>> Time and time again on Hacker News, intelligent people can't seem to understand that the average citizen is not a Hacker News visitor.
> This is out of place and pointless.
The typical HN visitor is going to have, on average, a brain that operates differently than the average citizen. Not necessarily "better", just different. It's not supposed to be an ego boost for us, or an insult to the general population; it's just fact. It is unrealistic to expect that every person is going to be hyper-aware of their surroundings and behaviour at all times.
Ten years ago I thought that "average people" were missing basic common sense, that made them incompetent in their decision processes. With every year that goes by, I've come to realize that these people are completely normal. They are neither unintelligent nor stupid, or careless, or any other derogatory term. If anything I now resent my analytical thought process, and wish I could adopt a different set of mental priorities. Where's the off switch? ;)
> This is out of place and pointless.
The typical HN visitor is going to have, on average, a brain that operates differently than the average citizen. Not necessarily "better", just different. It's not supposed to be an ego boost for us, or an insult to the general population; it's just fact. It is unrealistic to expect that every person is going to be hyper-aware of their surroundings and behaviour at all times.
Ten years ago I thought that "average people" were missing basic common sense, that made them incompetent in their decision processes. With every year that goes by, I've come to realize that these people are completely normal. They are neither unintelligent nor stupid, or careless, or any other derogatory term. If anything I now resent my analytical thought process, and wish I could adopt a different set of mental priorities. Where's the off switch? ;)