[–] dali 0 points 12 points 12 points (+12|-0) ago
I don't understand these people asking for the removal of downvotes. They want to keep upvotes, but not down? How does that even work? Things just get voted up - what is the point of that?
Either get rid of the voting system entirely, or keep it as-is.
[–] theotherguy 0 points 9 points 9 points (+9|-0) ago
The Facebook generation.
[–] 123_456 0 points 6 points 6 points (+6|-0) ago
Things get upvoated they gain visibility.
No upvoates, no visibility. Not getting an upvoat is like getting a downvoat.
I know it would annoy people, but I think it could work. It would be something that would differentiate us from reddit. We would be more positive, and people would feel more welcome I feel. Also, this is how votes work in real life. You vote for the president. You don't get to downvote the other person. The idea of a downvote is an internet thing.
[–] weeeasles 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
. Not getting an upvoat is like getting a downvoat.
I disagree. No one commenting on something is not at all the same as someone saying 'hey this is a shit-post'.
I'm coming at this from the mindset that there are always those who would try to game the system. For example, let's look at reddit.
Reddit votes and accounts are now a commodity that can be purchased (literally, there are websites for it). If someone wanted to push some bullshit to the front page, they just need to get enough up votes (shit, you can get on the 'hot' section with like 5 votes in 1 minute). Companies, spammers, liars, and brigades have often used these tactics successfully on reddit. With the exception of content that breaks the rules, the only thing stopping this exploitation is down votes. Its how the community shows it's actual interest (not bought and sold votes).
Additionally, /u/dali has a point. Most content gets some points. How do we show the stuff that actually is popular and interesting to the vast majority (or even sort by the controversial stuff, since that can be just as interesting) if we can't express a dislike for certain content?
[–] coinslists 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
Maybe it shouldn't be an internet thing. I'd be motherfucking downvoat hoarder if we could downvoat presidential candidates. Upvotes don't count in that shit anyway.
[–] twavisdegwet 2 points 9 points 11 points (+11|-2) ago
I just want to lurk and silently shame my peers. Is that too much to ask!?
[–] water_and_shade 0 points 9 points 9 points (+9|-0) ago
Good point? Is this v/circlejerk? At least we know this post won't be downvoated into oblivion...
[–] CowboyXero 0 points 8 points 8 points (+8|-0) ago
Problem with that is, no matter what the rules are, no one is ever asked to defend their reasons for downvoating. It's a disagree button one way or the other and many others feel the same. Next Confederate Flag Walmart Removal post I see I'll reply and watch...
[–] flamero 0 points 4 points 4 points (+4|-0) ago
Problem with people using downvoat as a disagree button is that it stifles real discussion by hiding opinions that go against the grain. What you're left with is just a circlejerking echochamber where the hivemind keeps patting themselves on the back.
[–] Piranha 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
But removal of the downvote button wouldn't solve this issue. If we would just ignore the opinions we don't agree with they will just disappear down at the site as do downvoted now.
As much as a downvote should be used to mark useless comments an upvote should be rewarded to useful comments. Both buttons are misused as disagree or agree buttons.
[–] CowboyXero 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
You're absolutely right but there are people in this world who are just jerks who can't handle fact when it hits them in the face. Their only act of defiance is that downvote because they know it will hurt you. I see a ton of stuff on Voat and Criticl that I vehemently disagree with but my take on it is the same as with dealing with people in general. Take a deep breath, remind myself I don't look good in prison orange, smile at that dumb fuck and walk the hell away with my headphones on.
Some do not share that philosophy and their lives are so empty they must hit that button. If I ever downvote something, I will say exactly why I did it and it will be in plain English.
[–] coinslists 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago
What if downvotes required intelligent comments relevant to the post title? http://imgur.com/c62wx9Q
[–] CowboyXero ago
I would actually have no problem with that but, again, it's unenforceable due largely to the fact that there are people out there who will downvote and post something like, "this was just stupid" as their "intelligent" response.
[–] CptnCrunch 0 points 5 points 5 points (+5|-0) ago (edited ago)
I kind of feel everyone complaining about downvotes/downvoats on what ever site have their own moral high ground pedestal they envision what they're supposed to signify and get outraged when people don't use them in line with their views. My view is a downvote means you think it's a shitpost/garbage/you disagree.
Oh, but to shield yourself from that, prefix your comment with "I'm sure this will get downvoted, but... " to show how brave you are.
[–] plastination_station 0 points 5 points 5 points (+5|-0) ago
some people I'm sure have some severe social anxiety/awkwarditis so they literally are trying to come up with quality comments but can't and get genuinely bothered when they go negative. bothered then leads to frustrated which leads to whiny.
[–] DjangoRed 6 points 59 points 65 points (+65|-6) ago
Downvotes should be used for spam or shitty effort. It's disingenuous to say that the community's wisdom shines through the dispensing of upvotes and downvotes. Downvotes are the lazy fucks way of expressing disagreement and are almost always used as such, moreso as voat has grown.
The reddit hivemind is just plain wrong about so many things. I had to write literal five paragraph essays if I went against the reddit hivemind and I wanted to have the "community" on my side. Fuck that. As voat grows, the same thing will happen.
I shouldn't have to continuously apologize for possibly offending people, so people don't shutdown when reading my comment and going into autodownvote mode. I shouldn't have to explicitly state if I'm playing devil's advocate or if something is not my personal views.
I stopped commenting on the majority of reddit because the noise was so bad. If I did feel so compelled to leave a comment, I stuck to a stream of thought style of commenting. I just wrote whatever came to mind and posted. No proofreads. No rewrites. Any more effort was not worth the time spent.
[–] big_fat_dangus [S] 2 points 23 points 25 points (+25|-2) ago
Sounds like you care more about what people think of what you have to say, than what you have to say.
[–] [deleted] 0 points 20 points 20 points (+20|-0) ago (edited ago)
[–] Reow 0 points 10 points 10 points (+10|-0) ago
I'm with DjangoRed on this one, but it's not because I care what other people think. Downvotes on Reddit were frequently used to silence/hide any dissenting opinions. Rather than the most constructive and best comments being at the top of threads, it was those comments that agreed with whatever circlejerk was currently possible. Aside from this discouraging people from participating in discussions (I mean, what's the point when your thoughts will be buried), it also sucked as someone coming to the comments looking for discussion (half the time sorting by Controversial provided better discussion than sorting by Top, but then you had to read through all the crap as well).
[–] AthleticSharts 0 points 5 points 5 points (+5|-0) ago
I somewhat agree because I say what I'm going to say and it doesn't really bother me if the internet points are positive or negative. What does bother me is when a well thought out and reasoned post is buried (mine or anyone else's) because a few shitheads are "offended" but don't even bother with a reply to refute or disagree. I don't care if you downvote someone, but at least say why (if someone else hasn't already made your point).
[–] whynotanon1 0 points 4 points 4 points (+4|-0) ago
downvotes are a ware to censor unpopular opinions by removing them from the public eye. they should exist only to curate content
[–] Tawm 0 points 13 points 13 points (+13|-0) ago
Exactly, the whole 'downvote = disagree' attitude is a big part of why Reddit became such an echo chamber. People want Voat to be different, but they don't realize that how the community acts has a major influence on how the site works. If people want Voat to be more discussion based than Reddit has been lately, they have to actually discuss things instead of downvoting people for being 'stupid'.
Nobody wants to put effort into writing a comment if they are just going to get downvoated for having an unpopular opinion. As people get discouraged from downvotes, they might start giving up on commenting. This leads to the discussion being dominated by people supporting the popular opinion, and once the only people left are the people who agree on everything, there's not even anything to discuss anymore.
[–] toomuchcode 0 points 4 points 4 points (+4|-0) ago (edited ago)
This is a (crazy?) idea I have been toying with: When you click the downvote button, a prompt comes up, where you must type the reason why you are downvoting - and if the reason isn't spam or something very nasty (personal attacks?), you risk losing your downvote privs.
People with disagreements should engage in the comments rather than seek an easy way out via internet points.
[–] coinslists 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
What if I told you that you must add valuable content prior to casting your vote?
[–] immibis 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago (edited ago)
I have to wonder if you should also need a reason for upvotes. Majority opinions being heavily upvoted is just as bad as dissenting opinions being heavily downvoted.
I never used Slashdot, but apparently it has some kind of system like that, with a handful of reasons something can be up/downvoted.
[–] weeeasles ago
We should also be able to specify that the content was low quality, a shit post, or otherwise poorly executed.
For example, when some racist makes a part about blacks being naturally more violent, and uses statistics of incarceration rates to make their point. We know that in all actuality, income level has more of a meaningful correlation to violence etc. However the racists post wouldn't be a spam post, but it certainly wouldn't be fostering discussion in any honest or fair way.
[–] 123_456 0 points 4 points 4 points (+4|-0) ago
I actively fight giving downvoats, but I sort of have to remind myself each time that I do not want to create the community that is reddit. So, I don't use downvoats as a disagree button.
[–] coinslists 0 points 4 points 4 points (+4|-0) ago
Downvotes should be a "that's useless" button. Dissenting opinions should be welcomed. Minds that don't change belong to dead souls.