Flayrah is not solely devoted to news; essays and similar opinion pieces are permitted as long as they are clearly marked. (Readers are, of course, welcome to rate and critique such works on their merits like any other story.)
Furries may have many reasons for going for lower-quality, cheaper commissions. They might only have a small amount of money, but want a piece of art now. They might want a variety of depictions that could not be achieved with just a few pieces. They may think it's better to support artists-in-training than it is those who are already well-established (and expensive). Perhaps they even think commissioning artists will make them more popular with the artists or their friends; occasionally it does, though it's not recommended. These reasons are not all entirely rational, but then neither are furries. :-)
Taken to its logical extent, part of the piece's argument is that users should critique the work of bad artists/writers until they improve (or stop posting), for the benefit of other members of the site. This is not a "nice" argument, but it has a rational basis - it does not benefit visitors to have to read through dross to find gems, therefore it is the duty of those who care for the site to both highlight good works, and to seek to improve the average quality of all works through targeted criticism. Some creators may not appreciate this, but their views are rarely known in advance; besides, what matters for the goal is reaching the ones which do, and improving their work. As you say, this hinges on being able to provide useful feedback; but works with obvious, easy deficits are most likely to be critiqued.
Criticism should also be carefully worded to minimize any negative impact it may have on the creator, who is also a user of the site. The risk, as I see it, is that you piss off an artist or writer who is reasonably good - enough for their work to be of interest - but who is lazy/unmotivated and so lets things slip sometimes and is unlikely to improve. In a critical environment, these users may stop posting or even withdraw their existing work if they are also sensitive to negative opinion. In this case criticism may cause a net loss to the site.
Flayrah is not solely devoted to news; essays and similar opinion pieces are permitted as long as they are clearly marked. (Readers are, of course, welcome to rate and critique such works on their merits like any other story.)
Furries may have many reasons for going for lower-quality, cheaper commissions. They might only have a small amount of money, but want a piece of art now. They might want a variety of depictions that could not be achieved with just a few pieces. They may think it's better to support artists-in-training than it is those who are already well-established (and expensive). Perhaps they even think commissioning artists will make them more popular with the artists or their friends; occasionally it does, though it's not recommended. These reasons are not all entirely rational, but then neither are furries. :-)
Taken to its logical extent, part of the piece's argument is that users should critique the work of bad artists/writers until they improve (or stop posting), for the benefit of other members of the site. This is not a "nice" argument, but it has a rational basis - it does not benefit visitors to have to read through dross to find gems, therefore it is the duty of those who care for the site to both highlight good works, and to seek to improve the average quality of all works through targeted criticism. Some creators may not appreciate this, but their views are rarely known in advance; besides, what matters for the goal is reaching the ones which do, and improving their work. As you say, this hinges on being able to provide useful feedback; but works with obvious, easy deficits are most likely to be critiqued.
Criticism should also be carefully worded to minimize any negative impact it may have on the creator, who is also a user of the site. The risk, as I see it, is that you piss off an artist or writer who is reasonably good - enough for their work to be of interest - but who is lazy/unmotivated and so lets things slip sometimes and is unlikely to improve. In a critical environment, these users may stop posting or even withdraw their existing work if they are also sensitive to negative opinion. In this case criticism may cause a net loss to the site.