
Why are so many HN Members so quick to thumbs down? - blackflame7000
Isn&#x27;t the goal of a site driven by the growth of diversity and thought to be more open-minded or at the very least constructive when disagreeing? What&#x27;s happened on this website is that there has developed an oligarchy that sets the tone on almost every topic on this website and will downvote you into oblivion if they disagree even if you have a valid point which stifles conversation.<p>Now don&#x27;t get me wrong I think this place is fantastic for learning new things, but shouldn&#x27;t that be the point? To share and explore with one another, not to see who can out neg the next person. Frankly, thumbs down should be eliminated because to set the limit at 500 makes new users feel like they are constantly ganged up upon and who wants to say around a place like that. I&#x27;ve recommended this site to many friends only the hear the same feedback that people act far too arrogant sometimes. We need to remember that our shared passions for technology trump petty forum disagreements.<p>Enlighten rather than hate your neighbor.<p>Example: Why did this deserve 2 downvotes:<p>&quot;I failed my first 2 tech interviews and Google and Snapchat leaving me feeling cheated by the dumbass whiteboard. Whiteboard tests are tailor-made for the inside the book thinkers. The ones that stop learning when the chapter ends and soon forget when the next subject begins. Computers are the thing that gets you to the thing. You want people who can see that the software they are working has a broader impact beyond 1s and 0s.&quot;
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DamonHD
All well and good, but have you seen the amount of plain old SPAM that gets
here, as well as just weak submissions? Some filtering, even if a little
harsh, adds value.

And I speak as someone whose submissions rarely gain traction, especially my
own pages!

I see no cabal or conspiracy. I see a somewhat self-selecting and "focussed"
group of people with a tight-ish intersection of overlapping interests.

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makecheck
While it’s possible some votes aren’t well justified, keep in mind that the
voting buttons themselves are really close together (especially on mobile) and
can be hard to hit properly. When I see a “why would this be downvoted?” case,
I sort of assume it was meant to be an upvote.

Recently HN implemented an “undown” link so if anyone thinks they made this
mistake, look for that link after voting.

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paulpauper
Why not give an example?

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blackflame7000
Example: Why did this deserve 2 downvotes:

"I failed my first 2 tech interviews and Google and Snapchat leaving me
feeling cheated by the dumbass whiteboard. Whiteboard tests are tailor-made
for the inside the book thinkers. The ones that stop learning when the chapter
ends and soon forget when the next subject begins. Computers are the thing
that gets you to the thing. You want people who can see that the software they
are working has a broader impact beyond 1s and 0s."

~~~
detaro
Some theories:

negative emotional language ("dumbass") doesn't fare well.

People who have no difficulties with whiteboard tests easily could treat it as
an insult.

Your PS on that comment might come across as petty bragging.

Generally I'd say unless you regularly get downvoted or it's a lot of
downvotes don't worry too much, while it is a signal it certainly has noise.

~~~
sharemywin
Another theory:

Your comments are filled with opinionated arrogance.

That aren't backed up with any facts. Basically, the unwritten rules is the
more opinionated your comment(especially if it isn't in the norm) the more you
need to back it up with facts or even links to sources.

Also, I've gotten my share of down votes. But, usually it gets re-upvoted once
enough people see it down voted. if it's not a "worthless comment" or extreme
opinion without some kind of argument to back it up.

~~~
sharemywin
Ask yourself this->Is my comment actually useful to other people? or just me
spouting off my greatness...

Most of my down-votes are from the later. or my dark sense of sarcasm, but
that's a personal issue of mine.

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blackflame7000
For people who failed their first interviews, it gives them hope they can be a
CTO in 5 years. Hows that for being helpful? Again, it seems like you are just
projecting insecurities at me and what I have accomplished by calling me
arrogant instead of successful.

~~~
blackflame7000
My god how do you go outside with a sensitivity level that high?

~~~
DamonHD
Is there any need to go on being this rude? It simply does not help.

I spent a LONG time working with "Big Swinging Dicks" (the wrong sort of BSD
for HN maybe?) in finance in London (and New York and Tokyo), and the loudest
rudest ones were not the ones best at their jobs. When even the IT guy can
tell that you are about to do several megabucks of screwup, bad-mouthing other
people is just digging the hole deeper, for example.

