It's not an easy question. I just wanted to clarify that the HN guidelines do not categorically rule out submissions such as these. I think that those who ques

It's not an easy question. I just wanted to clarify that the HN guidelines do not categorically rule out submissions such as these. I think that those who question the relevancy of submissions such as these deserve an answer that is more than "Actually, this is all about hacking!" I did not upvote this submission but here are my reasons for not flagging it: 1. This is likely not a controversial issue among HN readers, major ideological disagreements that might result into insults and people screaming at each other are unlikely. A constructive discussion is likely. 2. The developments in Egypt had no overwhelming presence on HN during the last weeks. I think that frequency and not only the topic matters. This submission would definitely be inappropriate if Egypt had been on the top of HN all the time over the last few weeks but that hasn't been the case. Occasional interesting off-topic diversions have been a part of HN for as long as I can remember. We have to be vigilant so that they don't overwhelm HN but they are occasionally ok. 3. The developments in Egypt are serious and not superficial or phony, worthy of a constructive discussion.