Earlier quoted context omitted.
In general, at this stage, the amount of flak that Arc has received is so disproportionate to the normal amount of flak that new ideas receive because it hasn't solved any problems that real hackers have encountered , well enough that they'd want to switch to writing programs in it. You haven't really solved the overlooked problem of core language design until people start using your cleaner core language, and to do…
It solves the problem hackers face in every program they write, and which high level languages exist to solve: making programs smaller. Try translating some Arc programs into Common Lisp or Scheme and you'll see what I mean. And incidentally, I don't have to give hardened users of existing languages reason enough to switch. There are new people learning to program all the time, and to them, all languages are on a lev…
Taking the analogy to a house, Arc is like a half finished construction project. The frame is up, they're still putting insulation in, and there's one finished room with a cot, a table, and a hot plate which Paul Graham is using to cook the news.yc software. Sure, you might attract scads of interior decorators by opening your house up to random strangers, but very few programmers will be willing to come over to live in Arc. They'll stay in their own houses which are already well stocked with comfortable furniture, decorations, etc., even if it is all a little cluttered and you have to go through the kitchen in order to reach the library from the bedroom.
Some of the people speaking out against Arc are genuine trolls, but some are just saying in a non-tactful way that they'd prefer to stay in a house with drywall, thank you very much.