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Interesting that HN keeps killing threads on this topic: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6360328 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6360328 A stubborn r

by babs474 13y ago

Interesting that HN keeps killing threads on this topic: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6360328 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6360328 A stubborn refusal to confront the problem is what helps these attitudes fester.

SideburnsOfDoom 13y ago
HN has had several stories this week on the Techchrunch Disrupt fiasco. The Business Insider story, not so much.
- untog 13y ago
  Even the stories on Disrupt were very quickly flagged off the front page. Then, when the BI story broke I saw multiple comments asking "What was the Disrupt story?" The lesson is that flagging this stuff off the page works tremendously well.
nsxwolf 13y ago
Not too long ago HN was dominated by a wave of these stories that was not equaled until the NSA revelations.
Karunamon 13y ago
Probably a combination of fatigue and not wanting to deal with the toxicity these type of threads tend to be utterly soaked in. "Confronting the problem" is hard in the company of reasoned discussion and nigh-impossible in the face of extremists. *edit And that's why I flagged it. Not because I'm some horrible sexist, or because I want women to fail, but because I don't want HN turning into Tumblr or SRS. On top of all that, they also tend to be the worst kind of predictable and boring - i.e. the complete polar opposite of what great HN content is. No thanks.
- omd 13y ago
  Extremists? Is that what you call anyone who isn't a sexist like you? And what does SRS have to do with anything? I left reddit to get away from the r/mensrights freaks like you so you might want to keep your bullshit there.
  - Karunamon 13y ago
    Wow, defensive AND insulting. Thanks for proving my point about toxicity and boring-ness.
  - gruseom 13y ago
    Please don't attack other users personally. It's never necessary, makes you look mean, and poisons the well for everybody.
  - SideburnsOfDoom 13y ago
    I didn't read that as the extremists being anti-sexists. In some recent threads on these topics, I've seen some excellent reasoned thought from the anti-sexists and some extremely childish behaviour from people with the opposite opinions. It could mean either, or both, with or without justification. So, no reason to get irate.
- theorique 13y ago
  Wait, what's SRS?
  - Karunamon 13y ago
    r/shitredditsays over on reddit.com - basically, take Tumblr feminism (radical third wave) and elevate it to the point where it becomes a parody of itself. It's a meta-sub (a sub who's point it is to comment or link to other subs) that puts on airs that they exist for calling out shitty comments on reddit. In reality, they're known for invading threads, vote abuse, a level of dogmatism and doublethink that would make a Christian fundamentalist blush, and generally being a net negative influence on the site.
    - deleted 13y ago
      [deleted]
    - theorique 13y ago
      Ah, it's a reddit thing. Thanks. Sounds like they are fun and well-loved. :/
DanBC 13y ago
There's not much new that can be said, and the threads are always full of people with weird, vile, opinions bickering about what is or isn't acceptable behaviour, coming up with bizarre scenarios for why it's actually fine to call a woman a stupid cunt in the workplace.
- jlgreco 13y ago
  Exactly. These threads do nothing but give everybody (involved, or otherwise) a platform on which to pat their own back.
untog 13y ago
(edit: this thread has, indeed, been voted off the front page once again.) I expect this will be voted off too, it already seems to be lower-placed than it ought to be given the number of upvotes. I posted (what I though to be) a very interesting article on Popehat about free speech and the costs contained within a few days ago: http://www.popehat.com/2013/09/10/speech-and-consequences/ http://www.popehat.com/2013/09/10/speech-and-consequences/ Unfortunately it talked about the Business Insider issue, so was immediately flagged off the front page.
- cognivore 13y ago
  >> this thread has, indeed, been voted off the front page once again. << Keep sweeping under the rug, it'll hold lots.
parfe 13y ago
HN has a very thin veneer of professionalism and intelligence only kept in place by the severely limited range of topics we can comment on. If you read any political, social, gender or non-STEM science based comments (prior to the story being killed) you get the same disgusting mix of sexism, racism, and general ignorance you'd find on reddit. Luckily for HN's image the flag feature quickly hides such ugliness.
- saraid216 13y ago
  Except Snowden is a hero, so we're cool with any and all threads speculating on his current activities.
jlgreco 13y ago
I think perhaps the problem here is a poorly defined concept of "confront the problem". What exactly does it mean to confront the problem? I am not planning on giving a sexist presentation so... problem confronted? Am I suppose to do something to prevent others from giving sexist presentations too? I am not in a position to do that, and very few people are (how many people on HN actually run conferences?). I don't see any actionable call to arms.

by babs474 13y ago

SideburnsOfDoom 13y ago

HN has had several stories this week on the Techchrunch Disrupt fiasco. The Business Insider story, not so much.

untog 13y ago
Even the stories on Disrupt were very quickly flagged off the front page. Then, when the BI story broke I saw multiple comments asking "What was the Disrupt story?" The lesson is that flagging this stuff off the page works tremendously well.

nsxwolf 13y ago

Not too long ago HN was dominated by a wave of these stories that was not equaled until the NSA revelations.

Karunamon 13y ago

Probably a combination of fatigue and not wanting to deal with the toxicity these type of threads tend to be utterly soaked in. "Confronting the problem" is hard in the company of reasoned discussion and nigh-impossible in the face of extremists. *edit And that's why I flagged it. Not because I'm some horrible sexist, or because I want women to fail, but because I don't want HN turning into Tumblr or SRS. On top of all that, they also tend to be the worst kind of predictable and boring - i.e. the complete polar opposite of what great HN content is. No thanks.

omd 13y ago
Extremists? Is that what you call anyone who isn't a sexist like you? And what does SRS have to do with anything? I left reddit to get away from the r/mensrights freaks like you so you might want to keep your bullshit there.
- Karunamon 13y ago
  Wow, defensive AND insulting. Thanks for proving my point about toxicity and boring-ness.
- gruseom 13y ago
  Please don't attack other users personally. It's never necessary, makes you look mean, and poisons the well for everybody.
- SideburnsOfDoom 13y ago
  I didn't read that as the extremists being anti-sexists. In some recent threads on these topics, I've seen some excellent reasoned thought from the anti-sexists and some extremely childish behaviour from people with the opposite opinions. It could mean either, or both, with or without justification. So, no reason to get irate.
theorique 13y ago
Wait, what's SRS?
- Karunamon 13y ago
  r/shitredditsays over on reddit.com - basically, take Tumblr feminism (radical third wave) and elevate it to the point where it becomes a parody of itself. It's a meta-sub (a sub who's point it is to comment or link to other subs) that puts on airs that they exist for calling out shitty comments on reddit. In reality, they're known for invading threads, vote abuse, a level of dogmatism and doublethink that would make a Christian fundamentalist blush, and generally being a net negative influence on the site.
  - deleted 13y ago
    [deleted]
  - theorique 13y ago
    Ah, it's a reddit thing. Thanks. Sounds like they are fun and well-loved. :/

DanBC 13y ago

There's not much new that can be said, and the threads are always full of people with weird, vile, opinions bickering about what is or isn't acceptable behaviour, coming up with bizarre scenarios for why it's actually fine to call a woman a stupid cunt in the workplace.

jlgreco 13y ago
Exactly. These threads do nothing but give everybody (involved, or otherwise) a platform on which to pat their own back.

untog 13y ago

(edit: this thread has, indeed, been voted off the front page once again.) I expect this will be voted off too, it already seems to be lower-placed than it ought to be given the number of upvotes. I posted (what I though to be) a very interesting article on Popehat about free speech and the costs contained within a few days ago: http://www.popehat.com/2013/09/10/speech-and-consequences/ http://www.popehat.com/2013/09/10/speech-and-consequences/ Unfortunately it talked about the Business Insider issue, so was immediately flagged off the front page.

cognivore 13y ago
>> this thread has, indeed, been voted off the front page once again. << Keep sweeping under the rug, it'll hold lots.

parfe 13y ago

HN has a very thin veneer of professionalism and intelligence only kept in place by the severely limited range of topics we can comment on. If you read any political, social, gender or non-STEM science based comments (prior to the story being killed) you get the same disgusting mix of sexism, racism, and general ignorance you'd find on reddit. Luckily for HN's image the flag feature quickly hides such ugliness.

saraid216 13y ago
Except Snowden is a hero, so we're cool with any and all threads speculating on his current activities.

jlgreco 13y ago

I think perhaps the problem here is a poorly defined concept of "confront the problem". What exactly does it mean to confront the problem? I am not planning on giving a sexist presentation so... problem confronted? Am I suppose to do something to prevent others from giving sexist presentations too? I am not in a position to do that, and very few people are (how many people on HN actually run conferences?). I don't see any actionable call to arms.