Hacker News new | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submit login

I think that's the reason why this list is so clever.

It is made so that it is hard to tell the difference between sabotage and being genuinely helpful. If you ask people to advocate caution when you know there is a good chance for an accident to happen, it is helpful. If you ask people to advocate caution even though the risk is low and everything goes well, it is sabotage.

Precise wording may be important in a legally binding contract, or when misinterpretation can have serious consequences. The way you sabotage is by doing that on points where it doesn't matter. For example, let's say you want to publish a memo telling people to bring back the encabulator to the store room after they finished using it, a common sense reminder. A saboteur can start arguing what is meant by "finishing", for example, what if it is needed an hour later, maybe suggest a logbook, special rules about overnight use, etc... when in reality, all that is needed it to remind Bob (who may be a fellow saboteur) not to be an asshole.




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: