). How could I have been be more clear in previous comment? All, any, and regardless if I like the person being attacked or not, I do not find such article to be civil and productive for discussion. I don't even find it productive for social change, as all it does is raising the tone and driving out those that social campaigns tries to convince. Left are those that are already convinces that they are right, flaming against each other.

Almost definitely not; rather, the post was probably flagged by users. This happens all the time, and your question is a very common one.

jondubois 10y ago
'Flagged by users' - Interesting. Do some of these users happen to be friends with 'Jacob Appelbaum'? I understand, the whole system is rigged to praise rock stars and screw the plumbers.
- tptacek 10y ago
  No. Not only don't they, but that argument (that a thread or story is being propelled in some direction by shillage) is per se uncivil on HN. You're not allowed to make it at all. It turns out to be one of our better rules. People flag stories for all sorts of reasons on HN. Some people don't want non-tech or political or current-events stories of any sort on the front page. Some people don't want to see threads descend into the inevitably shitshows that these threads descend into. Some people disagree with the story. If you think something's been flagged unfairly, rather than litigating it on the threads, you should mail hn@ycombinator.com. We have one of the more reasonable moderation teams on the Internet here, but they can't be everywhere all at once.
- throwllll 10y ago
  I flag (using my non-throaway account) any article that only results in mob-and-pitchfork style discussion. Many comments in here are advocating that we should abandon the court and justice system (because its unfair to the victim, its too high requirements for conviction, ectra) in favor of just punishing the assumed guilty. I will keep flagging stories like this as long as that opinion still runs popular.
  - tptacek 10y ago
    Flagging stories because you think they're off-topic for HN, or should be because of the threads they'll create, is legit. Using the flag button as a downvote button for stories you disagree with, while allowing stories on the same topics you do agree with, is an abuse.
    - throwllll 10y ago
      I find mob-and-pitchfork style of threads and articles to be off-topic for HN. If someone posted an article about one of the accusers of JA and creating a mob-and-pitchfork threads against them, I would flag it equally the same as this one. If the only purpose of the submission is to attack people (see attack articles on Wikipedia for definition and concept), then its fail the first HN rule for the threads it will create, ie its not civil to have mob-and-pitchfork threads and its not something anyone would say in a face-to-face conversation with the accused or accuser. In a previous article discussion about JA, someone compared him to hitler. Do you think they would be perfectly fine say that in person? >> any article that only results in mob-and-pitchfork style discussion > "while allowing stories on the same topics you do agree with" If topic == mob-and-pitchfork; goto flag-article(). How could I have been be more clear in previous comment? All, any, and regardless if I like the person being attacked or not, I do not find such article to be civil and productive for discussion. I don't even find it productive for social change, as all it does is raising the tone and driving out those that social campaigns tries to convince. Left are those that are already convinces that they are right, flaming against each other.