Culture of trolling

[YChang]

on the internet.
The world of web trolling

 

[Coelacanth]

I remember, back in my younger days, spending time trolling on Texags. It was fun, I have to admit; but it wasn't a healthy kind of fun.

 

[Bevo Incognito]

Thanks for posting that article, Ychang. Very interesting.

Lots of people say lots of things that they would never say in real life because they think that they are anonymous on the web. This strikes me as pretty dang gutless.

 

[DallasCowpoke]

^
Screw you!

 

[zzzz]

Interesting article. It suggests the worst of the trolls suffer from insecurity, and/or incidents or physical or mental abuse in their past.

 

[7 Iron]

My good friend has a pretty sound theory that the internet has rapidly assisted our culture in its moral decline. Someone just mentioned "anonymity" - we all say things online that we would never say in person, and it has slowly seeped its way from message boards and emails to daily interaction with people we meet.

The level of discourse is warped.

 

[NEWDOC2002]

I agree with the decline of discourse, but you can ask my wife. I pretty much would say it to your face.

 

[YChang]

What's scary is that these people don't post under an internet persona....that's how they are in real life.

 

[Coelacanth]

It is a well written article.

Interesting that the trolls interviewed in the article seem to see themselves as performing some sort of necessary function. I suppose the fool, or the clown, had something of a similar purpose in Shakespeare's tragedies -- both the clown and the troll are about the business of bursting bubbles -- of revealing the absurdities of those who take themselves too seriously.

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[Larry T. Spider]

Every village has its idiots - on the web or in real life.

 

[Captain Murphy]

It's an interesting phenomenon. Needless to say, there have been trolls on this website. Mostly in the sports-oriented posts. Those are fairly easy to spot. But I also think that over the years there have been trolls on boards such as the West Mall. I don't want to name any names nor encourage anyone else to name names. But I think there are people who purport to hold political and ideological views that they do not really hold, creating caricatures in the process. Some people get really worked up by these caricatures. I think this is part of the thrill of trolling, to rouse people's emotions.

 

[Beau Vine]

I have an RSFC award named after me. These days, that almost horrifies me.

 

[MilkmanDan]

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