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Comment by bradenb | Hacker News Reader

I don't necessarily think you're wrong, but HN has a history of comments like this that criticize other comments and add nothing to the discussion. Mine is another example, but since you got the ball rolling I figure I might as well chime in.

I think the grandparent's usage of "use case" was totally fine. It wasn't distracting and it didn't change my reading of that comment in any way, shape, or form.

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> HN has a history of comments like this that criticize other comments and add nothing to the discussion

I disagree. HN is a place that seems to pride itself on the quality of its discussions, and on a higher intellectual caliber when compared to other Internet discussion venues. Surely a good command of language is part of that?

Yes, it does pride itself on the quality of discussions. It also has done that just fine using the voting and flagging mechanisms. When I see comments criticizing others' comments I am always reminded of reddit. I think this is exactly what you're hoping to avoid when you come to HN.

Beyond that, who are we to judge what constitutes "good command of language?" Which language are we even talking about here? I don't think HN is going to become a better place by becoming more elitist.

> When I see comments criticizing others' comments I am always reminded of reddit. I think this is exactly what you're hoping to avoid when you come to HN.

> I don't think HN is going to become a better place by becoming more elitist.

err...

What confuses you about what I said? “Not being reddit” and “not being elitist” are not mutually exclusive.

EDIT: I think it's clear nothing more needs to be said. Feel free to respond to this comment or not. I've said my piece.

Come on now, don't be disingenuous. Of course they are mutually exclusive, because you mean "not being reddit" as in "we are better than reddit" -- an elitist stance.

I said I was done but I have to respond to this. Reddit prides itself on tangents and bickering and jokes. It’s great. I love Reddit. But I come to HN for focused technical discussion. I don’t believe one is inherently better than the other. Therefore, I believe it is not mutually exclusive.

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