Rude by Default: Why Directness Protects Open Source

There’s a difference between being rude and direct. The world doesn’t owe you anything—you’re just a temporary guest that found refuge in something called feelings. In open source, those feelings have become weapons against progress. Rudeness isn’t the problem—it’s the cure.

The Conference Call From A Few Weeks Ago¶

Some guy recently bragged on a conference call about being “Github Star in open source.” I asked him, “Star at forking people’s work and building slide decks? Because your GitHub is emptier than the Libyan Desert. Everything is from 2 years ago or archived drafts.”

He asked the moderators eject me. They ejected him instead. Why? Because he was full of air, and everyone could smell it once someone punctured the balloon.

Should I have polished the words? No. Pattern Parasites build and improved entire playbooks for polite people. Hit them with directness like a brick through a stained-glass window, and the whole cathedral of bureaucratic manners collapses.

The Pattern Parasites’ Defense Playbook¶

These parasites read from the same script every time:

• “Nazi” the moment you mention heritage.
• “Anti-semitic” if you critique one person who happens to be Jewish even if you are yourself Jewish.
• “Toxic” if you refuse to install their HR policies.

They love politeness because it keeps everyone quiet. When you’re direct, it wakes people up. It gives the quiet builders courage to say, “Yeah, that guy is full of shit.”

What Are Pattern Parasites?

Pattern Parasites are entities that extract value from open source projects while contributing nothing meaningful in return. They colonize projects through bureaucratic processes (CoCs, governance frameworks, compliance requirements), then siphon attention and resources while claiming to “strengthen” the ecosystem.

Unlike contributors who improve code, documentation, or user experience, Pattern Parasites feed on process complexity. They’re the digital equivalent of invasive species—they consume the host’s energy while producing elaborate justifications for their existence.

Pattern Parasites aren’t just freeloaders—they’re like weeds. They take over projects, wrap them in paperwork, and drain all the energy while claiming it’s “for everyone’s safety.”

The Linus Principle¶

Look at the so-called “rude” giants. Linus Torvalds builds the kernel that runs half the planet. He’s harsh because he’s an immune system. He throws the middle finger, calls your patch garbage, bans you if you’re a liability.

He can do that because he can build the kernel without you. When you’re building something important, you don’t let a kid run around throwing toys everywhere. You kick them out.

The moment you let politeness matter more than being right, your project is fucked.

Case Study: Capistrano-Sidekiq vs. the CoC Industrial Complex¶

Pattern Parasites love to plant their seeds through “helpful” pull requests. A few weeks back, PR #336 landed on capistrano-sidekiq. Title: “Strengthen the Capistrano-Sidekiq project with a Code of Conduct.”

“Hello! I am Maryblessing Okolie, project manager at Contributor Covenant by Organization for Ethical Source. I noticed your open source project doesn’t currently have a Code of Conduct…”

Notice the title: “Organization for Ethical Source.” This isn’t some grassroots community effort—it’s corporate appropriation wearing an activist costume. They want to make your project “ethical” according to their standards, which just happen to align with corporate governance requirements.

Translation: “Nice repo. Would be a shame if we rewired it to run on permission slips.”

My answer:

“Hi Maryblessing,

Appreciate the concern, but Capistrano-Sidekiq ships without a Code of Conduct and will stay that way.

This is a deployment tool, not a debating club. Only civilized sangomas are allowed here.

We don’t do politics, we don’t do religion, and we definitely don’t do imported HR policy PDFs disguised as open source ‘trust building.’

I don’t care if you’re human, AI, man, woman, or sentient Sidekiq queue.

The only question that matters: can you deploy Sidekiq in a respectful way?

If yes, welcome aboard. If no, no amount of covenanting will fix that.

Best, Abdel”

That wasn’t me being mean for fun—it was protecting the project. capistrano-sidekiq kept working. Users stayed focused on deployments. The parasite went away because they couldn’t get what they wanted.

Here’s what Julik meant about hands-on experience: check Maryblessing’s GitHub. Empty. Drew DeVault? Has projects but uses them as weapons against other creators. Compare that to actual maintainers—people who ship code, fix bugs, handle support, deal with edge cases across multiple platforms.

The people pushing CoCs often have never maintained anything meaningful. They’re professional process installers, not builders.

This is what “rude by default” looks like: the project keeps working, and the bureaucracy stays outside.

The Drew DeVault Saga: When Parasites Attack¶

Drew DeVault opened PR #1913 on basecamp/omarchy, demanding a Code of Conduct. The community hit it with 201 downvotes on impact.

Same pattern: on his blog he calls DHH a “rich fascist weirdo” and brands the project fascist. Then he knocks on the door with a CoC in hand, knowing the answer will be “no,” so he can weaponize the refusal.

It’s not chess. It’s the prying TrashPanda that flips your trash can just to blog about how messy your yard is. Is Drew smart? Absolutely. Is he consuming his own fumes? Also absolutely.

The Commodification Pipeline¶

Here’s how individual Pattern Parasites like Drew DeVault are actually advance scouts for corporate takeover. The pipeline is predictable:

Step 1: Code of Conduct gets added - Sold as “community safety,” it’s actually corporate-friendly governance. Makes the project “professional” and “investor-ready.”

Step 2: “Community” takes over - The original creator gets outvoted by “stakeholders” who never wrote a line of code. Democracy for people who don’t contribute.

Step 3: Creator gets pushed out - Like Julik’s 30 lost libraries. “Thanks for building this, we’ll take it from here.” Original vision dies under committee management.

Step 4: Project becomes corporate tool - Innovation stops. Everything becomes about “stability” and “enterprise adoption.” The thing that made it useful gets killed.

Your rudeness breaks this pipeline at Step 1. When you tell CoC pushers to fuck off, you’re not just protecting your feelings—you’re protecting your creation from corporate appropriation.

This is why Pattern Parasites hate directness so much. Politeness is their entry point. Rudeness slams the door shut.

The Only Code of Conduct That Matters¶

If your contribution produces less value than the noise you generate, the project is better off without you. That’s the only rule worth enforcing.

I used to ignore those PRs, worried about the next Hacker News pile-on. I’ve got a trail of enemies, Pattern Parasites whose invoices I shredded when they tried to bleed NGOs dry.

Reddit banned me because I refuse to delete history. Parasites kept reporting my comments, even when I apologized or explained the joke in replies below. People can change, but their past is immutable. If I was wrong, I’ll apologize right there, in line. I won’t pretend the first commit never happened.

It’s a blockchain for behavior: you push a bad transaction, you push a fix. We count how many times you fork your worldview. Nothing wrong with changing your mind—just make sure the diff is an improvement.

The Lesson From Julik¶

As Julik wrote in his recent blog post The Boss of It All about creative control in open source, this isn’t just about being mean. I didn’t know Julik before, he didn’t know me. But he looked interesting, so I replied. I don’t reply 2000 times per day on X to rank my followers. My reply was like a scout mission: is Julik another #BuildInPublic dreamer?

Because there, they’ll tell you stories about how they got 3000 clients overnight by adopting Buddhism, build fake friendship with you, then you discover they’re full of shit. You try to help, they abuse you.

Julik gets it: “Own what you create. Not because you are greedy, but because you are responsible.” He lost control of 30+ libraries he built. That’s what happens when you’re too polite to say no.

Being “rude by default” IS taking responsibility. When someone tries to install a Code of Conduct in your project, they’re not helping—they’re starting a takeover. Being direct isn’t mean, it’s being a responsible owner who won’t let parasites destroy what you built.

When someone calls my approach “rude,” I call it quality control. If your work actually matters, you can defend it. If you’re selling vapor, honest feedback destroys you.

“Rude by default” isn’t about being an asshole—it’s about keeping Pattern Parasites from taking over your project. It keeps the real work louder than the bureaucratic noise.

The days when parasites could destroy careers by organizing Twitter mobs against people like Lunduke Journal are ending. Their accusations of “toxic” and “problematic” are now just background noise. We ignore it and get back to shipping.

The Bottom Line¶

Respect comes from defending your work, not from being polite. When you’re right, directness cuts through the bullshit and shows the truth.

You can’t afford to be timid if you’re hollow. You need substance to swing the hammer. Otherwise you’re just another Pattern Parasite filing paperwork in the ruins.

Pick your side: Are you building the machine, or are you writing compliance reports for the people who never touched the metal?

Join the Resistance¶

Every maintainer who says “no” to bureaucratic bullshit makes it easier for the next one. Every time you tell Pattern Parasites to fuck off, you help protect the whole ecosystem.

For Contributors:

• Contribute code, documentation, or meaningful bug reports
• Respect maintainers’ time and decisions
• Focus on the technical problem, not the political process

For Maintainers:

• Your repository, your rules
• Don’t apologize for having standards
• Remember: every “no” to bureaucracy is a “yes” to progress

The Pattern Parasites have had their run. Now it’s time for the builders to take back open source.

Captain’s Log, Stardate 2025.271 - End Transmission

“Per aspera ad astra, per bureaucracy ad /dev/null”