tomhudson's Journal: Our unique community

Some people deny that there can be such a thing as an online community, but it's obvious that, even with the hot debate that sometimes goes on (like the last few days re: my comments about whether the Bible is hate literature, gay marriage rights, etc), the people who lurk here on both sides of the fence can debate such hot-button issues at a higher level than happens in the "real world".

Maybe it's because many of us are programmers, and HAVE to think logically ...

Maybe it's because geeks ARE different ...

Maybe it's because ... well, what do YOU think the reason is?

Argue!

[robi2106]

I think geeks like to argue. Take vi vs emacs. Debian vs mandrake vs redhat vs slackware vs....

Must be some sort of territorial instinct that manifests itself in cerebral persuits.

jason

Re:Argue!

[Ethelred Unraed]

I think geeks like to argue.

I disagree.

*rimshot*

Maybe it's because

[Here I Stand]

... that notwithstanding the growing proportion of the population of developed countries with Internet access (see, for example a recent Slashdot article on the US Home Internet Access [slashdot.org] reaching 75%) the online population tends to be more highly educated than the general population. I would expect the subgroup active on Slashdot is even moreso (even allowing for trolls). I doubt that this is specific to geeks and their kin - I would imagine that even a site that attracted lawyers or MBAs would produce outp