Repeatedly posing questions prefaced with “Can we agree...” comes across as a bit too much like cross-examination, and the guidelines specifically ask us not to cross-examine.

It doesn't matter if a snarky dismissal has some basis in reality; after all, pretty much every snarky dismissal does. The point is we don't want HN to be a snarky place. You're welcome to raise the topic of Google's corporate traditions in a curious, conversational style, just like anything else.