I think part of the problem is that there will always be, rightly or wrongly consciously or subconsciously, a hierarchy of popularity amongst members and mods - it already manifests with the different member status or banner that are handed down from on high.
This happens easily when people form in real life connections and cannot be avoided - after all you’re always going to look out for your mates aren’t you?
Cliques form and people will be part of different cliques. It’s not a bad thing as said we are all not going to get on with everyone.
Inevitably if you clash with or, heaven forbid, have a different opinion than someone who is held in higher esteem you will always come out on the losing side of the discussion (see how I didn’t use the word argument?) additionally those trying to curry favour with said person (and raise their own station through association) will jump on the bandwagon And before you know it you have the disapproval of 20 people who think it’s open season to ridicule and deride you.
I was a member (and probably still am) of the site that spawned this site, which many mods here were also mods so I feel it’s relevant.
Me and another member had an argument over something real petty on the forum. We were both, rightly, warned about our conduct. However it did not end there. Unbeknownst to me I had taken on such a member and a campaign was waged against me in Direct Messages between members, social media (I don’t do Facebook). Without knowing it I hadn’t been ostracised by all. I had attended a meet before close of season this particular year and got on with the majority of the group. However opening day no one would talk to me, I queued on my own, people wandered away from me when I tried to talk to them and I was batched in a group of one as no one appeared to want to sit with me either! Not once did anyone reach out for my side of the story. One persons view was taken as gospel shared amongst a group and a decision made that I was now the singular worst person in the world - all over a petty little argument on a forum. Thankfully, for me at least, I do not think this member jumped ship here.
This experience and my own autistic tendencies and fear of judgement has always led me to not post often on forums anywhere.
Fingers crossed I’ve not just done the same here....
In an attempt to be balanced in this post I considered how (if you accept what I say above is true) how could this be resolved in an amicable way. Frankly I couldn’t see one. In my own experience shared above if one person had made me aware of what was happening behind my back perhaps the outcome would’ve been the same except that perhaps I would have not attended the meet and would not have experienced the shame and embarrassment I endured that day.
You certainly can’t vet members for petty or psychopathic tendencies and decline membership because of this. You can’t dissuade people from congregating around people who they get on with and are friends with.
Personally I have friends made from the various Pokemon groups I am a member of. Before the pandemic we were all going to Worlds in London together these were friend online in similar circumstances to here.
About member “status” (if again accepted that this is a problem) perhaps doing away with the different badges titles post count and likes (being seen publicly at least) could deter some of the fame hungry and band wagon jumping? I’m not sure.
I fear I’ve become a little waffly here and may have deviated form my initial point so I shall end here.