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Comment by gord | Hacker News Reader

I do find the article interesting.

However I tend to agree with this comment - is this 'Hacker News'worthy?

I especially object to the downvote on this post - I think downvoting shouldnt be used unless the post is clearly offensive.

It think this is legitimate comment - HN needs to preserve Freedom of Speech and not become a self-serving myopic site where people are afraid to speak their mind for fear of losing karma brownie points.

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While I, as well, agree that this may well not be HN-worthy, your usage of "Freedom of Speech" is silly. First and foremost, the concept of "Freedom of Speech" has no application in a private forum. If HN allows free speech, it does so willingly, not because it needs to. In addition to that, freedom of speech does not mean that your words aren't allowed to be judged. People often forget that freedom of speech means the freedom to offend and be offended, and both sides are able to say what they want. In that way, voting is a form of 'speech' as well, it's just not textual.

yes, I agree perversely. Im assuming HN users value freedom of speech, and I think less down-voting helps preserve the value of HN by encouraging open discussion.

Im hoping that down votes happen less when people speak their mind.. and that downvotes are on average reserved for clearly offensive content.

I think the issue needs some introspection, hence I risked being downvoted.

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