I think a missing bit of context here is that you shouldn’t be writing Easter eggs (or jokes in general) in your software if a) your software is used in critic

I think a missing bit of context here is that you shouldn’t be writing Easter eggs (or jokes in general) in your software if a) your software is used in critical operations involve real human lives or large amounts of money; AND b) your company is developing a reputation for buggy and insecure products Both applied to Microsoft in 2005! While the author is perhaps guilty of abstracting the concerns too much and avoiding MSFT-specific issues, I think it’s a fair point that Easter eggs are unprofessional and can blow up in management’s face for high-profile software.