In principle this is what it's used for, however it's mostly used to vote down comments people disagree or agree with.
For example if I say something like global warming is an incorrect theory on a related topic I'd get voted down simply because most people disagree. Technically that statement did no fit the formal criteria to get voted down but people use it incorrectly.
For example, I assume murder is illegal everywhere I go.
Climate change is also highly politicized. That just makes it harder to tell the reason behind the downvotes, because chances are that other people see your comment as a way to push a (very dangerous) agenda. I’m that case, adapting the tone of the message can perhaps help, although -as I pointed out before- it doesn’t take much to reach the bottom score.
In light of that knowledge that we may be wrong, the best course of action, the safest course of action, is to go ahead and listen to the uncensored ideas of the other side.. even when we disagree that climate change is false. The best test of truth is the power of the thought to get itself accepted in the competition of the marketplace of ideas.
Those are the ideas that we can safely act upon. Every year, if not every day, we have to wager our salvation upon some prophecy based on imperfect knowledge. That, at any rate, is the theory of our Constitution. It is an experiment, as all life is an experiment.
People with karma > 30 who think they can't flag comments are usually missing that there's an extra step to go through for comments (as explained in the FAQ: https://news.ycombinator.com/newsfaq.html#cflag).
Or maybe that's just why you think you're getting downvoted for?
To be fair, that would have fit your list just as well.