So there are two separate questions. (1) Consider having a religious argument in various different places. Where will you get a good one? (2) Consider doing various different things in this HN thread. How will they work out?
It could well be that the answer to #1 is that HN is one of the best places to argue religion on the internet -- but also that arguing religion is one of the worst things you could do on HN. [EDITED: or, more specifically, in this HN discussion that nominally has nothing to do with religion.] In fact, I think it's likely that both of those are true, and the first may actually be because of the second.
... Because if HN starts being a common venue for religious arguments, it will tend to collect the sort of people who want to get into religious arguments, and regrettably those are often not actually good people for having religious arguments with. The same goes for politics, race, gender, and the like.
HN is mostly civilized and intelligent because as a community it makes some effort to avoid temptingly polarizing discussion topics, and the least civilized and intelligent discussions on HN tend to be on those temptingly polarizing topics.
It could well be that the answer to #1 is that HN is one of the best places to argue religion on the internet -- but also that arguing religion is one of the worst things you could do on HN. [EDITED: or, more specifically, in this HN discussion that nominally has nothing to do with religion.] In fact, I think it's likely that both of those are true, and the first may actually be because of the second.
... Because if HN starts being a common venue for religious arguments, it will tend to collect the sort of people who want to get into religious arguments, and regrettably those are often not actually good people for having religious arguments with. The same goes for politics, race, gender, and the like.
HN is mostly civilized and intelligent because as a community it makes some effort to avoid temptingly polarizing discussion topics, and the least civilized and intelligent discussions on HN tend to be on those temptingly polarizing topics.