And, of course, in the interests of online forum discussions, you are absolutely correct.
If, hypothetically, a knuckle-dragger and mouth breather, bereft of both intelligence and education were to label such as myself an ‘idiot’, then that label might be so laughable so as to cause merriment rather than annoyance. In that case, I would absolutely agree as to the reminder to avoid the personal, and keep it to the general.