There isn't really an analog in your typical open source community. In fact, smaller open source projects tend to be so grateful for any help that asshole behavior is tolerated -- or even considered the norm. It's a sad state of affairs for the majority of us who want to contribute, but have no interest in dealing with a cesspool of assholes.
Sorry, but that sounds like an excuse.
Humans are thoroughly reprehensible creatures. There's a reason the living world is dying around us: that's because humans ARE assholes that generally destroy everything they touch. In some cases, that wicked Shiva energy is channeled in directions that benefit others ("open source", or what many profiteers say the "lunatic fringe" rightly calls "free software", is an example.) But in most cases, that energy is expended in (temporarily) fluffing the arrogant and greedy who, coincidentally or not, often seem to hover like vultures around those small eddying pools of curiosity and itch-scratching, eyeing their opportunity to profit from the collective labors. In other words, when something good happens, it's almost always an accident, and if that accident is profound enough, it needs righteous assholes to defend or protect it (like Linus does with Linux.)
So, that leaves you with a simple choice: create something for the whole with assholes that might benefit more than your local group, or not--and try on your own to profit from the assholes you manage to convince your wares are gold.
Of course, we're not addressing the concern of talent or competency here--that's a whole other layer that ALSO gets determined by assholes, the ones usually up or downstream of your project/work, either as user or developer or anything in between. And that is the area Poettering laments in his piece--which, lets be honest, has a whining tone--and seems unable to reconcile with how he sees his software (hi, Lennart!) and a great many others do (practically everyone on the "wrong" side of the systemd thing.) As many have noted, if there's significant pushback, maybe some re-thinking is involved, but that seems in short supply, particularly given the lofty position he finds himself in. With great power comes great responsibility, and one hopes humility, and that's where things seem to break down for him and the systemd posse.
In the end, he and you can just walk away if that isn't your cup of tea. There's no shame in saying "Enough! I'm outta here!" Just don't hide behind the idea the "open source" community is worse than working in a commercial firm because assholes are contained by culture--that's disingenuous bullshit. Ask anyone who's worked at a big firm and I'm sure they can name LOTS of assholes they've been forced to deal with during their time there. If you're lucky, you can do work that interests you and work around and with the assholes with the work driving you forward. Since most aren't, they just deal. Only a few play the victim card, thank the Dieties, but this gosh-darned Internet gives them a platform to vent their spleen.
Like I just did....
