2019’s most commented stories on Ars Technica—and their top comments!

Enlarge (credit: Aurich Lawson / Getty)

Yesterday, we gave you the top 20 Ars stories of the year in terms of number of readers. Today, it's time for a quite different list: the 20 stories with the largest number of comments. As a free bonus, we're including both the "highest-rated" and the "most insightful" user comment attached to each piece. If you're a regular Ars commenter, who knows? You might even find your own contribution immortalized here.

As you might expect, the stories on this list touch on a lot of hot-button topics, including neo-Nazis, opsec bungles by politicians, censorship, anti-vaxxers, and even copyright policy. Things are about to get spicy. Let's get to the controversy!

21. The Green New Deal bill (tie)

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's (D-N.Y.) Green New Deal was introduced in February. It envisions a public works program focused on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and employing American workers. The bill notes that the US is responsible for a large portion of greenhouse gases and argues that the US should take the lead in addressing climate change. As a non-binding resolution, it wouldn't actually do much, but it would "potentially affirm the sense of the House that these things should be done in the coming years."