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DH0, upvoted to 5 (while my comments are 0 and -1): http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2138625 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2138625 This was my first d

by nika 16y ago

DH0, upvoted to 5 (while my comments are 0 and -1): http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2138625 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2138625 This was my first day. I stuck around for a day or two, then I just logged out and stopped participating. Just use this as a site to find links, and when you're not logged in there's no incentive to go see what people said in reply to you, and no focus on karma score or anything. I don't know if the site requires a certain level of karma to submit new items, but I don't really feel like submitting things here when I don't feel like they'll get a fair shake. (There were good discussions on some of my other comments, but another one where it became clear that I no real discussion was possible because of ideology combined with the "fucking idiot" comment were enough to have me stop participating. This is just FYI. I'd love for there to be a place to have good discussions with people. I don't know how to make HN that place, and so I'm just going to use it as a source of articles to read. I think all news sites that allow downvoting end up operating as a sort of "smear the queer" system for punishing people who have a minority viewpoint, without regard to how well they articulate it or even what they are actually saying (in some cases.) Edit: Yes this topic got me to log in, and I'll be logging out now. I don't really want to debate the topic that I got attacked over, as my original comment was actually trying to defend someone else's perspective. Please whether you agree with me or not, take this as "market feedback" of what a new user experienced, and why I'm not participating. Maybe I have thin skin in your opinion, that's fine. Maybe I'm way too wordy to participate on a site like this! That's fine too.

yummyfajitas 16y ago
I'd suggest not viewing karma as the reward, but rather your influence. Ad-hominem attacks and downvotes are typically a response to cognitive dissonance - your argument or facts forced someone to rethink views they are emotionally attached to, and they don't like it. You received at least 3 upvotes, and earl received 4. (Actually, most likely you both received a mix of both upvotes and downvotes.) Since I seriously doubt that those are coming from the same people, you influenced 7 people in some way. You made 4 people uncomfortable about their views, but they were unable to rationally respond. That pushes them a little closer to changing their views. Well done.
- asinination 16y ago
  but they were unable to rationally respond There is an exceptionally large gap between not being able to respond, and not thinking it's a good use of one's time. My experience is that expressing contrary opinions on HN, even well-reasoned and considered ones, is a recipe for getting [dead]'d. As such, many wise people don't bother.
- nika 16y ago
  Thanks to you and "TheAmazingIdiot" (ugh, his name makes me call him a name, the delima!) for the feedback. I'm going to try sticking around a bit.
TheAmazingIdiot 16y ago
I have seen similar objections to my comments, along with the downvotes. Just as yummyfajitas said, if you evoke cognitive dissonance or frankly mess with peoples' worldview, they will downvote you. It matters not if you are discussing in a matters of science or otherwise. Meditation seems to be a popular thing here on HN, given the amount of "Zen", "Meditation", Buddhism, and other Eastern topics. One of my specialities is specifically Yoga, Tantra, and Tibetan Buddhism. Meditation is a key part of these practices, as is other spiritual and religious work. However, the disjoin I witness here is although meditation is seen as good benefit, anything spiritual and/or religious is downvoted to oblivion. One of the first lessons in proper meditation is shielding, yet the naysayers come out in droves. The Hindus have fond Asana to deal with the itches and movements when trying to meditate. Tumo was developed by the ascetic monks in the Tibetan mountains to generate massive amounts of body heat. Reincarnation, in Tibet, is not seen as some religious belief but as a fact of life. This is to the point that payments can be arranged between lifetimes. I can discuss these techniques at length, as well as do some of them. I'm still learning and do not claim to be any sort of master. However, if these people want to learn about meditation, they better as well know how meditation fails, what happens when you succeed, and pitfalls thereof. Yet when I mention, there are a few who are genuinely curious, and a majority who -1.
- Natsu 16y ago
  > Reincarnation, in Tibet, is not seen as some religious belief but as a fact of life. This is to the point that payments can be arranged between lifetimes. I just have to know how that works. How are you supposed to find the guy's reincarnation to get paid? Or do they pay your reincarnation?
  - TheAmazingIdiot 16y ago
    Not quite. You're thinking of payments as in money or other monetary goods. There are other types of payment and contracts that can be done that are out of the scope of goods. And that is time. If chosen, one can make a binding contract that trades time for something. For example, I could agree to protect a friend for the rest of this life and of the next we meet for something. Gurus make similar agreements about being a teacher as well. Usually a guru agreement is binding until otherwise broken. And life usually puts us back in contact, even in other lives. Now, our relationship can (and usually does) change, but we will almost always meet them. The show and movie Avatar the Last Airbender is very similar how the Dalai Lama is actually chosen. In the Dalai Lama's case, they are shown about a hundred objects, 3 of which belong to the last reincarnation. The TV show shows 4 objects that respond unnaturally (the 4 being representatives of wind/water/fire/earth). It is also in the Dalai Lama's case that he is also to choose people who was in his cabinet prior to his reincarnation, as there is only a few years between the death and life. This step is also proof of who he is. The search usually goes on 2 weeks after his death, in which the world is searched for his new incarnation. And in the case of the Dalai Lama, what makes his so important is that he is seen as the Avatar of Chenrezig (the Patron God of Tibet).

by nika 16y ago

yummyfajitas 16y ago

I'd suggest not viewing karma as the reward, but rather your influence. Ad-hominem attacks and downvotes are typically a response to cognitive dissonance - your argument or facts forced someone to rethink views they are emotionally attached to, and they don't like it. You received at least 3 upvotes, and earl received 4. (Actually, most likely you both received a mix of both upvotes and downvotes.) Since I seriously doubt that those are coming from the same people, you influenced 7 people in some way. You made 4 people uncomfortable about their views, but they were unable to rationally respond. That pushes them a little closer to changing their views. Well done.

asinination 16y ago
but they were unable to rationally respond There is an exceptionally large gap between not being able to respond, and not thinking it's a good use of one's time. My experience is that expressing contrary opinions on HN, even well-reasoned and considered ones, is a recipe for getting [dead]'d. As such, many wise people don't bother.
nika 16y ago
Thanks to you and "TheAmazingIdiot" (ugh, his name makes me call him a name, the delima!) for the feedback. I'm going to try sticking around a bit.

TheAmazingIdiot 16y ago

I have seen similar objections to my comments, along with the downvotes. Just as yummyfajitas said, if you evoke cognitive dissonance or frankly mess with peoples' worldview, they will downvote you. It matters not if you are discussing in a matters of science or otherwise. Meditation seems to be a popular thing here on HN, given the amount of "Zen", "Meditation", Buddhism, and other Eastern topics. One of my specialities is specifically Yoga, Tantra, and Tibetan Buddhism. Meditation is a key part of these practices, as is other spiritual and religious work. However, the disjoin I witness here is although meditation is seen as good benefit, anything spiritual and/or religious is downvoted to oblivion. One of the first lessons in proper meditation is shielding, yet the naysayers come out in droves. The Hindus have fond Asana to deal with the itches and movements when trying to meditate. Tumo was developed by the ascetic monks in the Tibetan mountains to generate massive amounts of body heat. Reincarnation, in Tibet, is not seen as some religious belief but as a fact of life. This is to the point that payments can be arranged between lifetimes. I can discuss these techniques at length, as well as do some of them. I'm still learning and do not claim to be any sort of master. However, if these people want to learn about meditation, they better as well know how meditation fails, what happens when you succeed, and pitfalls thereof. Yet when I mention, there are a few who are genuinely curious, and a majority who -1.

Natsu 16y ago
> Reincarnation, in Tibet, is not seen as some religious belief but as a fact of life. This is to the point that payments can be arranged between lifetimes. I just have to know how that works. How are you supposed to find the guy's reincarnation to get paid? Or do they pay your reincarnation?
- TheAmazingIdiot 16y ago
  Not quite. You're thinking of payments as in money or other monetary goods. There are other types of payment and contracts that can be done that are out of the scope of goods. And that is time. If chosen, one can make a binding contract that trades time for something. For example, I could agree to protect a friend for the rest of this life and of the next we meet for something. Gurus make similar agreements about being a teacher as well. Usually a guru agreement is binding until otherwise broken. And life usually puts us back in contact, even in other lives. Now, our relationship can (and usually does) change, but we will almost always meet them. The show and movie Avatar the Last Airbender is very similar how the Dalai Lama is actually chosen. In the Dalai Lama's case, they are shown about a hundred objects, 3 of which belong to the last reincarnation. The TV show shows 4 objects that respond unnaturally (the 4 being representatives of wind/water/fire/earth). It is also in the Dalai Lama's case that he is also to choose people who was in his cabinet prior to his reincarnation, as there is only a few years between the death and life. This step is also proof of who he is. The search usually goes on 2 weeks after his death, in which the world is searched for his new incarnation. And in the case of the Dalai Lama, what makes his so important is that he is seen as the Avatar of Chenrezig (the Patron God of Tibet).