Are Downvotes Necessary?

Question

Why are downvotes necessary? In a system with upvotes and flagging, downvotes do not seem to provide any additional value, and likely often stifle conversation on the basis of personal bias.I often experience downvotes when I post an unpopular opinion, and the downvotes generally outnumber the comments on the post.In other words, it is too easy for downvotes to be handed out based on biases, and without the need to explicitly state why an idea is worth criticizing.

EGreg · Accepted Answer

I long wanted downvotes to require comments (that may be displayed privately to the person being downvoted or whatever) to at least put some effort into the downvote.Silent downvotes just create animosity.

jim-jim-jim · Answer

It should take more effort to shit on somebody. I definitely prefer traditional phpbb-style forums with like buttons over threaded reddit-style communities with a "fuck you" option attached to every post. It's a shame the latter seems to be winning out.

jimbob45 · Answer

I agree. Ironically, 4chan of all sites has an upvote-only (bump, really) policy that, in my opinion, works well.

downshun · Answer

Some HN lore: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9317916
It's sad how people's egos can feel threatened at the decrement of a 'fake internet point'.
Down votes are good. They help start the conversation of why your comment could be wrong.
I still prefer a symmetric system... Why lose half of the information?
I agree that people should comment better when they interact with a post.