Agreed, addressing the bully directly allows them to see they are wrong. The HN “just downvote it” is passive aggressive and disincentivizes interaction. It may work well for Apple related threads or other noisy topics to help cut the noise down but you’re still basically telling people to “shut up” which feels bad if you’re on the receiving end. Some people are just emoting even if it’s off-base.

Responding to cruelty with more cruelty, breeds cruelty.