Although my account is recent, I've lurked HN for many years, almost daily.

I'm not dismissing the experience in the post, and I'm more surprised by it since I rarely find examples of open bigotry or sexism in the comments (although I noticed that in recent years some discussions are getting very polarized).

People in here seem to me to be open to rational discussion, and, yes, you do get controversial opinions, but mostly I think people are open for discussion.