I got the sense that Denning might have some sort of mild anxiety disorder, but I'm not any sort of expert on the subject. It doesn't sound to me like he dislikes users, rather he dislikes certain kinds of interactions. E.g.:
> When something feels like a demand (even a small demand such as “please respond to me” or “please review this pull request”), I often retreat. It is very common for me to take days, weeks, or even months off from open source because I get overwhelmed by the people asking me to do it. I experience a lot of initial anxiety due to the demand, followed by additional anxiety about me delaying my response.
> When something feels like a demand (even a small demand such as “please respond to me” or “please review this pull request”), I often retreat. It is very common for me to take days, weeks, or even months off from open source because I get overwhelmed by the people asking me to do it. I experience a lot of initial anxiety due to the demand, followed by additional anxiety about me delaying my response.