Thoughts about debates, blocks, and downvotes

People block others. People post about blocking. People post about the people who post about blocking.

And now we have a buzz about downvoting. So, this got me to put some thoughts together.

Suppose I wanted to post a certain political opinion. Here are two versions of how I might do it.

Version 1: I think President X is/was a better president than President Y.
Version 2: Only a brainwashed idiot could fail to see that President X is/was a better president than President Y.

(OK, version 2 is not really my style, but hypothetically...)

Anyone would be well within their rights to block me in either case. Blocking, if nothing else, is a way to customize your feed so that you don't see things that detract from your experience here. If you blocked me, I would never conclude that it was because "you couldn't stand to hear the truth and are so pathetic."

If I used version 2, you might block me because of my hateful manner, rather than my political opinion. (There are even users here who I tend to agree with politically, but whose posts I dislike because of the tone.) So if you get blocked, it might not be because of what you said but because of how you said it. And in that case, griping about someone "not being able to stand hearing the truth" is a bit self-serving on your part, IMHO.

As for debating or arguing with what I posted: if I posted Version 1, then I think it is really out of line for you to respond with ad hominem insults toward me. On the other hand, if I posted Version 2, then I should be prepared to take whatever you dish out.

As for down-voting (which I am not planning on using anytime soon), I would reserve it for Version 2. Although we are reassured that the "penalties" for being downvoted are mild ones, I would not want anyone to be penalized simply for expressing views with which I disagree. But it might not bother me so much if the person were penalized for expressing those views (or views with which I do agree) in an adolescent bullying manner.

Just my opinions.

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Piper · 61-69, F

I think you've expressed your thoughts on these subjects very well indeed, and would even if I didn't agree with everything you've written.

Blocking has always been a popular subject, in this and the few other similar sites I've participated on. Although I have an aversion to using that option myself, I have for a long time seen that "I was blocked because people can't stand hearing the'truth'" claim as extremely arrogant and superior sounding. Those who say that, most always choose "Version 2" in what they post.

As far as this new anonymous downvoting feature, I can't see anything remotely positive about it.

DrWatson · 70-79, M

@Piper Guess what? This post has received a downvote!

I don't think I have ever blocked anyone based on what gets posted in public. I have blocked some people who magically appeared in pm's, hoping for sexual conversation. But I soon learned that those profiles vanish on their own, or at least they stop trying to pursue things with me (since they are fishing site-wide for a response) and there is no need to block them.

bowman81 · M

@DrWatson Probably from the management since the whole downvoting thing was their brainchild and it has received such a warm reception. 🤣

Piper · 61-69, F

@DrWatson How about that. Probably from someone who frequently claims they are blocked because they are one of the few who knows or speaks the "truth".

The one time I blocked someone, it was for the same reason. I did end up unblocking that account, and have never seen or heard from them again. If I had, I'd either have ignored the message or blocked them again. I do mute accounts here though, when what they post is consistently stuff better suited for a porn site.

Peapod · 61-69, F

@Piper Isn't that nuts that anyone thinks they "speak the truth"? It's nothing but narcissism to me.

Piper · 61-69, F

@Peapod It sure is when they act as if they are one of few individuals on earth clever enough to see the truth, or "brave" enough to speak it. 😐

Peapod · 61-69, F

@Piper Uuugh. And they wonder why no one really wants to ever let their guard down with them. Seriously.

LadyGrace

@Piper @Peapod

Isn't that nuts that anyone thinks they "speak the truth"? It's nothing but narcissism to me.

Yes .... God forbid anyone have confidence in themselves. 🤔

What's so nuts about it? For example, I was raised to tell the truth and be honest, and I'm very proud of that fact because that's what my dad taught me and why I so look up to my father, because he never told a lie. And if you're a person who prides themself in being honest and telling the truth and being genuine, I think that's a wonderful trait.

Nothing in that, speaks of narcissism. It doesn't say that I think I'm better than anyone else or smarter. It's just that I know that what I write is something that I hold to be true, and truthful. Since when is that a bad thing? Others may disagree with my opinion, and that's fine, I wouldn't have a problem with that. That's what we're here for, to discuss different subjects.

Now all of a sudden, a person who claims to "speak the truth", a truthful person to begin with, .... is now seen as a person who often has an inflated, unrealistic view of their own importance, believing they are superior to others, suspicious, haughty, prideful, lacks empathy, wants to exploit others for our own purposes, requires validation or attention, often seeks excessive admiration and praise from others to maintain their inflated self-image and is self-seeking and insecure?? You sound very insecure and scared. I think you've tried to turn something good into something evil and suspicious without cause. That would actually be judging a person you don't know. Would you like someone to judge you that way, if you were a truthful person? I don't know. That sounds like pretty nutty thinking, in itself. You can't know what people are thinking. That's judging. That's what this world has come to and that's a shame. People calling good, bad... and bad, good. That's what the Bible said would happen in the last days and it sure has.

Piper · 61-69, F

You can save the seeming indignation @LadyGrace, for someone who does not value honesty at least as much you do. Having confidence in oneself, or not, has nothing to do with anything I expressed in my comments(s) here.

I too was fortunate to have a father, and mother, who instilled the importance of being honest in their children. Not just with words, but by example.

My comments here were not about the virtue of being honest, of being truthful, but rather about those who claim to "speak the truth", as if what they just think is some actual truth. Those who claim that they are blocked or ostracized, only because they are "brave" enough to speak what they call "truth", and act as though most everyone else is too dense to see what they see.

(Peapod has not been participated on this site for a couple of years now. I do know her well enough, though, to understand that her comment was in no way demeaning the virtue of honesty.)