I think the high rating of the comment is a reflection of the problem that Eliezer’s post was sub-par (especially taking into account that he’s, you know, brilliant). Voting up a (partial) rebuttal, even if it isn’t great on its own terms, is a reasonably polite way to express this.
(But I’m very new here—this is my fourth comment—so maybe I have no idea what the dynamic is.)
I think the high rating of the comment is a reflection of the problem that Eliezer’s post was sub-par (especially taking into account that he’s, you know, brilliant). Voting up a (partial) rebuttal, even if it isn’t great on its own terms, is a reasonably polite way to express this.
(But I’m very new here—this is my fourth comment—so maybe I have no idea what the dynamic is.)