Another post blasted to zero in the final hours by a small gang of downvoters. Right up front let me say, this post would have made less than $2.00 if it had reached pay out...this is not about money.

It's about the fact that being aggressively targeted for downvoting is a really negative and unwelcoming experience, and it makes me not want to invest my time and effort on the platform.

@spaminator, @meritocracy, @bgmoha, @freebornsociety and @unsubscribe. So the list appears to be growing, but I still don't know why.

source

I wrote a fairly lengthy post this morning, saying goodbye, but it's tough. I'm invested here. I've got videos scheduled to post for a ways out and overall, I've got many friends here I enjoy talking to and checking out their work. Thanks to @davidke20, @acidyo, @quochuy, @cmplxty, @mcsamm and so many others, I'm fairly well attached to Hive...leaving almost seems impossible.

It seems impossible, but it isn't.

Truth is, the whole downvote thing is hard not to take personally. To be clear, I've certainly made mistakes as I learned my way around the Hive ecosystem and its unwritten standard of etiquette. I'm not saying I've never deserved a downvote that I got, nor am I saying every one of my posts has truly deserved the full reward it received. What I am saying is, I'm getting downvotes on every comment I make, on pretty much every post I make. Comments that are uplifting, supportive and in my own original words. Posts that are my own work, my own writing, my own photos and my own idea...so...if you don't like my work, why not just scroll on? Is it so bad that you feel obligated to go out of your way to punch it in the face with a downvote? I guess I just thought the whole DV thing was a tool to disincentivize unwanted content and behavior, which I would assume should typically be limited to things that are harmful to the blockchain and its reputation, but if you're pushing out legitmate users, is it not you who is doing harm to the blockchain?

I've seen @meritocracy give votes in both directions, and it makes me curious...what am I doing to elicit this response?

Anyway I wrote this whole other post, saying goodbye and explaining my mindset. Maybe I'll attach that to the end of this post, because I think the reasoning behind my position is pretty sound. Chances are, I won't be using Hive much longer because I just take all this too personally. Case in point - It's 1:30PM here, and I've been obsessing over this matter since I got up and saw it at 5:30AM today. It's not about the small pocket change I lose (which I know, was never mine in the first place even though I paid to boost this particular post), it's about the relentless harassment and the fact that it leaves me upset all day. It's about the fact that the place I come to share my art, my world, my work and my life, has within it some hostile faction that feels obliged to tear down anything I try to put up. I have never considered Hive a source of income; I'm a professional engineer and my wife is a nurse. I just like sharing my world and encouraging others who are trying to do the same, but when it leaves me feeling like this, I know without question I'd be better off keeping my world to myself.

Essentially, under the paradigm I'm currently experiencing, this is not a fun platform to invest my time or energy in. I'm not enjoying this and I'm afraid I'm beginning to dislike the way Hive makes me feel, even though I know it's a percentage of the platform's users who are actually doing it. I'm hoping it's a mistake that can be corrected, as I know Hive won't miss me as much as I'll miss Hive. So I have to try to correct this and, if it can't be corrected, I will have to cut ties so I'm not wasting whole days upset about something so trivial.

As I wrote the aforementioned post, I also began withdrawing all delegations and powering down (I apologize, @strega.azure.) If I end up staying, I will put individual delegations back in place, but chances are I'll just power down and leave.

One Last Hope

Seeing as most of the parties downvoting me appear automated, I thought I might try to make one last appeal to the individuals with apparent control over these mechanisms. I'm casting a wide net here because I don't really know who has control over the various accounts. If you don't belong in this tag list, chances are I won't be bothering you much longer anyway, but feel free to let me know if you want to; truth is it was difficult to come up with a list of people who might be able to help, so I just did my best. Any assistance or information I can get that will help me figure out how to start enjoying Hive again will be sincerely appreciated.

@themarkymark, @steemcleaners, @guiltyparties, @anyx, @patrice, @logic, @pjau, @hivewatchers, @hivewatcher, @adm, @azabu, @acrom64, @willowranger, @vxn666, @buildawhale, @upmyvote, @ocdb, @ocd, @meesterboom, @citizensmith, @b00m, @azircon, @erikah, @solominer, @nonameslefttouse, @logic, @galenkp, @chekohler, @nathanpieters, @stayten, @nathan007, @theevil, @tracyyork, @aadamada, @ac-cheetah, @alejos7ven, @symbionts, @papi.mati, @alexmove, @truthforce,

Best I can tell, the power is in your hands on this one...if you want me gone, I'll go quietly...just keep doing what you're doing and things will shake out just so.

The thing is, I'm just a normal/typical user; I don't make tons of money, I don't very often repost things from online, I don't very often get political or religious, etc - so I have to assume (or hope?) that I'm on these downvote lists by mistake. So this, I suppose, is my last effort. I'm not here to rant or flip out, simply to appeal to those who appear to be at the helm of the downvote swarm to consider leaving me alone or telling me what it is I've done wrong so I can do better. If it's content quality you're after, tell users how and where to improve, don't throw out the baby with the bathwater. Or do; It's your world, I'm just a guy who wanted to post flute videos in it...