[Karrot_Kream]

Hard disagree. The measured tone in TFA is how adults debate issues. Invoking phrases like "child-abusing relative" and "kid alone in a darkened room in a state of undress" is the kind of hyperbole that sites like Twitter and HN love to employ that reduce the quality of conversations and how threads turn into shouting matches.

Ask yourself how the hyperbole you engage in leads to "curious conversation", how you're "assuming good faith", and how you're "eschewing flamebait". Because TFA seems to invoke curious conversation and good faith and your hyperbolic analogies just seem like ideological-battle oriented flamebait.

> Sometimes a harsh response is warranted to preserve integrity of that which is important. This is one of those times.

I'm pretty sure this is explicitly against "Please don't use Hacker News for political or ideological battle. It tramples curiosity."

P.S. As a long time HN reader/user, these hyperbolic flamebait comments in the service of political ends are exactly the kinds of comments that I find degrade this site the most. When people complain about this site turning into Reddit, it's these kinds of comments I think about.

[Dinky_Karrot]

Why are you attacking the commenter's character and chose not to respond to a single concern they brought up? They've asked some good questions and AFAICT they're legitimately concerned and only acting in good faith.

Your claim that they've violated HN guidelines is misplaced, at best.

Who's side are you on? Are you defending the guy with conflicting interests who is on the board and simultaneously selling a tor removal kit?

[ziddoap]

>Who's side are you on? Are you defending the guy with conflicting interests who is on the board and simultaneously selling a tor removal kit?

From my reading, they didn't claim to take either side nor comment on the article in question, but made a meta-comment. Which is okay to do.

[aliqot]

Yeah but it sucks for the rest of us who were hoping for informed adult convo but instead must witness this.

[ziddoap]

I have yet to read a single HN thread which does not involve some sort of meta-commenting or tangential conversation, exactly like what is happening in this thread.

[imwillofficial]

OPs comment wasn’t just off the cuff emotionally charged rhetoric though. They acknowledged that there are times for a measured response, and there are times that a measured response is inappropriate. That outrage and pitchfork wielding are appropriate responses. They made the case that this was one of those times.

I agree.

[Karrot_Kream]

Bring enough people together with varied enough opinions and each of them will feel their own personal deep concerns are worth wielding pitchforks for. Eventually every conflict will involve pitchforks and the temperature of any discussion will be high enough that all you have are flames whereupon conflicts will just be hidden from public view and taken care of under the table so as not to risk the public flames of wrath.

[imwillofficial]

Welcome to the internet. It’s pitchforks all the way down, baby

[TheSpiceIsLife]

The comment would have been better without the strained analogy.

One counter argument to the gp might be something like: this is exactly the kind of expertise The Tor Project should want to consult.

[imwillofficial]

Ooh, I like that. That’s why I come to HN, it’s the angles I would have never considered.

[TheSpiceIsLife]

Thanks! Made my day :)