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Comment by Dalewyn | Hacker News Reader

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Dalewyn·

It's the former[1][2].

I don't count mere downvotes as "flagging", not the least because I want to think words still have meaning.

[1]: https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/747297210613498216/11...

[2]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37106062

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Okay, I was just clarifying. Tone is really hard to convey and interpret but that read like you were jumping on me for clarifying.

I think that's what the problem is. The post in the screenshot is unnecessarily combative. It's not conducive to good discussion. It doesn't have anything to do with beliefs, it's just picking a fight. Change 'right' to 'left' or whatever group and it would've been flagged just the same.

The screenshot is a single question. How is asking a question combative? (I ask that non-combatively, in the weakest possible reading of the words)

I've only ever encountered "Do you have a problem with that/x?" as a challenge. Can it be used otherwise? Probably, but a native speaker would know how it's going to be received especially in a contentious topic like politics.

How do you propose that I find out if someone has a problem with x?

I think in the context of HN, that's not what you want to find out.

If I thought the other person just wanted a fight, I'd ignore them. If I thought a good discussion might be had I'd go something like

"I think X and Y is good evidence of A. Why do you think that isn't the case?"

Reply on news.ycombinator.com