Lots of good responses on this topic.
I just wanted to add one thing I have noticed.
People read things differently. One person may type it in one tone of voice while another may read it in another tone of voice. Does that make sense? It's all in how the reader reads the post.
I personally think PT was a little harsher a few months ago. But I've only been here about 6 months (wow, it seems like SOO much longer). I love PT and if I don't like how a thread is going I either won't read it or just won't go back to it again.

Can't we all just get along? LOL