this post was submitted on 15 Sep 2025
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The mod banning these users is the same mod who made the posts they downvoted. This is mod abuse, turning the downvote button into an auto-self-ban button.

The message is "If you disagree with me, you will be banned"

Monitoring and banning users for using lemmy as intended to signal boost your opinion should be grounds to have all mod privileges removed. This behaviour undermines the integrity of the server and the wider fediverse.

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[–] Skavau@piefed.social 9 points 1 week ago (2 children)

That's fine, if the post is legitimately popular, the upvotes will outweigh the downvotes. That's how all of this works, and how it has always worked.

No, this doesn't apply to small and growing communities. Or niche communities of specific interests. When I started up my community, many posts wouldn't get many votes - and an early downvote or two could easily sink a new post from trending at all, leaving it to languish to nowhere.

No, that would be an abuse of your mod powers.

Based on what?

Conversely, how many downvotes do you think a user should be allowed before you can ban them for disagreeing with you?

It's not about numbers specifically. People downvote in my community now - and I see the same names whenever I check from time to time, but they also upvote and contribute - so I am not that bothered. I have only banned a handful of users for this behaviour since I started. Each one of them did nothing but downvote everything, and never contributed at all to the community.

[–] ech@lemmy.ca 1 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Based on what?

You're actively arguing for vote manipulation on the part of moderators.

[–] Skavau@piefed.social 8 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

I think its justified for community moderators to ban an account that never interacts on their community, and downvotes everything. I think it's not justified for community moderators to ban an account just for a single downvote on any thread.

I think if there's a serious problem, people can either make their own version of the community on another instance (a perk of the fediverse) and lead people away from the problem community to there, or pressure the instance owner in which the community is based - to remove them (another perk of accountability that doesn't exist in the same way on Reddit).

[–] Coupable@lemmy.world -2 points 1 week ago (2 children)

Each one of them did nothing but downvote everything, and never contributed at all to the community.

Downvotes are a contribution, they are just the kind of contribution you don't like. based on this, I don't think you area good fit for modding; you should probably look to pass your role on to someone who can moderate responsibly.

[–] Skavau@piefed.social 11 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (2 children)

Downvotes are a contribution, they are just the kind of contribution you don't like.

I fail to see the valuable contribution of an account that has literally never posted on the community they are downvoting in, never even posted on the fediverse, quietly downvoting every single post in a community. It is nothing but vandalism that hurts the growth of new communities.

based on this, I don't think you area good fit for modding; you should probably look to pass your role on to someone who can moderate responsibly.

By your logic almost every single community moderator on the fediverse is not a "good fit for modding" because they too, will ban accounts for spam-downvoting on their communities.

[–] Blaze@lemmy.zip 10 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Replying here as it's higher the thread , but the other person you were replying to just seems to be sealioning.

Also, a 3 months old account with 3 posts, 2 about moderation issues, seems like an alt looking to stir up drama.

[–] TheSilentNickel@feddit.org 0 points 6 days ago

very much seems that way

[–] pupbiru@aussie.zone 5 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Downvotes are a contribution, they are just the kind of contribution you don't like

and we allow rules in comms that ban certain types of contributions, like propaganda outlets, low value sources, *phobia

in general, not allowing contributions that moderators believe is bad for the health of the comm is an acceptable policy