I think you will unanimously be pleased that we are no longer conducting the following experiment:
It's clear that no one liked this change. I have no desire to implement something so unpopular, and I don't think I can force users to be nice to each other. Thank you for being patient with me.
I am serious about keeping Hubski a place known for thoughtful interaction, and I believe that we have been better at that in the past. I can think of a few factors contributing to this decline that have nothing to do with the mechanics of the site (a lack of attention from team Hubski, an attrition of culture with the loss of early users, and a global pandemic among others...), however, I do entertain that there may be ways that the mechanics of the site can support us being cool to each other.
Maybe something as simple as a "please be good to each other" reminder above the textbox would help.
If you have thoughts or suggestions, I'd be happy to hear them.
If we happen upon something that seems worth trying, maybe we will.
Until then, it's on us.