Poignant thoughts for a Monday morn. It really is up to those of us who want to engage in dialogue to do just that and not sit back as the lowest common denominator spreads like a mould. Many of the early discussions on nostr in December and January were, aside from the bitcoin/tech topics, very engaging and there were some great ideas being shared about exactly this potential. It is of note that a number of those users did share their fear that as nostr inevitably grew, much of the "deeper" flow of knowledge exchange might get drowned out. Many of those accounts have been inactive for a few months now! Hopefully in an open protocol any type of user can be accommodated as we have a chance to make sure the swimming pool is big enough for those who want to play with beach balls, swim lengths or just float on a li lo.
Discussion
Do you have any thoughts about the incentives existent on nostr at present. To be honest I'm often thinking about what the outcome of "public zapping" has been. I daily still tip people anonymously for posts I appreciate and only in the last month or so gave in to also publically zapping. I will be accused of not understanding value for value but I'm not sure if that is entirely what is going on. Would value any other thoughts on that as it seems, like others in this thread, I'm also a non social media character. I bailed on most that happened online in the late 1990s, so having never used facebook, twitter, insta etc it's hard for me to get a sense of what users, who have lived in those platforms, are bringing into nostr.
I was horrified by zapping when I first joined Nostr. Watching people openly solicit engagement by promising free sats seemed like the absolute nadir of social media. At the time I commented that it would make whores of everyone. I still worry that it encourages people to regurgitate popular opinions but I think it has useful applications for writers, musicians and all those other applications for Nostr that aren't just a microblogging platform.
As you suggested in your first comment, the culture is everything and we need to stand up for that as more people join. However, I suspect the future lies more with private relays where people can foster the culture they want rather than the town square model which will always be something of a cesspool.
Exactly........"However, I suspect the future lies more with private relays where people can foster the culture they want rather than the town square model which will always be something of a cesspool."