That guideline is not there because we don't know how annoying HN comments can be, but because we do know. Reacting by adding snark or denunciation to the threads just makes things even worse.
The only response that really helps, in reaction to bad or unsubstantive or obvious comments, is to post good, substantive, non-obvious ones.
I wish I had seen the deleted comment. My take was obvious, but it was intended as a compliment to the creator of the piece, not to incite argument. Still, I'm curious to know why I got trolled for it.
https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
That guideline is not there because we don't know how annoying HN comments can be, but because we do know. Reacting by adding snark or denunciation to the threads just makes things even worse.
The only response that really helps, in reaction to bad or unsubstantive or obvious comments, is to post good, substantive, non-obvious ones.