My comment history serves as a counterexample to this claim. I make plenty of comments on controversial topics, often in opposition to mainstream opinion. I g

My comment history serves as a counterexample to this claim. I make plenty of comments on controversial topics, often in opposition to mainstream opinion. I get lots of critical responses, but I only rarely see downvotes, and have only one comment that I know of that's below 1 (deservedly so; it was snarky and non-contributory). I'm neither timid nor controversy-avoiding; I just present my controversial ideas in a way that's engaging and enlightening.