I'm not writing this because I have to – I'm doing it because I want to. I think I know why everybody likes Dave Winer so much. He's direct, smart, sincere, and (most importantly) genuine. “This above all, to thine own self be true.” Shakespeare was writing about Dave. How do I know? Well, he, Robert, Patrick, Gretchen, and I went out to dinner in Palo Alto the other night. We had Chinese, in case you were curious. Even with spicy noodles on hand, the conversation had much more flavor.