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You could be just as easily be accused of karma whoring for posting this reply. As could I for responding to you like this. But the truth is, you felt strongly enough to post the reply, as did I in responding to you, as did the original posters. Any action in a karma-rewarded community can be brushed off as karma whoring, but that doesn't mean it should.

It’s like when you discover a new artist you like and you work through the back catalogue. Today’s news has made lots of people discover Swartz simultaneously.

Personally why I posted this: loved the essays when they came out. And I know many people have not read them. More than that, even many people here on HN had never heard of the guy or don't know his mindset. Those essays open up a lot of who he was.

Thanks for posting them. I admire Aaron's work very much but will admit to not knowing of everything that he has written. I guess I don't have the photographic memory like the parent commenter

They were all posted on Hacker News when he wrote them.

Here is the extensive original conversation around one of the entries: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4474724