MLK is actually not a bad choice for comparison ( sufficient time has passed, some records were unsealed and so on ). I think that 'FBI monitored MLK' is perfec

MLK is actually not a bad choice for comparison ( sufficient time has passed, some records were unsealed and so on ). I think that 'FBI monitored MLK' is perfectly sufficient and captures everything without adding negative or positive sentiment to it. Now, had the article try to add 'inappropriate', the right move would be substantiate that claim with some sort of proof that it was indeed inappropriate ( at least in the eye of the writer ). That does not appear to happen in the article on HN today. We have an assertion without any way to determine whether or not writer is just making stuff up. Maybe, Pratchett's work was onto something when he indicated that in Discworld universe poetic license was somewhat limited[1]: “Poetic simile was strictly limited to statements like 'his mighty steed was as fleet as the wind on a fairly calm day, say about Force Three,' and any loose talk about a beloved having a face that launched a thousand ships would have to be backed by evidence that the object of desire did indeed look like a bottle of champagne.” So in the case of Assange, the writer should have added a short narrative indicating his particular perception of the issue ("Assange is possibly a criminal") absent a completely generic and neutral in tone ( Assange did something US governemnt did not like ). [1]https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/586782-poetic-simile-was-strictly-limited-to-statements-like-his-mighty https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/586782-poetic-simile-was-st... In short, I don't think it is impossible. There is no willingness to agree on some basic standards.