Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2013/01/16

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Subject: [Leica] Internet Trolls
From: ricc at embarqmail.com (Ric Carter)
Date: Wed, 16 Jan 2013 20:38:41 -0500
References: <CE6F1098-EB1A-4DDF-9CFB-8D0A3CC5F9F2@embarqmail.com> <C914024E-DBBE-4E19-BBB9-D23B63ADAE67@mac.com>

i stole it--cannot remember the source

I think the author meant to have it passed along

ric


On Jan 16, 2013, at 8:29 PM, Bernard Quinn <bjq1 at mac.com> wrote:

> 
> Ric,
> 
> This is superb. Well said. Well written. Thanks for a really useful 
> reminder.
> 
> Barney
> 
> Barney Quinn, WK3Z
> C: (301) 775-1386
> H: (301) 654-0938
> 
> On Jan 16, 2013, at 8:19 PM, Ric Carter <ricc at embarqmail.com> wrote:
> 
>> What is a Troll?
>> 
>> An Internet ?troll? is a person who delights in sowing discord on the 
>> Internet. He (and it is usually he) tries to start arguments and upset 
>> people.
>> 
>> Trolls see Internet communications services as convenient venues for 
>> their bizarre game. For some reason, they don?t ?get? that they are 
>> hurting real people. To them, other Internet users are not quite human 
>> but are a kind of digital abstraction. As a result, they feel no sorrow 
>> whatsoever for the pain they inflict. Indeed, the greater the suffering 
>> they cause, the greater their ?achievement? (as they see it).
>> 
>> Trolls are utterly impervious to criticism (constructive or otherwise). 
>> You cannot negotiate with them; you cannot cause them to feel shame or 
>> compassion; you cannot reason with them. They cannot be made to feel 
>> remorse. For some reason, trolls do not feel they are bound by the rules 
>> of courtesy or social responsibility.
>> 
>> Why Do They Do It?
>> 
>> Affirmation.
>> 
>> Trolls crave attention, and they care not whether it is positive or 
>> negative. They see the Internet as a mirror into which they can gaze in 
>> narcissistic rapture.
>> 
>> If you want a deeper analysis than that, perhaps a psychologist can shed 
>> some additional light on the matter.
>> 
>> Why Does it Matter?
>> 
>> The sad fact is that trolls discourage people. Established posters may 
>> leave a message board because of the arguments that trolls ignite, and 
>> lurkers may decide that they do not want to expose themselves to abuse 
>> and thus never get involved.
>> 
>> Another problem is that the negative emotions stirred up by trolls leak 
>> over into other discussions. Normally affable people can become bitter 
>> after reading an angry interchange between a troll and his victims, and 
>> this can poison previously friendly interactions between long-time users.
>> 
>> Finally, trolls create a paranoid environment, such that a casual 
>> criticism by a new arrival can elicit a ferocious and inappropriate 
>> backlash.
>> 
>> What Can be Done about Trolls?
>> 
>> ??The only way to deal with trolls is to limit your reaction to reminding 
>> others not to respond to trolls.??
>> 
>> When you try to reason with a troll, he wins. When you insult a troll, he 
>> wins. When you scream at a troll, he wins. The only thing that trolls 
>> can?t handle is being ignored.
>> 
>> What Not to Do
>> 
>> It is futile to try to ?cure? a troll of his obsession. But perhaps you 
>> simply cannot bear the hostile environment that the troll is creating and 
>> want to go away for a while.
>> 
>> If you do that, then for the sake of the others on the system, do not 
>> post a dramatic ?Goodbye!? message. This convinces the troll that he is 
>> winning the battle. There is, perhaps, no message you can write that is 
>> as damaging as an announcement that you are leaving because of the 
>> hostility that the troll has kindled.
>> 
>> If you feel you must say something, a discreet message to the system 
>> operator (and some of the others users, if you have their email 
>> addresses) is the best course of action. If you are writing the letter in 
>> an agitated state, it is a good idea to wait an hour and then give it one 
>> last review before you actually send it. That might spare you the pain of 
>> saying things that you don?t really mean to people you like.
>> 
>> The Webmaster?s Challenge
>> 
>> The moderator of a message board may not be able to delete a troll?s 
>> messages right away, but their job is made much harder if they also have 
>> to read numerous replies to trolls. They are also forced to decide 
>> whether or not to delete posts from well-meaning folks which have the 
>> unintended effect of encouraging the troll.
>> 
>> Perhaps the most difficult challenge for a webmaster is deciding whether 
>> to take steps against a troll that a few people find entertaining. Some 
>> trolls do have a creative spark and have chosen to squander it on being 
>> disruptive. There is a certain perverse pleasure in watching some of 
>> them. Ultimately, though, the webmaster has to decide if the troll 
>> actually cares about putting on a good show for the regular participants, 
>> or is simply playing to an audience of one ? himself.
>> 
>> What about Free Speech?
>> 
>> When trolls find that their efforts are being successfully resisted, they 
>> often complain that their right to free speech is being infringed.
>> 
>> While most people on the Internet are ardent defenders of free speech, it 
>> is not an absolute right; there are practical limitations. For example, 
>> you may not scream out ?Fire!? in a crowded theatre, and you may not make 
>> jokes about bombs while waiting to board an airplane. We accept these 
>> limitations because we recognize that they serve a greater good.
>> 
>> The ultimate response to the ?free speech? argument is this: while we may 
>> have the right to say more or less whatever we want, we do not have the 
>> right to say it wherever we want. You may feel strongly about the fact 
>> that your neighbour has not mowed his lawn for two months, but you do not 
>> have the right to berate him in his own living room. Similarly, if a 
>> webmaster tells a troll that he is not welcome, the troll has no ?right? 
>> to remain. This is particularly true on the numerous free communications 
>> services offered on the net. (On pay systems, the troll might be 
>> justified in asking for a refund.)
>> 
>> 
>> Conclusion
>> 
>> Next time you are on a message board and you see a post by somebody whom 
>> you think is a troll, and you feel you must reply, simply write a 
>> follow-up message entitled ?Troll Alert? and type only this:
>> 
>> The only way to deal with trolls is to limit your reaction to reminding 
>> others not to respond to trolls.
>> 
>> By posting such a message, you let the troll know that you know what he 
>> is, and that you are not going to get dragged into his twisted little 
>> hobby.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> _______________________________________________
>> Leica Users Group.
>> See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information
> 
> _______________________________________________
> Leica Users Group.
> See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information



In reply to: Message from ricc at embarqmail.com (Ric Carter) ([Leica] Internet Trolls)
Message from bjq1 at mac.com (Bernard Quinn) ([Leica] Internet Trolls)