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this post was submitted on 05 Jul 2024
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Because if downvotes are used to express disagreement then all it does is sort by “things agreed on by the first people in this community that saw it.” In fact many sites (like Reddit) explicitly say that’s not what it’s there for.
Is that how most forums and communities should operate to you? Do you believe that’s how we should sort things? If so then I simply disagree with that notion and there’s not much more to say. If you don’t, then there’s your answer.
I don't have a strong opinion on whether or not downvotes should be used to signal disagreement but I don't think there's much point in debating that because that's how they are used. It seems like the only options are coming to terms with that or not using sites that have the option to downvote. I really don't think it's that big of a deal though. If someone doesn't know how to disagree with others without it ruining their day then they need to learn that skill anyway.
It’s totally worth debating it because we could simply not have downvotes or at least hide vote scores. That changes people’s behavior demonstrably.
I disagree. Have I ruined your mood now or do I have to actually downvote you for it to work?
I can see we’re well past the point of productivity then. Have a good weekend, truly.
I mean it was mostly a joke but it's also semi serious. You seem capable of disagreement without it bothering you much so I don't get why the number next to a comment is different. Yeah some people use it in a dumb way but that's true of pretty much everything.
Believe it or not I actually want to create forums/communities where the cream does rise to the top and everyone feels safe/welcome at all times, so I have a lot of opinions on how they should be run. Voting systems (or lack there of!) are critical for how things operate and meaningfully impact everyone’s experience, so it matters to me.
And at the end of the day, why shouldn’t I care?
You're obviously allowed to care and to express that. I hope you don't hear me saying that I think you're dumb or anything like that. In fact it's pretty much the exact opposite. Most of the time when I see people complain about downvotes they're trolls upset that it hampers their ability to be a troll but you seem like a reasonable person so I am simply seeking to better understand your perspective.
To put it another way I agree with your first sentence but I don't generally feel like visible downvotes prevents that from happening. I actually think downvotes function to encourage good discussion more often than not. That isn't true in all cases but it seems easier to be discouraged or get the wrong idea about prevailing sentiments if the dumb comments are just sitting there next to the good comments with no indication that a majority of other users also think they're dumb.
I don’t really agree but I appreciate you’re laying out your stance and giving me something to consider anyway :)