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Yes, exactly this. I'm not risking my main, years-old account being banned for getting passionate about a potentially political matter. And it's an opportunity

Yes, exactly this. I'm not risking my main, years-old account being banned for getting passionate about a potentially political matter. And it's an opportunity to say what I really think, without being judged by HN's faux-politeness criteria. There's such a large intersection between tech and politics these days, in terms of their effects on each other, that the HN aversion to discussing politics just seems anachronistic and ill-judged.

jcims 6y ago
I feel that HN is reasonably amenable to discussing direct relationships between technology, policy and society. Folks that were here when GDPR got off the ground likely remember quite a bit of the discussion was left untouched and i think we collectively did ok. However it doesn’t seem that humans have figured out how to effectively navigate our differences in the more ideological aspects of governance on a forum like this. Just think of how many times in a personal conversation you are happy to respond with nothing more than a ‘yes, but why?’ vs the same topic being discussed on HN or reddit? Or how much more information is exchanged in the ambience of that moment vs words on a page (and it’s still difficult). Online it’s nearly impossible and what you’re left with are echo chambers and vollies of insults. For my part I appreciate the wet blanket thrown on those types of conversations on HN. I just haven’t seen them yield fruit elsewhere and i appreciate the harbor.
akvadrako 6y ago
Is there really a risk of being banned as long as you make constructive posts?
- krapp 6y ago
  Actually, just the opposite. History suggests you can usually be as toxic and controversial as you like and you'll be left alone as long as you also occasionally make constructive posts. The mods are looking for novelty and civility as signs of quality, so all you have to do is not be toxic about the same things often enough to bore them, and then sometimes post a deep dive into some niche cultural or technical subject.

jcims 6y ago

I feel that HN is reasonably amenable to discussing direct relationships between technology, policy and society. Folks that were here when GDPR got off the ground likely remember quite a bit of the discussion was left untouched and i think we collectively did ok. However it doesn’t seem that humans have figured out how to effectively navigate our differences in the more ideological aspects of governance on a forum like this. Just think of how many times in a personal conversation you are happy to respond with nothing more than a ‘yes, but why?’ vs the same topic being discussed on HN or reddit? Or how much more information is exchanged in the ambience of that moment vs words on a page (and it’s still difficult). Online it’s nearly impossible and what you’re left with are echo chambers and vollies of insults. For my part I appreciate the wet blanket thrown on those types of conversations on HN. I just haven’t seen them yield fruit elsewhere and i appreciate the harbor.

akvadrako 6y ago

Is there really a risk of being banned as long as you make constructive posts?

krapp 6y ago
Actually, just the opposite. History suggests you can usually be as toxic and controversial as you like and you'll be left alone as long as you also occasionally make constructive posts. The mods are looking for novelty and civility as signs of quality, so all you have to do is not be toxic about the same things often enough to bore them, and then sometimes post a deep dive into some niche cultural or technical subject.