When someone is rude to me and I have strong reason to believe they will continue to be rude to me, the first thing I'm thinking off is whether it's feasible to cut them out of my life entirely as fast as possible. Being rude back will only delay and overcomplicate that process. Being polite while immediately cutting them off won't.
Some of the easy first steps to take is to imagine that unpleasant people are having the worst day of their lives. We’re talking their dog dying, their spouse having affairs on FaceTime with their boss who fires them during their act, their car exploding all their clothes being too short and their doctor telling them they have cancer bad. Or imagine them naked or whatever which either generates sympathy or makes them ridiculous in your mind. And then use assertiveness to get away from them as fast as possible.
At least in civilized society where going down the path of Khorne is frowned upon for whatever reason.
I find it easier to think in these terms.
People can have a bad day and you cannot always trust the chemistry.
Now, some people take this as a sign of weakness, and always look surprised when on the third time I tear their throat out.
Being polite to rude people is a good way for them to try to take advantage of you. At the very least, if you don't enjoy being rude, it's best to ignore them.
In the case of the article, HR messed up by being rude to someone who was polite, and so, got the well deserved cold shoulder.
But I would certainly find it acceptable to respond rudely to rudeness. Tit for tat.
On the other hand, last night I was talking to a cop. He said that, in dealing with unruly people, you have to use swear words if you want to get through to them. It's the language that they understand.
So there may be a place where rudeness is the only thing that will work. It's probably not every time I'm rude, though...
But responding rudely to rudeness is not about it feeling good. Most people don't enjoy being rude, which is why we avoid it. But sometimes it's necessary in order for the other person to understand that this is not acceptable behavior. Otherwise, they will continue to be rude both to you and others.