From what quarters came said snarkiness - we need names.
One was from a reply to a post of mine on the NYT. What's funny is that I have a good friend who engages in major verbal combat on some Internet sites, then gets upset at the really stupid things people say. I've always said, "Why do you even do this?" He's far more combative than I am. I post very little apart from HHW, but I did expect better from the audience at the NYT. Silly me. That, plus general snarkiness.