What does my low rating mean?

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Hi there fellow myLoters. I know that there have been several discussions started about the myLot rating system, but none of them fully answered my question, so I thought I'd start my own. I have made over 100 posts and just noticed a star appear beside my name with a 6 in it. This really saddens me as I try to respond with well thought out and detailed posts and be as helpful as I can. I am not afraid to stand up for what I believe in, so is it possible that I am coming off as too harsh? Because it is not my intention to anger or offend anyone. I just feel that this is a place where we should feel comfortable expressing our opinions. And if someone else has posted something that is inappropriate or hateful, then I am not going to sit back and say nothing. I don't get petty and make personal attacks, but I do try to make my point. Do you rate poorly if you don't agree with someone's opinion? Also, I haven't rated any of my discussions yet because I just found out about this feature. Do I only rate the response to the discussions that I post or all the discussions I take part in? Would the fact that I'm not rating make other people not rate me well? I also don't take the time to respond to every reply to my discussions - only if I find it important. I haven't invited anyone to be my friend yet either, because I'm still trying to get a feel for the site. Does this make a difference? Well, sorry for all the questions, but I am kind of hurt by my lower rating. On other sites I am usually rated a 1 or 2 (with 1 being the highest), so I was surprised, especially since I believe I usually submit quality content. Please let me know what I might be doing wrong.