I like this experiment, so long as we can have exceptions for obviously relevant new material, i.e. "Trump advocates backdoor for Linux kernel" or some such.
Tell HN: Political Detox Week – No politics on HN for one week
161–170 of 1001 posts
Re: Tell HN: Political Detox Week – No politics on HN for one week
#162> Political conflicts cause harm here.
If not the ideal scenario, this certainly isn't the worst possible outcome. To paraphrase Martin Niemöller, if you don't speak up for other people then who's going to be left to speak up for you?
Although it may appear the politics and gardening are unrelated or in opposition, there is actually an important link. PG always lists Kenneth Clark as one of his biggest influences. And if you actually watch Civilisation, in the first episode he says that it's a misconception that art arises whenever people have the resources to do things other than working or whatever. Rather, making art (loosely defined) always entails an enormous personal sacrifice, one which people only undertake when they have faith in the longterm stability of society.
Re: Tell HN: Political Detox Week – No politics on HN for one week
#163What is the limit that defines "politics" from everything else ?
I personally believe that (more or less) "everything is politics", therefore it is quite difficult to follow this directive.
Actually, the OP is very politic, as it is about how HN is governed, should we flag this post and should you kill the story?
This may sound pedantic, but the example shows the importance of defining what you consider is the limit between "politics" and "everything else"
Re: Tell HN: Political Detox Week – No politics on HN for one week
#164It might be a very boring week for stories, and I do share drzaiusapelord's concern this is happening when a new cabinet is being announced. Plus some troubling laws out of Australia and the UK.
Science without philosophy is dangerous, and philosophy without science has no use. The political implications of technology are a big part of the discussion.
I guess I don't believe this step would have been taken if someone else won, and that belief, justified or unjustified, troubles me.
But, I guess anything that gets the damn pipeline news off HN is fine. I'm getting a little sick of the distortion field and do gooders that are going to leave people high-and-dry on that one.
[I voted 3rd party for the top spot in ND if it matters]
Re: Tell HN: Political Detox Week – No politics on HN for one week
#165Earlier quoted context omitted.
> it looks like sour grapes This is one of those unintended consequences that gobsmack me any time we try out some new idea here. I'm sure anyone who deals with large internet communities has the same experience. The funny thing is that it's always obvious that it was bound to come up, in retrospect—just never beforehand. It's like the unveiling of the murderer in an Agatha Christie novel: hidden in plain view every…
I'd have a lot more confidence in the unbiased nature of a request like this if it was suggested prior to the outcome of the election. It's not like things were less contentious then. Say if this were announced the day before the election, regardless of the outcome, with a hold period of say a month.
I don't think I can fault dang for not being around for the Bush v. Gore (hanging chad) election, and the bitterness that it engendered on slashdot. Had he been paying attention then, he likely would've drawn parallels quickly and done exactly what you have said. I'll take him at face value when he says it was an action that should've been done in retrospect, but I'm not sure others won't be so quck to judge, if one is mindful of how much time the average HN reader thinks about a particular post or topic.
Re: Tell HN: Political Detox Week – No politics on HN for one week
#166I would argue that any startup or financial news is political, in that politics shapes the capitalist foundation of our society. HN is Politics, and to try and separate and moderate this type of news is exactly the kind of thing that makes people leave your site in droves.
Re: Tell HN: Political Detox Week – No politics on HN for one week
#167Experimenting it just 1 week cannot hurt.
That said, defining the scope of what should be banned is tricky.
Exemple on recent Amazon Go article and the so famous "Is massive automation implying jobs removing a good thing" :
This question is not about politics but will led to "tribal behaviour" as you call it.
Will you also ban such debates? If so where is your censor power limit?
Re: Tell HN: Political Detox Week – No politics on HN for one week
#168Who decides what's "political"? Are discussions of regulations surrounding Uber political? The ongoing Tesla/dealership feuds? Using machine learning to detect fake news? New immigration policy that impacts H1B tech workers? The impact of Brexit on tech companies? Restrictions on cryptography? I'm split on this: On one hand, firm moderation and keeping things on-topic makes for a good forum for discussion. On the oth…
this could easily be used by YC as a tool to say, silence criticism of YC for not disavowing Peter Thiel Is there anyone here who hasn't read that criticism yet?
And read it right here on HN. There were more than a couple submissions that dealt specifically on this topic.
Re: Tell HN: Political Detox Week – No politics on HN for one week
#169This is all well and good unless this happens to be the week our government passes a law to require muslims to register, etc.
Considering the low quality of political discussion in general (and especially on the internet), HN is one of the few places where there are generally reasonable, well-thought-out views.
Obviously YC doesn't want HN to discuss politics because it could create a divisive atmosphere and alienate people, resulting in lower levels of engagement and harm to the YC brand.
Re: Tell HN: Political Detox Week – No politics on HN for one week
#170Earlier quoted context omitted.
It was my idea and has nothing to do with political preferences, though the election season was probably a factor. It has to do with us noticing an uptick in two undesirable things: harsh ideological comments, and accounts that use HN primarily for political battle. You can see one example of how the idea developed here: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13052458
It wouldn't necessarily surprise me to learn that my account is one of those latter, although it would disappoint me a little and cause me to question my approach, since "battle" really isn't a good characterization of what I'm after here. One of the things I've found most impressive about HN, in fact, is the fashion in which people disposed across the full width of the US political spectrum seem able here to discuss…
Hear, hear! I came to HN specifically to check comments on political news items, because I (generally) found them pretty insightful and excellent.