News for hackers. Stuff that matters.

A comment on Man with ALS writes patch for Gnome using morse code (with touching story). Parent comment

Re:Man with ALS writes patch for Gnome using morse code (wit... by prpon on Sunday February 27, 2011 @02:56AM (#2267505)
When you are dying, All rationality goes out the window. Working on open source project is the last thing they worry about.

Let me ask you something. Whom do you respect?

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Man with ALS writes patch for Gnome using morse code (wit... by Groxx on Sunday February 27, 2011 @03:46AM (#2267537)
>When you are dying, All rationality goes out the window.

This is ALS. A progressive, multiple-year disease. Via Wikipedia[1]: Death usually occurs within two to five years of diagnosis.

I've met plenty of rational dying people. Except when it comes on extremely quickly, most everyone I've encountered or heard about has been more rational than the people around them, not the reverse. People don't suddenly become invalids when they have to face their own mortality.

[1]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amyotrophic_lateral_sclerosis#D...

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Man with ALS writes patch for Gnome using morse code (wit... by anamax on Sunday February 27, 2011 @04:54PM (#2269092)
> When you are dying, All rationality goes out the window.

Are you "not dying"? I ask because I've never met anyone who wasn't dying. Yes, most of us don't have a good idea as to what the attending MD will blame or when, but nevertheless, the vast majority of us are dying and know it.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Man with ALS writes patch for Gnome using morse code (wit... by VMG on Sunday February 27, 2011 @09:51AM (#2267909)
A certain theoretical physicist and cosmologist would disagree.
[ Parent | on HN ]