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A comment on Martin Shkreli is found guilty of securities fraud. Parent comment

Re:Martin Shkreli is found guilty of securities fraud by sliverstorm on Friday August 04, 2017 @04:48PM (#14932116)
It's funny how incredibly susceptible HN seems to be to the smooth talkers.

Yeah, I know this person is technically being charged with being a Russian double agent and committing treason, but he just seems so down to earth, relatable, and smart! Swoon!

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Martin Shkreli is found guilty of securities fraud by hitekker on Friday August 04, 2017 @07:17PM (#14933167)
It certainly doesn't help that we, especially here on HN, conflate intelligence and morality.

"Ah this guy is smart, so he must be a good person!" or "this person is bad, well he must be an idiot!"

I'd argue, this mental shortcut stems from the way we view ourselves:

"I know I'm smart, but I don't know if I'm good, so I'll just set $smartness = $goodness so I no longer have to worry!"

[ Parent | on HN ]