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Comment by agorabinary | Hacker News Reader

"... a new startup, Meteor, an open-source Web app development platform more interesting than Coin, Bitcoin, and Uber put together."

Oh yes, another colorful dev framework is more interesting than programmable money. Who is this pleb author and why are we giving this article any consideration whatsoever? It's such a poor attempt to dress up what is only a libertarian-hate article as a genuine analysis (see: purely anecdotal) of some urban culture shift.

I'm noticing more and more articles like this coming from the left, to which the only appropriate response is: "Okay, we disagree. Let's have a discussion. Just don't lock me up for disagreeing." Freedom. It isn't something to scoff at.

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I really enjoyed the rest of the article but that part about Meteor was definitely crap.

I think the general points of the article (and my primary feelings as well) is that there are a significant amount of very well paid software engineers who think income inequality is a very bad thing and the best way to tackle it is to increase taxes on the wealthy (including themselves). And that we need to come back together as a society where "we're in it together" instead of a society of private fire departments and schools.

That isn't "hating libertarians", its just a disagreement.

No one is scoffing at your Freedom, we just have different ideas as to what freedom should consist of. Personal and individual freedoms- very good. Economic freedom to plunder and horde- very bad.

The thing is though, the only society that allows individuals to "agree to disagree" and still live peacefully is a purely libertarian model. Perhaps you do believe in a different version of freedom --- no one in such a model is stopping you from organizing an opt-in commune, or a public, collectively financed school, or an employee-owned coffee shop. You can have those things, but they have to be purely voluntary. Once any degree of force is introduced into the equation, then we are not peacefully disagreeing but instead actively oppressing.

And using words like "plunder" and "horde" suggest to me you are conflating free markets with capitalist imperialism, which is a very common myth. Imperialism is force, of course, and is intolerable.

Bitcoin's only interesting for laughing at the true believers and shaking one's damn head at all the scams.

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