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> a large number of HN community members are - somewhat ironically - very closed minded The other side of that coin – excessive open-mindedness – however, lead
by adwn 5y ago
> a large number of HN community members are - somewhat ironically - very closed minded
The other side of that coin – excessive open-mindedness – however, leads to being susceptible to cults, snake oil salesmen, and hyped up technologies. Crypto currencies, in particular, frequently tick all three boxes. Skepticism is generally a good thing, and so far crypto currency proponents have failed to refute the arguments of sceptics.
- Taek 5y agoThe Internet also failed to refute the arguments of skeptics until one day it didn't fail and now several of the largest companies in the world are entirely Internet based and providing indisputable value. Cryptocurrency offers new primitives that are unavailable in any other system known to man. It takes time to build up a backbone of technology that can take these new primitives and get them to the point where they can compete with established trillion dollar industries, but it is happening, and it's starting to happen very rapidly. It's certainly true that crypto is full of snake oil salesmen, overhyped technologies, and culty communities. But the presence of those things doesn't change the fact that the technology is real, and that it can do things at a fundamental level that no other technology can do.
- Jasper_ 5y agoThe most popular internet skeptic quoted was one who (correctly) pointed out that they are going to have trouble trusting Amazon not to send them junk, and that Amazon has to fight an uphill battle to earn it. Which they did, and then started squandering away.
- jshen 5y agoThis is a textbook example of survivorship bias