People always paint this on a "deceptive & kind" vs "honest & mean" axis, but I don't think those attributes have to be tied together. You can be direct without

People always paint this on a "deceptive & kind" vs "honest & mean" axis, but I don't think those attributes have to be tied together. You can be direct without losing kindness. Saying "I don't think this is the right approach, don't go down this path anymore" is direct, but it's not mean. Not to sound like a fanboy, but since most people here are familiar with his writings, I think PG's essays are a good example of this. He'll say direct things that probably piss some people off, but it doesn't ever seem to come from anger. Saying "are you fucking insane? Only an idiot would come up with this", like Linus would, is also direct.. but, not particularly necessary in my opinion.