You're right that my reply to you got downvoted, and it's also true that this
stirred up my emotions a little.
However, this system is bothering me for long.
Heck, even this topic got downvoted after somebody upvoted it again.
I don't share your experience with this system: from what I've seen over the
last months, abuse of it was the standard, not the exception.
The thread you are referring to (I also don't want to ressurrect it...) was
only the worst of them all.
You're also correct that this has nothing to do with "freedom of speech" in
the very sense of the word (stating opinions without gouvernmental
prosecution) but in a broader sense, it has.
Shouldn't this community be the most tolerant and freedom-loving of them all?
One downvote already shows disrespect for no good reason, three downvotes
(only three...) are sufficient to hide posts. This is terrible.
What's wrong with a moderator taking action when things get out of hand?
They even do, every now and then.
And if somebody doesnt like an opinion, then he can _reply_. That's right,
not pressing a button, not hiding the post or marking it red, just replying
with a valid reason and some constructive points.
Wouldn't that be a way better alternative to the current system, which is so
vulnerable for abuse?
Wouldn't that be suitable for an open minded community?
