Hmm, actually something just came to mind where quoting may hinder, though I've seen it with and without. Quoting may help focus on misdirection. Where someone wants to have a good argument rather than have a discussion. More a reddit game than HN but it does sometimes happen here, e.g.

Someone making point with a couple of paragraphs.

Commenter takes one sentence or point to shred, maybe it was a weak example or poorly phrased, to invalidate the whole.

repeat. After a few rounds it's becoming clear they're intentionally avoiding the main point.

Have I just committed the cardinal sin of being wrong on the internet? ;)