People who comment on a site aren't members of some gang. Although it seems that all social news sites are eventually overwhelmed by people who think so.
Notwithstanding your objection to my use of poetic license, let me refocus: I argue your revulsion of TED's smugness is similar to other people's revulsion of our culture here. I once said:
"It surprises me that people can indict others with the adjective 'holier-than-thou' and not feel ashamed of themselves. The word screams, 'I'm going to bring you down to my level!'"
Smug, holier-than-thou, arrogant, self-righteous: one can easily inflict these words on pg for unashamedly littering his essays with references to Leonardo da Vinci and Jane Austen and Copernicus and Kelly Johnson. At times I've felt put off by the way he does this, but I'm rational enough to know this emotion - the emotion that coerces us to prevent our fellow apes from rising above their proper place - is wrong, at least in this case.
So what if TED is smug? They deserve to be - many of their videos are really, truly interesting. As an example, I recently enjoyed the one on African Aid: http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/159. I'll warn you in advance that he's a very captivating speaker - it's hard to stop watching after you've begun.
I think you're reading more into what I wrote than I intended. I enjoy a lot of their content and I've seen a lot of their videos. That's why I am so annoyed with the opening. I click it and go, oh crap, not this thing again. Fast forward!
People who comment on a site aren't members of some gang. Although it seems that all social news sites are eventually overwhelmed by people who think so.