Right, well the rest of my response still applies.

EDIT:

Sure, Owen has been behaving recklessly as well, but that doesn't mean we should respond with recklessness of our own. Instead, as is always necessary, a charitable attitude and a careful disposition is necessary for changing most people's minds about anything. (Notice though that in the thread with linkhyrule5, I admitted that I may be ascribing a harsher meaning to "calm down" than other people are.)

It's pretty uncharitable of you to call what I was describing a "Berserk Button". Makes it sound ridiculous or something, when what I was describing is something that's built into everyone's hardware, pretty much. I've spent my life toning down those sorts of emotional reactions, yet they're still there, to some extent. Everyone has them, whether they admit it or not. You do too, and you'd be well-advised to start thinking of yourself in that light. It's a fantasy if anyone thinks they're rational enough to take the content of criticism without being affected by the presentation.

So much the worse for him? This is nothing but arrogance, thinking "if my approach doesn't work, it's they're fault, not mine". Again, rational communication is a joint venture. If you think just throwing out whatever you want, as recklessly as you want, will help anyone, you're mistaken. Actually changing anyone's mind requires a level of charitability that, ironically, I'm most likely not exemplifying in this post.

I agree with the last point, however. Sometimes writing for the gallery really is what's advised. I guess I just reacted to what seemed like a lazy, uncharitable, reckless reply, with no obvious utility except as oneupmanship. But you bring up a good point, which is that you don't want to let counterproductive behavior stand, where certain people in the gallery may incorporate them, when they otherwise wouldn't have if you posted something. This makes 'was it a good attempt to help the person you're replying to' no longer the only consideration, as I was assuming implicitly.