I go off-topic if I know (with facts) a technical example or statement is misleading, such as linear constant-current control not contributing to global warming, or is used for motor speed control... Usually that doesn't derail a thread, but it does seem to take the piss on a decent discussion if people react and get cranky and defensive, unleash a wall of text or start up the flame thrower. I see it happen frequently- not just here, but on many Internet forums. Mixing noobs, professionals, enthusiasts, old farts, and jerks along with different language and culture - there will be clashes and it's bound to be noisy.
In social media, using up/down votes was supposed to improve the signal/noise ratio in threads, but bots and brigading etc. corrupted that idea. It's possible to manipulate votes.
Nothing better has been found. It all seems to rely on the manners of the community, or the hostile members get banned by the mods.
I think best is to ignore the few posts that wandered off-topic and adding new (relevant) posts to a thread seem to keep it going.