Pattern-match:

why do so many people accuse others of wanting attention when the actions prompting it are entirely not focused on other people at all, while they don’t tell people that starting conversations is attention seeking even though it is?

Almost all comments are posted at least in part for the sake of response. What's provocation? In particular, how is it different from nonconformism?

Ok, the next question is whether being voted below -3 is a good proxy for a comment being provocation for the sake of response.

For example, I strongly suspect eridu simply honestly believes the insane ideas he espouses, does he count as "provocation for the sake of response", if not what do you think the appropriate response to his comments should have been?