To Down Vote or Not To Down Vote
I was recently down voted on an article I posted. The article was flagged due to my replying and commenting on other posts, and mentioning the article in question with a link. I would have preferred a message or warning from the Down Voter only to give me fair chance at understanding and correcting any behavior considered detrimental to the Steemit Experience. Unfortunately, if I was warned, I was not given enough time to answer, and the 'hammer was dropped;' Down vote as punishment.
The STEEMIT Police
Just like driving on the road in daily life, there are rules one must adhere to on STEEMIT. Follow the rules and get an Up Vote. An Up Vote leads to a positive rating which can lead to a payout. Break the rules, and a Down Vote can lead to disastrous results from a loss of payout rewards to a loss of User Reputation Score (the new number now found to the right of a user's name). Users and Bots can be both Up Voted and Down Voted.
There are bots in the STEEMIT system that are designed to monitor STEEMIT for certain user and bot actions. These bots then react to these actions based on their programming, and some will Down Vote and some will Up vote. Then there are the users that also monitor STEEMIT for user and bot actions. All STEEMIT users are technically curators and monitors of the STEEM network, some are just more proactive than others.
Does the Punishment Fit the Crime?
The harshest punishment that the community has here on STEEMIT is a Down Vote. Although I imagine the STEEMIT GODS like @dan or @ned could wipe out your account's existence with a couple of key strokes. I would hope that dialogue and communication would come before down voting or outright banning an account. Having an account banned,or a reputation, article or posting Down Voted should be of last resort.
There are going to be many newcomers to STEEMIT in the days to come, and many will not have a complete grasp of the STEEMIT WAY. These newcomers will unfortunately not always know the rules or proper etiquette. The most important thing for all of us to remember, not just newcomers to STEEMIT, is that this is a community based experience, and that what is bad overall for STEEMIT will be punished. In simpler terms, treat others how you want to be treated and treat STEEMIT as though it was 'your baby.' So trolling and spamming are to be avoided. And since we can ALL be considered monitors and curators of STEEMIT, then it will be our duty to guide and instruct these newcomers/rule breakers who may be over eager and overly excited. Let Positive Reinforcement lead the way and severe punishment be the last resort.
FULL $TEEM AHEAD!
@streetstyle
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I upvote U
Yeah i am a newcomer, just trying to find my way.
I have already witnessed abusive downvoting that have happened to others.
Now im not sure I should post anything if all it takes is for one person not liking my post, to ruin my account.
Ill have to think about this some more, but I don't think any one person should have that much power that they can do so much damage, just because they dont like something, or out of spite I guess.
@cryptosolitaire I guess we are all really new to STEEMIT. And I have been down voted on some articles I believe that those who did opposed my statements, rather than down voting because I was hurting the community by action. So unfortunately for now, a down vote can come from someone just not agreeing with your point of view, rather than because your actions were detrimental to the STEEMIT experience. It will get ironed out I am sure. In the mean time.....
Full $TEEM Ahead!
@streetstyle
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