> every day on hn there are countless articles that are of the self-help variety from various entrepreneurs and startup celebrities and whatever. why is this kind of content so popular on a place that prides itself on rigorous rational inquiry (or whatever it is that's on the masthead)? basically i see people nodding along with the most superficial "wisdom" and i don't understand
It’s funny you say this because I was going to comment that this is the comment I see everyday on HN whenever anyone gives business advice.
The HN comment section of every article written by an entrepreneur (especially a successful one) that gives basic advice is filled with comments about how they are tired of business people selling them a dream. You almost always can find a comment on survivorship bias, luck, privilege, etc.
> 1) why people are fine with being pandered to
Have you ever considered that people actually find these articles useful ? HN has been extremely valuable for me. I’ve learned so much about the startup world and it’s awesome to here from people who have built successfully companies themselves.