Ah, interesting discussion, especially considering I read this during the time I started frequenting these parts.
It's really a fine line one has to walk. If you express your opinions to violently, you get regarded as a "hater." But it's just my feeling that people don't seem to understand that they can heavily criticize a series they like or say something positive about a series they hate.
After all, we all want better entertainment, right? I just feel that in order to really perceive what's good entertainment, is to have certain expectations and not just accept anything as adequate. Although most of us aren't targets for the anime industry, it's still a good mindset to have since probably everyone consumes some kind of media.
It's also the only way one can really rise above a lot of the noise. Any recent popular series will be hyped to the heavens, so being able to form an opinion of your own really helps you establish your own position first, before you are influenced by others. And then, you can share your opinions with others and by considering other people's thoughts, you can gain a better understanding of whatever you're watching.
It's not necessary for intellectual reasons. It's not like I don't enjoy moe or slapstick comedy, but even so, I feel my brain should be running even if there are boobs everywhere.
The moment your entertainment starts thinking for you, that's when it has started to fail.
So 2 years later, I can answer "yes, I am an anime critic"