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AlanCrowe comments on A place for casual, non-karmic discussion for lesswrongers? - Less Wrong Discussion

19 [deleted] 04 November 2012 06:50PM

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Comment author: AlanCrowe 05 November 2012 05:17:28PM 0 points [-]

The poster is in control of a trade. The poster can choose to avoid negative karma, but only by taking the risk of the comment being hidden from many readers. (Perhaps hide fluff = fewer comments and show fluff = more comments).

It is only a little like an "evil bit". It allows the poster to escape the consequences of evil (ie no down votes) by setting the evil bit. But that makes their attempts at evil easy to filter out.

Comment author: RichardKennaway 05 November 2012 05:45:46PM 3 points [-]

What I was getting at, though, is that labelling it a fluff tag doesn't make it one. People could use it for anything they like, and I predict it would end up being the resort of people resentful at getting heavily downvoted for their hobbyhorses.

Comment author: AlanCrowe 05 November 2012 06:55:13PM 0 points [-]

That is an interesting prediction. If true, then the fluff tag will not work as I expected. If true, what else follows?

Perhaps those with hobbyhorses to ride will tag them fluff and not end up bitter at getting heavily downvoted. Meanwhile, most LessWrong'uns hide fluff and are unaware of the various strange obsessions. Perhaps that is a small improvement to the site?

Comment author: Nornagest 06 November 2012 06:14:01PM 1 point [-]

Well, is soft exclusion of people with hobbyhorses a feature, or a bug?

I'm leaning towards "feature" for identity maintenance reasons, but this seems like an issue on which reasonable people could reasonably disagree.

Comment author: AlanCrowe 07 November 2012 10:45:52AM -1 points [-]

If I make a fine distinction between "soft exclusion of people with hobbyhorses" and "soft exclusion of hobbyhorses" am I reading your comment too closely?

The current system offers individuals a choice: talk about your hobbyhorse and get down voted, or just shut up already! That strikes me as the "soft exclusion of people with hobbyhorses". Having the option to talk about it, under the protection of the fluff tag is more friendly. It is soft inclusion of people.

But if most people read the site with the fluff hidden, the hobbyhorses are mostly invisible. I call that "soft exclusion of hobbyhorses". Is it a feature or a bug? I don't know.