Not sure why this is downmodded, as the parent has a good point. PG is definitely known for an ability to sell people their own ideas with good arguments. A person thinks, "I like programming and I program" and PG writes "Hackers and Painters" which obviously helps the original person feel good about his decision and gives him something to use to help explain his life to others. A reader of PG's essays will end up better understanding themselves because the ideas are in a context that the reader already somewhat understands.

(I think I did this for my "Why I Stick With Perl" conference talk. Instead of trying to sell Perl to people that have no liking of Perl, I tried to sell it more strongly to people that already like it a little bit. The result is a sense of well-being and a strong community.)

I was going to say, "I think this is rare", but I guess everything is like this. Fox News spins their articles to the right to make their viewers happy. The New York Times is a bit on the liberal side, which appeals to its liberal readers in a way that pure neutrality wouldn't. "A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down."?

I'm not sure the purpose of this is to inspire.