6 ms·

Could you explicitly state what it is you are referring to? I'm not familiar with github's content restrictions.

gizmo686 11y ago
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9966118 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9966118 This was on the front page recently. 741 comments and only 480 upvotes, so it wouldn't suprise me if it set off the flamewar filter and got pushed off.
- jessaustin 11y ago
  It was surprising how long that stayed on the front page: it was still there when comments were ~550 and upvotes were at least a hundred less.
hga 11y ago
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9966118 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9966118 tl;dr: Observed fact, GitHub disappeared a repo (this I personally know for a fact) and all its forks, the only reason we can surmise is that it described itself as "X for retards". I believe it's this one https://github.com/WebMBro/WebMConverter https://github.com/WebMBro/WebMConverter now described as "WebM for bakas." (Japanglish for idiots or fools). Per this https://imgur.com/QC51FZz https://imgur.com/QC51FZz it was indeed for the use of that word. I'd be more willing to extend some slack to GitHub if they hadn't precipitously turned off their service for these repos, that's worse than this example of their "tolerance", but who knows what it'll be next? Who knows how this will play out in the long term; their trashing of their meritocracy rug suggests this is not a one off (ADDED: and erics32 reminded me of C+=). Why should I or anyone else concerned about long term stability invest in their particular value adds when they show such capriciousness? The great point, in relation to this topic of their latest investment, is that companies that depend almost entirely on their "communities" can screw those up and destroy their value.
- geographomics 11y ago
  What a curious turn of events. Is "retard" particularly offensive in some cultures? I wasn't aware it had such inflammatory power behind it.
  - samt 11y ago
    Yes it is highly offensive to many English speaking individuals in the US. It has historically been used as a highly derogatory term for disabled individuals.
    - hga 11y ago
      It's certainly at minimum an insulting word, and in this context unambiguously so. In the context of, say, aerodynamics, its merely a word of art, e.g. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/aerodynamic+braking http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/aerodynamic+braking It'll be another word, perhaps in a more ambigious context, next time. Which brings up another point: I just don't want to have to worry about what will become this politically incorrect in the future when I'm writing code and documentation.
      - ams6110 11y ago
        It's a perfectly good word that should not be banned: This patch retards the rate of retry attempts after three consecutive failures
        onion2k 11y ago
        It wouldn't be banned in that context.
        saryant 11y ago
        That requires people to understand context and nuance. We live in a world where a guy wants to ban Mel Brooks' The Producers because he doesn't realize it's a satire of Hitler, not an homage. Lots of people don't or won't appreciate context.

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9966118 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9966118 This was on the front page recently. 741 comments and only 480 upvotes, so it wouldn't suprise me if it set off the flamewar filter and got pushed off.

jessaustin 11y ago
It was surprising how long that stayed on the front page: it was still there when comments were ~550 and upvotes were at least a hundred less.

hga 11y ago

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9966118 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9966118 tl;dr: Observed fact, GitHub disappeared a repo (this I personally know for a fact) and all its forks, the only reason we can surmise is that it described itself as "X for retards". I believe it's this one https://github.com/WebMBro/WebMConverter https://github.com/WebMBro/WebMConverter now described as "WebM for bakas." (Japanglish for idiots or fools). Per this https://imgur.com/QC51FZz https://imgur.com/QC51FZz it was indeed for the use of that word. I'd be more willing to extend some slack to GitHub if they hadn't precipitously turned off their service for these repos, that's worse than this example of their "tolerance", but who knows what it'll be next? Who knows how this will play out in the long term; their trashing of their meritocracy rug suggests this is not a one off (ADDED: and erics32 reminded me of C+=). Why should I or anyone else concerned about long term stability invest in their particular value adds when they show such capriciousness? The great point, in relation to this topic of their latest investment, is that companies that depend almost entirely on their "communities" can screw those up and destroy their value.

geographomics 11y ago
What a curious turn of events. Is "retard" particularly offensive in some cultures? I wasn't aware it had such inflammatory power behind it.
- samt 11y ago
  Yes it is highly offensive to many English speaking individuals in the US. It has historically been used as a highly derogatory term for disabled individuals.
  - hga 11y ago
    It's certainly at minimum an insulting word, and in this context unambiguously so. In the context of, say, aerodynamics, its merely a word of art, e.g. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/aerodynamic+braking http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/aerodynamic+braking It'll be another word, perhaps in a more ambigious context, next time. Which brings up another point: I just don't want to have to worry about what will become this politically incorrect in the future when I'm writing code and documentation.
    - ams6110 11y ago
      It's a perfectly good word that should not be banned: This patch retards the rate of retry attempts after three consecutive failures
      - onion2k 11y ago
        It wouldn't be banned in that context.
        saryant 11y ago
        That requires people to understand context and nuance. We live in a world where a guy wants to ban Mel Brooks' The Producers because he doesn't realize it's a satire of Hitler, not an homage. Lots of people don't or won't appreciate context.