Asklemmy

I peaked into r/communism and it's genuinely awful. Full of the most toxic people I have seen in the supposedly "Marxist" communities. Surprisingly Lemmy is way more chill than Reddit.

When I first came here, I was so jaded, with the expectation that every account was a bot or an asshole. Seeing the actual conversation among humans has been nice.

Yeah, that's something I really like about Lemmy. You can have actual conversations. On Reddit, on even an unpopular thread, any comment would be flooded by replies from other people. You couldn't just talk with one person.

I don't mind other people joining in, but reddit makes it impossible to do 1-on-1.

Would you say the doom and gloom is Lemmy specific, or more of a global thing, given the state of life ATM?

Still better than Reddit, where a divergent opinion is grounds for a permaban.

Not saying that makes it ok though, it still sucks, just a little less.

less prone to engage in polite conversation

What the fuck did you just say to me, you little shit lemming? I'll have you know that I graduated top of my class in online forum debates...

/jk

Some or most of the people upvoting this stuff is just part of the lucky 10,000

I feel that, too, but also...

There's a large number of news articles that it feels literally pointless to respond to with anything other than jokey derision because it feels like we've been talking to people about those issues for two decades (or more for some of us) and no one listened.

So, with a lot of it... what is there even to talk about anymore and instead crack jokes to try to feel less dead inside?

I fully agree, but at the same time find myself making jokey throwaway comments on the millionth thread about "turns out Trump was lying about his campaign promises!!!!" as if anyone with a fucking brain couldn't figure that out since at least 2015. It just feels pointless to engage with beyond comedy when the media continues to sanewash that guy.

Lemmy doesn’t need to "take off" or compete with Reddit to succeed. Growth for the sake of growth holds little inherent value. Unlike commercial platforms reliant on VC funding to survive, Lemmy thrives on sustainability. What really matters is that there are enough developers to maintain the platform, people to host the server, and users to create content. With these elements in place, Lemmy can continue indefinitely without the need for explosive growth.

In fact, rapid growth could do more harm than good. A sudden influx of users often brings toxic behaviors, especially those migrating from platforms like Reddit. When new users trickle in slowly, they adapt to the existing norms and culture of the community. But when a horde arrives, they risk overwhelming and reshaping the community in ways that trample over its core values. A slow, steady stream of users allows for organic integration, preserving the essence of what makes Lemmy pleasant.

Unlike commercial platforms, open-source projects don’t rely on profit motives to survive. They’re driven by people who directly benefit from their work and are passionate about their vision. When disagreements arise, projects can be forked, allowing different groups to take them in new directions. Even if a project is abandoned, it can be revived by a new team as long as there’s a dedicated community. This flexibility and resilience make open source inherently more sustainable than commercial platforms, which can vanish overnight if funding dries up.

The Fediverse, and Lemmy within it, only needs a large enough user base to remain self-sustaining. I'd argue that it’s already well past that threshold. There’s no rush to grow rapidly. Steady progress ensures the community retains its identity and values, while the open-source nature of the platform guarantees its longevity. Lemmy isn’t just another platform; it’s a sustainable, adaptable ecosystem built to endure. I'm willing to bet that Lemmy will still be around long after Reddit crumbles to dust.

Hey dude, I just wanted to let you know there is an option in your settings so you don't see upvotes or downvotes.

Lemmy (AFAIK) doesn't even show you your total upvotes (karma... whatever it's called) by default either. None of these imaginary points fucking matter.

So why don't you do yourself a favor and uncheck these boxes and not give a fuck what others think about your comment.

I know I have.

(Lemmy is rad as fuck)

As for the reposting content, are you referring to cross posting? I've noticed people doing it to my posts.

I think it's a good thing as maybe some people have lemmy.ml defederated and I still want people who use lemmy to have content so they stay and grow the federation.

Again, the points are made up and the updoots don't matter. Peace.

Definitely seeing some people doing mass downvotes. By that, I mean they disagree so much with a person's post that they then downvote other, unrelated posts by the same person.