I read your comment in its entirety and didn't see any defense of the How to Disagree essay. The only mention I saw you make of it was the first paragraph with

I read your comment in its entirety and didn't see any defense of the How to Disagree essay. The only mention I saw you make of it was the first paragraph with the ad hominem attack. To answer your question, no I don't think your usage of ad hominems invalidates everything you say. It does detract from the quality of the discussion and the pleasantness of the site, though. It also detracts from your ability to communicate effectively. I completely agree with geomark's comment (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11072755 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11072755). There are a lot of comments on this article that are little more than name calling, personal attacks or uncharitable assumptions.