[aeberbach]

Linus has earned the right to that tone, care about Linux or not. Now when some unknown emulates it, that's the time to take note (and ignore that person ever after).

[jburwell]

This attitude is breeding the jerks and aholes in this industry. It is far too common to encounter teams and communities where in professionalism is accepted on a sliding scale of "accomplishment". If you accept this type of disrespectful/demeaning behavior from one "special" person then you will get it from everyone. Eventually, people tire of this type of nonsense and leave. You may be able to backfill their talent, but regular churn per mantle inhibits the creativity and velocity of the group. Linus is extremely fortunate that folks are paid very well to take it, and many very large companies (e.g. IBM, Red Hat, Intel, etc) have a significant portion of their long term livilihoods dependent on Linux.

[btilly]

Specifically the issue is that if offensiveness is considered a perk of being amazing, then people who think of themselves as amazing are more likely to be offensive to demonstrate that they are amazing. Sounds silly, right? But that is what leads to prima donnas.

[currysausage]

Quod licet Iovi, non licet bovi.

[themartorana]

Well quoted. It's always fascinated (and worried) me how the human brain allows for the elevation of certain people to God-like status, and then excuses behavior they would normally find abhorrent.

[wging]

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quod_licet_Iovi,_non_licet_bo... for others who, like me, don't speak Latin

[PakG1]

You know what, here's a thought. HN is a place that emphasizes civility. Would Linus be allowed to act like that here, or would we say that he's earned the right to act like that here? Double standards suck because something has to break to accommodate them, and often the things that break are the things that everyone else likes when the world is a nicer and more innocent place.