This! I hate that LW defederates from Hex, and Beehaw and any others. LW needs to update the Lemmy version and federate with all.

Open debate is critical for ethics and intelligence. I wish we were much more capable of open minded debate here. I would totally play the role of high-Mach devils-advocate to get people talking about controversial and high tension subjects while being abstracted and attempting not to offend as best I can while playing the role of the bad guy. I’m afraid users here are totally incapable of this level of engagement depth. The concept of a safe place to take such a controversial position of true free speech seems beyond the capability of most here. Like a transgender person should have the opportunity to debate their politization issues from both sides. Or like, I hate what has happened in Gaza, but I also hate a culture that coexists with honor killing without absolutely reforming purging the practice with distain. I should be able to argue as a devils advocate from many angles even when I find them repugnant. I am very good at this kind of debating. I have my own issues with my life situation where I would need people to understand the scope of such a community and participating users. It is a difficult balance to argue hated positions and others understand that those positions and ideas are not your own. When such debates are had, it leads to a much deeper understanding of issues within a community as a whole.

The high school I went to was in a very poor all black community and was designed to uplift the best and brightest of that community while drawing in similar students from the surrounding region to make up around 20% of students. There were some very racist views and tensions at times mostly from black students towards white. The Wednesday seminar/debate classes from start of the day until lunch were the ultimate solution. We debated politics, religion, racism, rape, authoritarianism, communism, anarchism, and a bunch of other stuff. It got super heated at times. When no one wanted to take the negative interlocutor perspective, the teacher would try but I quickly learned I saw the situation more clearly than them and was good at being the bad guy (or the good guy). By arguing the opposing perspective it reveals much about what one believes and how to argue it effectively.

I have an entire framework for such a community saved in rough drafted notes on my phone that I made weeks ago but I don’t think Lemmy is capable of this in practice.