Why do you think it is inappropriate? It seems to be a reasonable complain. Online petitions are inherently unreliable (just like online pools). Most of the time, they don't reflect real concerns and are subject to arbitrary popularity. e.g. the death star petition [1].

Now, it doesn't mean that it is all bad, but this is serious debate (and surely not an inappropriate one)

[1] https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/secure-resources-a...