Programming

Sorry. No. They’re here because they want to be. If you can’t fathom exactly why, that’s your problem. Asking why anyone is “here” in a social media space often implies that they shouldn’t be here. This is clearly the case with your statement given the context of the original post being about quitting tech things.

If you find it inconsistent that they don’t want to do AoC but do want to hang out here, ask specifically about what you find inconsistent. It will avoid gatekeeping insinuations, but more importantly, actually force you to articulate your point which may often be too vague or incomprehensible to glean from implication.

For instance, in this case, the difference between social media and competitive coding/puzzles are pretty clearly significant (ie it’s the difference between a hard piece of work that feels pointless and casually talking shop that may also be conducive to actually pleasurable hobby projects). I personally find it hard to believe that you couldn’t imagine AoC and hanging here are different activities in terms of the original post’s statements. If true, bluntly asking “why are you here” is a poor bullying gatekeeping argument. If false, please refrain from asking people why they’re here. It’s gatekeeping or too easily construed as such and be more precise with your questions about such broad topics as what one enjoys in tech culture.