>Why is a software engineer qualified to present this?
The opinions of software engineers about subject outside their area of expertise is the bulk of the commentary on this site. I don't think it's realistic to expect a community to enforce a restriction on submissions when such a restriction would hit so close to home. That would require a level of cognitive dissonance that even HN is probably not capable of.
I agree with you that people should STFU about things they are not experts in, or at the very least not present their opinions on such things with some veil of authority.
One of the big issues in the pandemic is the spread of misinformation.
I don’t think media channels ... and I’m including HN here ... should be giving a megaphone to random opinions. Now it the time for experts voices to be amplified, not random people with an opinion.
I notice in the comments dang supports this post which is a surprise.
> One of the big issues in the pandemic is the spread of misinformation.
Along with censorship and blind worship of authority.
> Now it the time for experts voices to be amplified, not random people with an opinion.
Which experts? The experts you agree with or are politically aligned with? Or all experts?
> I notice in the comments dang supports this post which is a surprise.
An even greater surprise is the attempt to censor people who are giving their honest and fair opinion and assessment - which is not misinformation.
The experts have spoken and people have the right to discuss and offer their opinions. Using your logic, hacker news shouldn't exist because only the "experts" should be allowed a voice.
>Why is a software engineer qualified to present this?
The opinions of software engineers about subject outside their area of expertise is the bulk of the commentary on this site. I don't think it's realistic to expect a community to enforce a restriction on submissions when such a restriction would hit so close to home. That would require a level of cognitive dissonance that even HN is probably not capable of.
I agree with you that people should STFU about things they are not experts in, or at the very least not present their opinions on such things with some veil of authority.