>saying both in a workplace is unacceptable.

I feel like you[1] are missing the point to an extent (or at least taking away something different from the comment than I did). I don't think that yf was asking for permission to say this him[almost certainly]-self. But was demonstrating that as long as men in power think these thoughts, but can't express them, the grey-zone and its associated problems will exist.

The blog post introduces the issue, and yf demonstrates it (all the more by causing so many HNers to bristle at his comment).

I'm not necessarily saying that men in power should start blurting these thoughts out, and they would run great personal risk at doing so. But the situation of the unexpressed existence of these thoughts, perversely hurts women of potential power much, much more than it hurts the men with the thoughts.

I think political correctness is the Nash equilibrium in most remotely similar situations, but that leaves the problems presented in the post, and so... Ultimately, I think that dismissing the hypothetical thoughts-cum-pronouncements as "unacceptable" is counterproductive with regards to lowering the barriers to power for women insofar as we are willing to accept the thesis of the original blog post[2].

OK, now to backtrack a little... I'm not saying that they are acceptable, but I read the hypothetical comments as intentionally built to be considered unacceptable. Under that reading, it's not particularly productive to give them that label and then call it a day. They were, in a way, the unspoken background to the blog post made explicit in a feather-ruffling HN comment, and uncomfortable as it is to consider, putting their existence out there makes it possible to push the conversation forward. But not if we just shame such untoward behavior out of hand. Doing that promotes the status quo. We all get to feel good about ourselves, that we're publicly fighting for the cause, but ultimately nothing gets resolved.

Sorry, I know that that reads as a personal attack. That is not the spirit in which I mean the comment. I think that the urge to suppress or ignore uncomfortable truths is one of the feedback loops that makes discussions on this topic so virulent. It's not meant to be directed at the person that conducts the SolarNet account, but at us all, the community that struggles with the difficult subject of inequity among us. It often feels better to jump to the defense of honor or decorum than to really dig into the ugly truths behind the issues that cause us harm. But when we follow that instinct, we often leave the infection there under the surface to fester. I think that this particular issue is tricky and damaging enough to the community to warrant some leeway on decorum when discussing it.

In the interest of commiseration, I'll admit that I found that I bristled at the comment as well. I'm not endorsing it, but I think that if looked at in the right light, it is a very useful comment. Really, it does nobody any good to try to shame yf (and honestly, judging by this comment alone, I'm not sure that yf is easily shamed). But it is useful to acknowledge the existence of thoughts of this kind (as well as their tamer brethren) since if we fail to do so, we'll be incapable of identifying their role in the problem.

[1] Along with many others commenting on this indelicate comment
[2] I for one find the thesis rather compelling