Comment by dTal
8 years ago
I've read the converse, that a comment without a vote harms a story's ranking.
I'm certain there's something (unintentionally) perverse in the ranking system, but as it's secret it's impossible to say for sure.
Secret rules that manipulate our behaviour are damaging.
I may have misremembered. Whichever it was, I believe that the intent was to discourage low-quality discussion.