I'm referring to faux-politeness as Linus's strawman alternative to being rude. It's a false dichotomy. And when I talk about behaving like a caveman, I should

I'm referring to faux-politeness as Linus's strawman alternative to being rude. It's a false dichotomy. And when I talk about behaving like a caveman, I should be clear that I'm generalizing the behavior he's trying to legitimize. I don't claim to have an in depth knowledge of his behavior outside of the handful of times things he's written have popped up here or on Slashdot. For all I know, these are isolated incidents. But even if that's the case, I think it's behavior he should be working on improving, instead of rationalizing. Whether it's coming from him, Steve Jobs, the former Rutgers basketball coach, or whoever else, I simply don't believe that being rude or bullying is optimal or morally acceptable. And I'm not some softie hippie who thinks we should all argue with kid gloves. It's quite possible to be severe and explicit with your thoughts, without being insulting, either to the person or their work.