Hey fellow stemian!
It recently came to my attention that some on the platform may see it fit to flag others (as in, remove rewards) simply for sharing their opinions or interests, or possibly cuz they didn't like the color of the person's shirt in their profile pic. If you really don't care for someone, feel free to simply "MUTE" them. There's no need to get into a flag war over it.
Those who feel the need to flag another Whalien should also make it clear in the comments why they are doing so, lest you come off as being just another insufferable Whalehole! 😱
Two big differences on Whaleshares versus STEEM is that:
there are no "monstro-megawhales" on Whaleshares
it costs 3x more in order to flag another user
Currently, the largest "whales" you might encounter on Whaleshares may hold at most a few percent of the current 26 million supply of WLS. This is another reason it will be much more difficult for any one person to censor others, or to control who is considered "worthy" of receiving rewards from the reward-pool.
On Whaleshares, everyone's more or less starting out on equal footing, and will have a chance to be rewarded as such. It's also much less likely that a single interest will be able to accumulate such a large STAKE in the platform, as to be able to single-handedly bully other users around.
Well, certainly not without some sort of repercussion attached...
And what might those repercussions be, you ask?!
Oh no, reprecussions?! Say it ain't so...! 😮
For those thinking the answer is to start a flag war... NO, IT IS NOT.
Before I go on here, I do want to first clarify what is "flag-worthy".
On Whaleshares, all users are welcome to civilly and respectfully express themselves.
Self-Expression does not include the right to slander others without proof or substantiation, just as it does not include "the right" to plagiarize the work of others. If you're out to scam people, or spreading FUD and misinformation (on your posts or others), and are flagging to try and "cover your tracks", well... you won't receive much sympathy from anyone in the community over that either.
It also doesn't include "the right" to comment-spam or tag-spam other people's posts with the same irrelevant promotional messages over and over again. Most on the platform will simply tune them out anyway (or mute them), and most certainly NOT reward them. If you really want to get someone's attention, have the courtesy to add a thoughtful and relevant comment to their post.
You might find yourself shocked by the positive attention and appreciation that a high-quality comment can often attract.
That said...
Meh, I'm gonna flag your ass anyway... what ya gonna do about it?!
That's just fine then... you go right ahead with your malicious flagging. And here's what I suggest...
Most cases turn out to be simple misunderstandings, which can often be worked out by the parties involved. For example, even if you're called out for plagiarism, and you own up to your mistakes and address the problem in an honorable fashion, very often you will find those flags removed.
If you are a victim of an unwarranted flag attack, stop by the Whaleshares Official Discord and share your story. If it's clear to the community that you were wrongfully flagged, without any valid substantiation from the one flagging you, here is what I envision unfolding:
the community will not look kindly on this bully's actions, and their future rewards will likely suffer for it
as the "underdog", your visibility in the community will actually increase, especially if you truly have been targeted for something completely inappropriate and unwarranted
the community joins together to reward you with at least 3 times the value that was flagged from your post
So, if anyone in the community chooses to wrongly target you for a flag-attack, all they are actually doing is inviting the exact opposite... a chance for you to receive a big fat counter-reward!
As I am able, this is how I plan to handle such cases as they present themselves. And, as I do see this more of a potential "community effort", I also welcome others in the community to consider taking a similar stance in order to deter and deflect any unwarranted malicious flagging activity that may arise.