Hacker News Reader

I think the popularity of this article has more in common with the popularity of the "how to care for your introvert" article. Basically the group is trying to define itself, and persecution is one of those very common rallying points. People with beautiful and misunderstood introverted abilities are being singled out by the man. If you enjoy this kind of thing there are sites like reddit which are perfect for expressing it.

View on HN

It may be true that they're trying to define themselves, but if so I'd say it's because they're exploiting an opportunity they've found with regard to so many holes in the investigation. But more importantly, I disagree that this is more suited for Reddit discussion (if that was your point). Here at HN as I'm sure you're aware, we have a record of intelligent, coherent and stimulating debate about a wide range of important topics and being that the warrant and the topic are in fact hacker related it was a good choice to post it here.

Its not that I think it doesn't belong here, the reception the article has gotten worries me a little. These rallying articles that provoke this strong sense of identity in a community can actually swamp the real character of the site. The mutual outrage and sense of purpose is compelling but its superficial. Legal action, especially at the initial stages when police are involved, is particularly inflammatory because everyone jumps to conclusions. The justice system takes time to process, but this sense of mutual outrage has no patience.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com