As we start to see more users join, it’s inevitable to see trolls (especially low-effort trolls) making more of an appearance and trying to be controversial and noticed.
Best just to scroll past them. They want to spark unwinnable arguments and rack up negative rep. If something seems absurdly ridiculous or inciteful, just move on. It’s not even worth down voting.
So you downvoted because you used it as a disagree button. End of story then?
Anyway, let’s put that aside and discuss. How is it destructive? If there is a troll harassing a user then is ignoring it better than reporting the troll? How so?
Let me give you a concrete example. This guy exists https://kbin.social/u/WorldKnows45Won/comments
Why should the comment he called the other guy “retard” not be reported? Not only that, the same guy made troll posts sprading misinformation like Trump winning the 2020 election, so it’s clear it isn’t just a one time thing either. And in the future when there are more bots and troll accounts running around, why would not reporting them be the better option?
I am of the belief that banning users or deleting posts, even inflammatory ones, harms free speech and hinders open communication. If you feel a user is “harassing” you (insofar as that’s even possible, given you can freely ignore their comments), attempting to have the user banned just pushes the community toward becoming an echo clamber. I say this because people are very, very bad at distinguishing harassment from mere heated disagreement in the first place.