This is an off topic article I will categorize as Rantology. Trolles need certain things to be able to exist:
(1) piss poor or no moderation for whatever reason
The staff may believe in the value of free speech or maybe they don't care or have the time.
(2) posters who are ignorant
Ignorance can be eliminated through learning but there's not much you can do about stupid. It is what it is. I do find it funny when someone thinks they have something clever to say and then it backfires.
(3) smart asses
There must at least one smart ass - these are the trolles.
The first two conditions are the fuel and the third is the flame... When they all come together there is an explosion. Sometimes category number 2 falls under category number 3. It can be highly amusing on one hand or on the other it can simply ruin a great thread. Also another factor I did not mention above is a person might be dishonest... I remember a pessimist once telling me that more than half of what people say is untrue - either through ignorance or willfully. I put a lot more stock in what I believe to be an honest discourse. Remember though sometimes people just don't really understand and that can happen to the best of us. Other times the troll might be drunk and have momentarily lost all their inhibitions - this is usually fairly easy to recognize.
What I have learned is you gain much more from being positive than being negative and this often requires a certain degree of both wisdom and maturity. Sometimes though you just want to let it all hang out - so be it. You can try to use some tact or you can simply be blunt... It's your choice. It can come back to haunt you though when you say bad things so keep that it mind. Don't let a troll play with your emotions or pride - it's not worth it.
Wikipedia defines the Internet troll as follows:
In Internet slang, a troll is someone who posts inflammatory[citation needed], extraneous, or off-topic messages in an online community, such as an online discussion forum, chat room, or blog, with the primary intent of provoking readers into an emotional response or of otherwise disrupting normal on-topic discussion. The noun troll may refer to the provocative message itself, as in: "That was an excellent troll you posted".
Sometimes you see two or more trolls slugging it out on the interwebz... They are trying their best to out troll each other. To me what is the most amusing are trolls that don't realize what they are or what they're doing... They always seem to take the bait and run with it... These are the lower level trolls being manipulated by higher order trolls. All the energy that goes into being negative could have been used to post something positive and have been constructive. Basically what I'm saying is often it's better to just ignore the trolls and rise above... Don't let them pull you down to their level. There are plenty of places to spend your time on the interwebz so be selective when necessary. Smart peops will understand. xD
No comments:
Post a Comment