1. hilarious because it itself is an example of this behavior, we aren't discussing the article, but instead a tangent from a few words from it
2. an instance of Parkinson's Law of Triviality: it's just easier to respond to a comment than to read an entire article. Plus, many people read comments first to try and determine if an article is worth reading. So you end up with engagement in spinoff discussion, especially when the original is harder to read or understand to a general audience.
1. hilarious because it itself is an example of this behavior, we aren't discussing the article, but instead a tangent from a few words from it
2. an instance of Parkinson's Law of Triviality: it's just easier to respond to a comment than to read an entire article. Plus, many people read comments first to try and determine if an article is worth reading. So you end up with engagement in spinoff discussion, especially when the original is harder to read or understand to a general audience.