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Comment by lowdose | Hacker News Reader

I would love some policy experimentation with downvoting because downvotes are demotivating and reduce engagement and discussion bandwidth. I think downvoting amplifies herding behavior.

I propose only giving the right to downvote after a comment reply is posted because as commenter a -3 value doesn't contain any information about the comment itself.

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HN does have some policy around downvoting - you have to have ~600 "karma" before you can do it.

Reddit doesn't any restrictions at all, and of course that's a massive echo-chamber. But Facebook and Instagram only have upvotes (likes) and the communities are either massive hugboxes or ghettoes.

> I propose only giving the right to downvote after a comment reply is posted

100% agree...

“I disagree.” Can I downvote you now?

That’s what not requiring comments prevents: useless comments that are just posted so people can downvote. So now your comment section is flooded by “I disagree” comments and you can’t downvote those without leaving a comment as well. It’s a self-serving cycle.

You reverse causality, you shouldn't use a downvote when you disagree with someones opinion to begin with.

I took a karma hit of -4 on the comment above just because people disagree with an idea I proposed.

@dang has said downvoting for disagreements is ok. I can’t remember where, but he has.

It's all in our heads. Human species is obsessed with the opinions of others and they define us more than what we actually do. So ignoring downvotes (and upvotes!) is actually a good mental exercise.

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