I was was thinking of leaving HN for exactly this reason,

I'm not long here but I already noticed that I often receive downvotes for being positive or having a social conscience, and oddly on the one occasion I expressed a controvertial (and negative) view I received a significant amount of upvotes.

I had always thought HN was about open, free and frank discussion where everyone's view counts, but unfortunately I'm afraid to say, I'm not getting that vibe at the moment.