I specifically don’t comment on people that give off the vibe they might be one of those kind of nutjobs, precisely because it gives them a notification with my username attached if I do. I’m on this site to kill some time with low effort, I don’t want any risk of attracting the attention of some weirdo.

I downvote in those scenarios and then report if appropriate. If enough other users feel the same way the comment goes down to the bottom of the thread and fewer users see it. Especially if it’s something that a mod eventually removes, as it reduces the reach until a mod can get to it.

If I risk retaliation for doing that, I (and others) will just stop, meaning those comments stay up front and centre and we lose that soft moderation plus that engagement in general. Going into the comments will just end up being a worse experience