That is a distinct possibility when it comes to someone asking a question. But a bit improbable if the new user posts a recipe that they like only to be told it’s not fit for a dog to eat.
Is there anything to be gained from telling a person they used the wrong spice or they had too many carbohydrates for side dishes (if they did not ask for advice that is)? Isn’t that just basically saying “my” preference and opinion is better than “yours”. It’s subjective really. I’m not saying it happens a lot, all in all this is a great site, but I’m not blind to the fact that it does happen.
Statisically speaking, it’s probably low. Look at being struck by lightning, the odds are 1 in 6,188,298 that it will happen......but what if YOU were that one....or someone you loved was that one. Statiscally speaking, it’s not big deal, not a big deal at all........but to YOU it would be.
Those are good points Keltin, but speaking for me personally, I look at things (especially in the culinary threads) purely from an objective standpoint. If someone posts a recipe that I wouldn't cook for someone unless I hated them, I won't post that their dish sucks and that from the sounds of it, even Somalian refugees would spit it out. I usually won't even post anything in that said thread unless it
specifically asks for comments, suggestions, recommendations, etc. Usually, I may respond back to another poster who replied first, if they posted something inaccurate. If I'm asking for comments(or even if I'm not, it doesn't faze me either way), I'm prepared to hear both positive and negative ones, and so should anyone else. Now if a person doesn't want to hear those negative criticisms, then they shouldn't have asked in the first place (and even if they didn't; it is a public forum after all).
For example, if someone says, "Hey, I don't really care for foams and I think they are pointless."
I'll respond with, "Ok, cool. Have you ever tried them before? If so, how were they integrated with those particular dishes?"
If they were to say, "Oh, because that guy Marcel did it on Top Chef and all the other chefs didn't like him", then I'll tell you that you're an idiot to base your assumptions on other people's opinions, without ever having experienced it for yourself.
If you were to say, "Well, I've had it at a few restaurants and it just doesn't appeal to me. I'd rather have the texture of an aioli or beurre blanc", then cool. That's your preferrence. I don't have any problem with that.
But that's an opinion. It's subjective and can't really be measured. However, there are times that people confuse their opinion with fact (or lack thereof). In those cases, I will make it a point to address it because regardless of it's your "opinion", or whether it's what you "think" or "believe", it's still incorrect.