I was very tempted to leave a tangentially related comment here, but decided to stay on topic. One of the things I like about HN's system is how simple and tra

I was very tempted to leave a tangentially related comment here, but decided to stay on topic. One of the things I like about HN's system is how simple and transparent it is. I don't have to worry about how some algorithm is going to treat keywords in my comment, upvotes, downvotes etc. Instead, I just upvote what I find interesting and write what I think others might find interesting. There are definitely downsides to the system too (like the ones you mention), but ultimately I think it's a decision to pick the least bad interface. Sort of reminds me of that Churchill quote ~ 'democracy is the worst kind of government except all the others' (or something like that).