As someone who was on the receiving end of some of the "witty repartee" that you refer to, let me assure you that I did not find it to be witty. It was not funny. It was not clever. It was uncalled for, and it was disgusting.
The "unfavorable climate" on this thread was contributed to by many people, all as equally responsible.
Snappy. Snappy repartee. (I didn't watch your exchanges with the poster in question, so I can't really comment...if you were kind and respectful to someone who in turn insulted you, then you are right to be angry.)