&gt; Ever asked a stranger out and been shot down harshly?<p>I don&#x27;t think this is a great example. Just because it happens doesn&#x27;t mean that&#x27;s a great response, either. It probably took courage for someone to work up the guts to ask you out. Even if you have no desire of accepting their offer it&#x27;s just common decency to decline with respect and not make them feel like absolute crap while doing it. The same thing could be said for answering questions - except it&#x27;s even easier, because when it comes to a question StackOverflow you don&#x27;t have to even respond to not be an asshole. If someone doesn&#x27;t feel like it&#x27;s worthy of their time they can just move on and not say anything at all.