Ask HN: Could HN be more meritocratic?
I would like to suggest a rethink of Hacker News. More specifically, I think that more should be done to limit up and down voting and comments to only those with intelligence and experience in the topics being commented on. For a few years in the 2000s, there was a smart group here, and commentary was smart, because there were only smart people here. To get back to that environment, YC could elect officials to offer only to the best of the best to join the new HN community where they would decide what goes on the frontpage and the commentary thereof. Does anyone else agree that it is a problem, and if so, how could HN limit discussion to only those with experience and wisdom in the subject matter?
3 comments
I think you should look the word "meritocratic" up in a dictionary.
meritocratic - government or the holding of power by people selected on the basis of their ability.
I want HN's power to be held by those that are able.
I don't want the current system where we give karma votes to each other to allow each other to downvote. Nor even do I want those without significant knowledge and experience to be able to post or comment at all on the HN frontpage. In the early days, most of those on HN were worth their salt. Those were the ones that talked and the rest of us listened. It's turned into something quite different since, and I believe it's also be driving the global direction of development into a tailspin because of the appearance of authority of those that should not have it influencing behavior.
I want HN's power to be held by those that are able.
I don't want the current system where we give karma votes to each other to allow each other to downvote. Nor even do I want those without significant knowledge and experience to be able to post or comment at all on the HN frontpage. In the early days, most of those on HN were worth their salt. Those were the ones that talked and the rest of us listened. It's turned into something quite different since, and I believe it's also be driving the global direction of development into a tailspin because of the appearance of authority of those that should not have it influencing behavior.
That sounds more like a blog.