Yea... I think people don't understand this concept. There is no "right way". Play how you want to play.
In the recent walkthrough preview, the narrator mentioned that a particular character "was a fan of being treated aggressively". That's where my concern stems from. If someone is a fan of being treated aggressively, how much is the player punished for using the suave or professional stance?
It's slightly different. "Guess which stance will get you free guns" is not the same as "Guess which dialogue option is read in a sarcastic tone". If I have to guess the tone of the dialogue, then that impedes my role-playing experience and makes it harder to realize the character I've imagined I want to play, let alone trying to guess which option the NPC wants me to use. Both are annoying, but "guess the stance to use" is a puzzle, hopefully with available clues, while "guess what tone this is read in" is poor design for an RPG.
I'm very excited for what Alpha Protocol can bring to the table with dialogue, even if it's not implemented perfectly.