One could argue then that the author failed to get the point across, even if the point might have merit.

It's any author's task to make their cases in a way so that people pay attention. In this case, this maybe failed. As I mentioned in my other comment: Using terms such as "offensive" when trying to make a serious point to fact- and argument-oriented people (which one typically finds on HN) might not work very well.

It's better to be critical of the author's approach to making the case than to assume that the problem are the readers.