I think this is what happens when you mix current affairs and politics with a partially anonymous, virtual discussion system. These topics are incredibly emotive even amongst the most rational of agents. Discussions about pure tech, running a business, hacking (in the non-geopolitical sense), investment, etc. (i.e. what HN focused on pre-2009ish) continue to be quite productive here.

(I'm not saying current affairs and politics aren't worth discussing, but they're worth discussing in better venues that provide appropriate features for participants. What we're seeing here is the equivalent of discussing high end fashion in a haberdashery forum.)

First, the vitriol here can be incredibly helpful here. If HN commentors hate a business idea or a company that is going public or talks about how there is a bubble in something, it is a great tell that the concept or trend will work.

What I want is a "no politics" button. Those that want to discuss politics, social issues, wikileaks, SOPA, Stratfor should have these discussions, but I don't want to hear them.

Also maybe an overlay script similar to Reddit Enhancement Suite where you can block specific users and those with brand new accounts.

When a forum becomes succesful, the signal/noise degrades. The "how to fix it" post gets floated here once every quarter, so I don't know how much improvement can be had.

Maybe people who swoop in on this meta thread including poster should be hellbanned?

Ah, right, righteousness only applies to others.

please dont post meta threads, they don't really help anything except a stir up more flame wars.