There’s no doubt that we can talk about pretty much anything on this platform, no matter how sensitive the topic is. Whether it's war, corruption, drugs, or other issues often considered "not safe" on mainstream social platforms, we generally manage to have open discussions and even agree on most things.
However, there's one topic that we consistently struggle to discuss in a meaningful and civil way: the downvote.
This is the kind of conversation that often spirals into endless arguments without any resolution until someone gives up and decides to leave Hive, usually moving to Steem or Blurt. Most of the time, the person who quits is the one receiving downvotes, and typically it's someone with less HP (Hive Power). So far, I haven’t seen a debate about downvoting that ended on a constructive note. Maybe such cases exist and I’m just unaware of them, but from my perspective, none of the downvote wars have had a positive impact on the Hive platform.
If they did, wouldn't Hive be performing better by now? Or maybe, just maybe, these downvote conflicts have helped prevent the platform from crashing to a zero valuation. That’s one way to look at it.
created using Sora
As I reflect on the different aspects of these downvote wars, I can't help but feel that when we justify downvoting as a tool against reward pool abuse, it signals a lack of creative ideas for making this platform thrive. If downvoting is the only solution we have to fix abuse, then perhaps we’ve reached a point where there's not much more we can do, at least for now.
I realize that my expectations for this platform may have been unrealistic. I remember years ago when we thought Steem or Steemit was revolutionary, something we called the "Facebook Killer." It even ranked fifth in the crypto market cap at one point before declining for various reasons. And after the fork, we believed Hive would be better without Justin Sun’s influence. Unfortunately, things haven’t unfolded the way we hoped.
Even after removing the people we thought were harming the platform, Hive still hasn't managed to thrive as expected. Despite the current downturn, I still believe there's hope as long as we keep believing in it, even as our community continues to shrink with more users leaving than joining.
The idea that this platform will become a Facebook Killer is no longer realistic. In fact, it now feels more like a niche Facebook Group, one focused on crypto and Hive development. That comparison got me curious, so I looked into how our user base compares to Facebook Groups. I found that the Facebook Group ranked 500th has an estimated 200,000 to 300,000 active members, significantly more than the total monthly active users across all Hive communities combined. That really highlights how far we've fallen from the glory days of Steem.
But don’t be discouraged. Having a small user base doesn’t always mean failure. Sure, it’s frustrating that this chain isn’t getting the attention it deserves, especially considering its superior blockchain technology. Compared to major crypto communities like Solana or Sui, Hive is still ahead in many technical aspects.
Ultimately, it may just come down to alignment. Some users can’t or don’t want to align with the direction this community is going in, so they leave. And that's okay.
I’d rather have a smaller user base where we mostly agree with each other than a large one filled with endless arguments and unproductive downvote wars. We don’t need a massive number of users anyway. Personally, I prefer interacting with just a few people who align with my principles and thoughts. Maybe I only have the attention span and energy to engage with a small group, so I don’t really mind seeing our user base shrink over time.
Hmm, wait... why did I even have these thoughts and end up writing a post about it? Oh right! I remembered I was mentioned in one of Ureka.Stats’ posts where they shared statistics related to downvoting. They listed all the downvoters and the downvoted creators—myself included! 😄
But hey, like I mentioned earlier in this post, we shouldn’t feel bad about receiving downvotes or harbor anger or resentment toward those who give them. They’re probably, or at least hopefully, trying to improve the platform in ways they believe are beneficial. And honestly, we can’t really judge whether a solution makes sense until it actually solves the problem, no matter how strange it might seem at first. So let them do what they do... because who knows, they might just turn things around and make a real difference on this platform.
And if that really happens, then great—cheers! 😄
Join the CryptoCompany Campaign here:
https://peakd.com/hive-196769/@cryptocompany/engdeu-banner-for-boost-a-fair-exchange-to-grow-together
click here ⏩ City Life Explore TikTok Page 🎦
Hi Max, I just saw that there is a new post in 3 speak about a Hive Tik Tok Community. Maybe it would be of some interest for you to join.
Regards, Zac.
Sounds cool! Im gonna check it out :) Thanks a lot mate!
Just trying to help mate. :)
About 6 months ago I introduced a user I connected with over on Arena and he had 10K plus followers on DeSo. He put up a quick intro test post and was instantly down voted.
Needless to say those people peace out.
Extremely weird strategy some of the Hive community is executing.
With the proper game theory a platform can grow.
Kicking a new user in the ribs as they try to pick up a penny isn't it.
That example really hits home. Onboarding should feel welcoming. We lose potential users or investors with that kind of approach.
Thanks for sharing this bro. Hope that things will become better instead of having a potential self destruct.
Appreciate that. I hope so too.
https://peakd.com/hive/@khrom/why-downvotes-contradict-decentralization-a-mathematical-perspective
Thanks for sharing that link.
An Inconvenient Truth, we are very small.
Still think we can grow but we need a boost/catalyst.
Absolutely! the potential is still there, but like you said, we need a spark to reignite growth.
This is such a grounded take. It’s frustrating sometimes to watch Hive struggle, but you reminded me that not everything needs to be huge to be meaningful. Small, strong communities matter too.
Exactly! A small, engaged community can still create real impact. Appreciate you resonating with that.
This is a very salient point you raised here. Thanks for sharing
Thanks a lot! Glad the post sparked some thought.
It's my pleasure! Sure it did!
While I'm reading this, I this platform how it's works, I'm always reading some post because I was new here I want to more about this platform... Is glad to know also this this platform is you can post everything without restrictions.. it's frustrating sometime to make a blog base on this platform but by reading and browsing I slowly learn how it works
Glad to hear you're exploring and learning! Hive does have a lot to offer, and it takes time to get comfortable. Keep going, it gets easier.
Hive is more than the blog aspect of the network. I have met people who only go to Hive for gaming or shop with HBD at the local store
Nice publication
Have a good day
Totally agree... Hive's use cases go far beyond blogging. Thanks for the reminder, and hope you’re having a good day too!
You received an upvote ecency
Thank you so much!
[@PowerPaul:]
Hey buddy. Greetings! Because of your participation in the CryptoCompany community you received a vote from @CryptoCompany and its trail! Thank you for your participation in the "Banner for Boost" campaign & Hive a great day!