Good point. I don't think people should downvote stuff simply because it isn't their thing.
I downvote comments that I don't believe are accurate, it's my stake to do what I want with, and it helps move comments down lower.
This was my favourite reason for being downvoted recently (You jumped in on that at one point but never downvoted).
As I mentioned before most people aren't downvoting because of the reward pool. There is plenty of real obvious abuse to downvote if you are actually worried about the reward pool.
It's not often they'll strip your products off the shelf because the sales were too high. Usually they'll want to put more and keep it full.
I remember that conversation. And look, we can argue one day, get along the next. That's how a lot of folks are in life. The internet makes everything a spectacle, everyone's putting a show, on a blockchain nobody wants to be wrong, people want to fight with fists that don't hurt then feel like winners. In comments I tend to be more, me. It's my posts that get outta hand sometimes. I'll just stick to the entertainment now. Still up for a good debate though if you're ever down for it. I do like talking to folks and try my best to listen as well.
And you're right about what you said here about downvotes. I almost feel like editing one line out of the post now. Whatever, I'll leave it.
One way or another we definitely need more attention here, even if it is an Internet spectacle. For better or worse, it usually comes with drama.
In general, I find people who can't argue less intelligent - I'm not talking about morons who just shout. So, I'd rather chat with those who disagree and have logic behind the argument. My feelings don't hurt when I'm wrong, if anything my opinions change and adapt and I end up feeling humble, etc. It's an important feeling to have sometimes.
I don't like to shy away from any debate or argument. There are posts that are written for it, also replies. I think you do a good balance between debate and entertainment and that is how everyone should be. We have an audience made up of individuals, we do best to make sure they are all satisfied every so often.
I've put way too much thought into downvotes. They suck. It's way easier just to move on and try to get more upvotes. But I'm more like you, I'll focus on what is wrong or what annoys me to try and change it even though I know it is much more profitable to write more posts in the meantime.
When I'm applying those natural tendencies to be entertaining into a serious concern, though the point is made, it won't reach enough people and confuse others. This post, I made sure to remove most of the entertainment. One fart joke. I thought it was hilarious. You'll notice the language is clean, except for the asshole part, but that's talking about me.
I don't know if this post will make a difference. The way it starts out, I assume it will be judged and not clicked or read since folks might assume I'm repeating myself, but really I was adding to things I didn't get a chance to detail, since my posts can already be long as it is. Nobody wants a novel. It would be great if people asked questions.
And about debates. One thing that really bugs me is when people resort to explaining how you're "arguing wrong" and flip the conversation into personality flaws or presentation discrepancies. Had that happen not so long ago. If I had taken the bait I'd probably still be there talking in circles. Sometimes it's best to walk away and that's something I've been working on. I don't need the last word.
Being entertaining while giving a message is tough. The best I can personally hope for is getting some feedback from different people.
If a few of the people reading your post understand your argument, it could make a difference. You mentioned reward disagreement being a problem, but then you went on to define what is acceptable and what isn't. I basically agree with everything you added, we may be forgetting a few cases.
I'll accept when people point out hypocrisy or logic flaws in my arguments. I think the professional terms of what you mentioned are ad hominems and incoherency. Both are actually worth addressing. I try not to take the bait (I worked in customer service long enough to get experience), but call out BS when it's presented. Walking away is really tough, but then again the last word is a good one to have. Just keep in mind, it's 'your' last word you should be concerned about, not 'the' last word.
I had thought about adding 'low effort overly rewarded' content to my list of disagreement or 'not likes' but these days with things like ASK HIVE, that's signaling to the community they'll finally acknowledge triggering mechanisms. It doesn't take much effort and it's the engagement being rewarded. Part of what helped my blog see some measure of success at times was using things like humor and making damn sure nobody ever knew what was coming next. Triggering reactions and curiosity. Drama does it as well but most days I'd prefer to have a fun comment section.
And about those ad hominems and incoherency: It sucks when you say something, a tone you didn't have is added, things are taken out of context or misinterpreted, no questions are asked, conclusions are made, then you're accused of those things you mentioned, even though it wasn't your intention. Right now I'm rushing to type this. Do you think I care if things are worded perfectly? Then it backfires and if someone wants to go there, there's no coming back. LOL! FML.
Low effort low engagement, on average overly rewarded works for me. But I definitely appreciate the posts that at first glance look like low effort, but aren't. It's difficult. For example, I'm good at some things and can do much better in 5 minutes what might take the untrained hours to do worse. Also, some people have a reputation and a following and can get better engagement and discussion by asking the same question, slightly differently or not. It's still a high-quality skill.
Humour and people not being sure what's coming next is a good one and really fits your style, I'm not sure it would work as well for mine. We all have our tricks of the trade. Hopefully, we can all agree the more the merrier. No one can fully know what will make this platform great, it's why I take a long term outlook. It's slowly getting better, maybe too slowly, whatever.
I don't mind people who are writing without careful consideration all the time. I'm sure we both agree the main point is to recognize BS when it is called out. I just don't get that vibe from you in general and like you I'm not one to require that /s mark which is also why I dislike reddit.
"A high-quality skill." I like that. And yes there are pointless low quality posts being rewarded. They often fall into that reward farming category when people notice it's becoming a problem. An honest creator wants to be impressive. Some folks settle for low effort and don't expect high rewards at all, earn very little, and that's cool, too. No problems there. If they're happy, I'm happy.
Some want to shoot for the stars, do really good, complain about not getting noticed, but act invisible at the same time. I could teach folks a lot but many tend to stick to their plan, which is fine, and I hope it eventually works for them. If not, change your approach a few times at least, before giving up.
If people want to be taken seriously, they shouldn't use humor. Simple as that. Entertainment in the context here isn't all about laughs. It's more about doing something that gets attention in general. You can entertain guests. That doesn't mean you're sitting there telling jokes all night. All you're doing is doing what makes them comfortable.