[crock_smacker]

> Political content of any kind is considered mainstream and off topic by many people here, and thus unlikely to lead to curious and intellectually stimulating conversation. Which is the only kind of conversation we're allowed to have. Good hackers aren't supposed to find this interesting.

I agree mostly, however the mods repeatedly allow high karma accounts to flame bait and continuously makes exceptions for the worst political threads. The guidelines are very vague and allow for any number of interpretations.

The rules exist through the zeitgeist of the community, not through any text about hacker, novelty, etc.