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I agree there may be a collective action problem here. Being the first individual to follow this practice may be individually harmful, even though having a cult

I agree there may be a collective action problem here. Being the first individual to follow this practice may be individually harmful, even though having a culture where everyone does it would be collectively beneficial. I suppose one way to jump start things would be for some forward thinking company that wants to have a solid tech culture should proactively hire elitists.

AnimalMuppet 10y ago
First: No, having a culture where everyone does it would not be beneficial. It would be a culture of groupthink, where "right thinking" individuals shame everyone else for not thinking the right things, and everyone else joins in, not because they think the ideas are right, but to avoid being shamed. If you've been watching political correctness on college campuses, it ought to be clear why this is not collectively beneficial. Second: If you're the first individual to follow this practice, it's not harmful to you (other than turning you into a snob who acts like a jerk). It's harmful to what you're trying to achieve. It makes it take longer to get to the point where you have people using languages you regard as superior, because they avoid talking to you. "Pompous jerk alert; run away! Don't get any of that on you!" That doesn't make it easier to persuade people that the languages you advocate are good on their merits. Instead, show people why the languages you like are better. Actually listen when they disagree; they may have more of a point than you know.