Exaggerations are a popular stylistic device for getting attention. Those who engage in very hot debate here will only in future be judged by how much staying power they had to outlast the times of great controversy.

For your part, you suggest concern that these voices may be too dominant to bring possible crowds here or to keep beginners from bailing out quickly. It maybe the case, but I doubt it, for other reasons may play a bigger role.

Freedom, I also feel, is about allowing the controversies to shine over people's heads and not taking "bad publicity" as a reason to do the thinking for others too quickly. Most assumptions are wrong anyway, I would think.
People come and go when they lack fun or find technical hurdles too high, not so much because of gossip. I'd even argue that the heated debates keep a lot of people in line who would otherwise be long gone due to boredom (haha, just speculating again). There's a certain fun factor in the bickering.

At least, that's what you can tell from the number of comments.

Personal vanity, who can claim not to have it? I, for one, have not yet been able to rid myself of it. LOL Have you? Mastering comments in dialogue is an art in itself, I think. Being offended too quickly is something one can try to get out of the habit of, but to do that I think you have to get to know your interlocutor for a while and be at least a little interested in them.

However, fellow readers will certainly appreciate it if those in dialogue with each other don't say goodbye to each other with a "fuck off". I think everyone is impressed when they see how, despite differences, they learn to maintain a halfway reasonable including humorous tone with each other. Who knows, this whole debate is more of an "in the middle of the process", no one is perfect at it, it seems to me.

I support your view on "freedom needs no permission". I answered also on @ura-souls comment.