Don't get me wrong. This site's dunking culture is good and it serves an important purpose. It's an immune system that stops bad-faith trolls and fascists from getting a foot in the door. Just like a biological immune system, though, it can get overactive and start attacking its own body. This is called an autoimmune disease and it can severely damage or even kill its host body.
What's appropriate for a lib or a fascist who refuses to even consider whether they might be wrong about our fundamental ideas isn't appropriate for a comrade who, in good faith, is voicing an opinion you happen to disagree with. This is very similar to something Mao talks about in his essay "On The Correct Handling Of Contradictions Among The People." Mao's essay splits contradictions into two types:
- Antagonistic contradictions are those between class and political opponents with irreconcilable interests. There's no real debate to be had here. They're enemies. You don't engage in dialog with them. You defeat them.
- Non-antagonistic contradictions are those that occur within a class or movement. The interests of all involved are fundamentally aligned, but there's disagreement on how to advance those interests. These disagreements are resolved through discussion that improves mutual understanding and allows for arrival at a consensus.
Applying the analogy to posting on Hexbear:
- Antagonistic contradiction: A chud wanders in to lecture the site about how Stalin killed 50 quintillion people / Hamas is an evil terrorist group / the transes are corrupting the youth. You can't convince these people and it's not worth trying. Post dunks, express hostility, drive them off. That's community hygiene.
- Non-antagonistic contradiction: A comrade who's been on this site for years voices a concern that you posted something bigoted / disagrees with your interpretation of a work of media / advocates engaging with people politically in a way you don't consider effective. You both want communism, you are both anti-imperialist, you both want Hexbear to be a welcoming space for marginalized people. Good-faith dialogue is a way to share information and enhance mutual understanding. Responding to these people with insults and dunks just pisses them off and discourages them or anyone watching from engaging with the site except to post their own insults and dunks. The site becomes more toxic and hostile.
ngl i think in the end the opponents of federation on here have been vindicated, though most of them have left or been banned by now. I'm not saying its the only cause or even the main, but before federation it felt like the overly dunk hungry people on here were a minority that had just been a bit brainrotted by twitter + still engaging with reddit and everyone else had gradually tamed over time after like 4 years of not being hit with "go back to r/chapotraphouse" everytime they commented anymore. Post-federation though everyone got brainblasted with liberals coming back in here arguing + the fun of going out to argue with liberals on their hometurf + constant posts celebrating people outside crashing out after they got dunked on too much and tricked into looking at a picture of a shit covered pig + an influx of users who see us just as the "communist dunk instance" and now we're mostly isolated again that culture's turned inwards on itself again. I know I've definitely been too snarky on here, and I've had people be unreasonably aggresive at me on here over very minor disagreements.
Also the 'approved enemies that its ok to say anything to' things gone a bit far, when i used to use the hexbear mastodon instance years ago i remember once posting about mark fisher on there and having someone reply that it was a good thing he'd killed himself because he'd been annoying online and anti stalin
I see your point however I think it presupposes that our community was never going to be able to rein itself in with the dunking. Then again, you may be correct about that. I favor federation, but I guess that was in hopes of having the opportunity to actually build community, ideally with done mild discipline/ROE, but obviously that never happened.
There are some chill people, but this site is extremely "you're not wrong, but you are an asshole" which gives a certain level of vindication to the "tankie [ this and that] " complaints from federated users. I have made many posts about how I am concerned that the site is on its last leg if it doesn't change its ways.
One possible solution that I have brought up is a partner instance (call it "square bear" or something) that turns its shoulder away from irony and dunking, and had more of a tolerance for liberals and less educated potential comrades. Make u/cowbee a sitemod on the first day. It will at least offer a chance at a "stepping stone" community.
I have ideas for other instances too, if anyone wants to chat more you can use this Link to add me on deltachat (fdroid) (e2ee and more anonymous than signal).