Making a joke at Alexa's expense is fun. Making it at your friend's (possibly huge) expense? Not fun.

I mean, what would 'nepthar do if for some reason the police actually showed up? Or if he/she found out later that their neighbour was denied boarding because TSA pulled some logs from somewhere? I mean, besides having a story to leak to papers, how would 'nepthar feel about getting their friend in life-threatening trouble?

As minuscule as the possibility is, the joke seems funny mostly because this possibility exists (or at least is perceived to exist). This all is akin to doing pranks to scare the shit out of random people. It all sounds funny until you realize that some of those people may have heart conditions and could get seriously harmed by such a pranks.

Maybe nepthar was making a joke because nepthar has a sense of humor. Maybe that joke was highlighting the absurdity of having an unsecured, always-on listening device in your home that may be used against you.

Instead, Hacker News tries to rip him apart for not observing the chilling effect said device creates, despite the complete legality of it. Ironic.