Paul also protested, according to Luke:
Acts. 23:3 —
“Then Paul said to him, “God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! You sit there to judge me according to the law, yet you yourself violate the law by commanding that I be struck!””
That would certainly have gotten snowflakes howling on Free Republic.
Paul wrote epistles to Christians on how to treat each other, not just advice to anyone at anytime.
He even had churches kick out Christians who were overtly sinning.
I value the admonition inherent in Ephesians 4:29 to think (and pray) before speaking, considering not how to make myself feel better but rather how to bless the hearer. That works when addressing believers and nonbelievers alike.
Forty-five years ago I attended a talk by one of our pastors on that verse. I memorized it then and have employed it many hundreds of times since. Those occasions when I neglect it usually serve strongly to reinforce its necessity.