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Then you are optimizing for a minority of your audience and alienating the majority, all for a shade of gray. Readability should never be compromised.

edit: And before this is perceived as me being hostile rather than my intention of helpful (though it seems it already has), let me say that this is the kind of site I have been looking for. And thus I want to use it and want it to succeed. But certain design decisions can imply things to users that may not be intended. Content that is difficult to read, especially content which calls for interaction, does the opposite of what its intended for. And that makes users feel as if they're not wanted.

I think here's where the difference would apply. Designers almost all of them use high resolution displays. And maybe Designer News is aimed at those designers, who're at the cutting edge.
Do you really think "almost all" designers use a specific model of a specific computer that shipped about six months ago? Hell, I consider myself a half-assed designer and won't upgrade to a retina MBP because a) the screens have issues b) the web has issues and c) most of the design software I use has issues.

Designing websites in a way that only works well on retina displays has to be one of the most ridiculous examples of the Silicon Valley bubble in recent memory.

That in itself seems like bad design, doesn't it? :)
Well, its just designing for a target audience. It isn't universal design if that's what you mean.
I'm on a 15" Retina and everything other than the links is still too pale (ditto for your screenshot). The links are the most important thing though so it's not a big deal IMHO.
Whats the link between resolution and contrast between colors?
The outline of type is rendered in much more detail on Retina – which makes the font seem thicker and accounts for the better readability.

You're right: that has nothing to do with the contrast.