Last I checked, HN isn’t OPs personal army, as it were. I’m sure that the replier is aware of what was being asked, and what they were responding with. To suggest otherwise is condescending.

This is a social network. This sort of conversion is not just allowed, but encouraged. Perhaps you’d feel more at home on a Stack Exchange website, where like-minded individuals will stand alongside you in enforcing a strict Q&A format, even when it doesn’t make sense to.