There’s some misinformation floating around regarding Lemmy not having a karma system. While many have discovered otherwise, this is for those who may not have.
While it’s not exposed in the Lemmy default user interface, Lemmy does have a fully functional karma system and it is visible in third party clients such as WefWef and Memmy.
Do with that what you will.
People that post quality content don’t tend to care about internet points. People that care about internet points won’t bother to collect them via posting quality content.
Downvote systems can also discourage open discussion, as too many people can’t help themselves from downvoting dissenting views. Communities end up one sided hiveminds.
Maybe there is a middle ground, perhaps downvotes could be rationed instead of outright disabled.