@BlinkerFluid @hedge I agree with your overall point: social networks where you subscribe to a community seem to get more replies (and longer replies) than ones where you subscribe a person. They also make it harder for influencers to take off – anyone’s post has a chance of generating discussion. They deemphasize who the OP is.

Mastodon’s ability to follow those communities is, IMO, a killer feature that I hope more people discover. (Case in point: I’m posting this from Mastodon right now.)

I want to converse in a place where most people are civil and tolerant of ideas even if these ideas challenge their view of the world. People don’t have to agree, but I think most people should be treated with dignity and respect. Further, I would love to converse in place where people are rational actors and free thinkers, rather than just simply aligned and regurgitating their group’s thought leaders’ talking points. A place where people have been taught the scientific method, fallacies, how to discern most propaganda and advertising, and also have at least a minimum understanding of philosophy, psychology and sociology.

In other words, I want to converse in a complete fantasyland.

Joking aside, these arts were once taught to all students at most universities. I’m not sure if they are anymore, but the news paints a picture that they’ve been exchanged for more “employable” skills. I hope to see more pushback against those efforts.

I agree with this. I’m self-hosting both Mastodon and Lemmy. I’ll use Mastodon maybe once a week, same as I used to do on Twitter. On the other hand, I’m on Lemmy pretty much every day. I like long-form discussions a lot more than Twitter-style posts, and it’s way easier to read through comments on here since there’s proper threading.