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Actually in a previous HN thread about exactly this (you can pull it out from my comments), someone referenced an interview where stallman mentions that he's sl
by pork 15y ago
Actually in a previous HN thread about exactly this (you can pull it out from my comments), someone referenced an interview where stallman mentions that he's slightly autistic. For those who don't know, a lack of empathy is a symptom of autism, so I wouldn't attribute all this to him being malicious or mean.
- mentat 15y agoI wasn't making a judgment about the causes for the lack of empathy but rather what its effects tend to be. Someone who doesn't see people as people is capable of things that others are not. Some of those things are good, other are scary.
- pork 15y agoAs someone who has an autistic person in their life, you have to understand that they think differently, and that can often seem scary to us because we value empathy so much in a society. I just think we should cut him some slack in the light of the fact that he very likely can't see it another way. If he were a sociopath, which IS scary, trust me -- we wouldn't know it.
- ballard 15y agoI know someone that worked directly the person in question for several years that is of the opinion the man's a straight out asshole, pure and simple. There's no slack need cutting because he does so willingly. Furthermore, the more controversy his apparent or manufactured personality disorders can conjure up, the more attention he receives as a reward for bad behavior. So, basically, we're part of the problem. I'm rolling my eyes, and moving on with life.