zlacker

Some message boards solve this issue by letting posters specify their location as a field in their profile (and displaying a flag under the username, etc.). Not advocating this for HN, just pointing out how that gets solved by other communities (weak profile differentiation is part of the appeal of HN, but also a magnifier for these issues).

>>GuiA+(OP)
We wouldn't display flags—textiness is a core principle here—but if people felt like a location field in profiles might help ease misunderstandings, that's something we might do. Would most users fill it out though? I'm kind of doubtful. More at https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23547013