Current Events > is trolling like, a power thing or something?

(+) Yeah! (+)

i'm always wondering why and how people (esp here) can dedicate decades to just being annoying. like yeah yeah we have the obvious answers like in lieu of a personality people will latch onto whatever they can, which a lot of time is trying to annoy or upset folks

but like, maybe they do it because to them, getting a far away stranger to react conveys to the troll that the troll has power over that person? the troll doesnt necessarily need to be conscious that this is why he trolls

this is it. it's all i can come up with.

so there's a wiki article on it apparently. gonna check it out

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_troll

Depends on the context tbh. What's an example you can point to that inspired you to make this topic?

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funny

Researcher Ben Radford wrote about the phenomenon of clowns in history and modern day in his book Bad Clowns and found that bad clowns have evolved into Internet trolls. They do not dress up as traditional clowns but, for their own amusement, they tease and exploit "human foibles" in order to speak the "truth" and gain a reaction. Like clowns in make-up, Internet trolls hide behind "anonymous accounts and fake usernames." In their eyes they are the trickster and are performing for a nameless audience via the Internet.[49] Trolling correlated positively with sadism, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism.[50] Trolls take pleasure from causing pain. Their ability to upset or harm gives them a feeling of power.[51]

wow i'm psychic. now to check out the sources here

Low effort stimulus begets highly emotional response. Combined with the anonymity of the internet and our inability to "see" the human on the other end of the screen and you can see why trolling can be so addictive.

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gafemaqs posted...

Low effort stimulus begets highly emotional response. Combined with the anonymity of the internet and our inability to "see" the human on the other end of the screen and you can see why trolling can be so addictive.

thing is, i cant

Lysandear posted...

getting a far away stranger to react conveys to the troll that the troll has power over that person?

yes. these people lack control or power over anything else in their lives which is why they flex it the only way they can.

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I've trolled for years here mainly for lolz due to bordem. It's not hard to understand human behavior.

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I do it mostly for boredom.

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Austin_Era_II posted...

I've trolled for years here mainly for lolz due to bordem. It's not hard to understand human behavior.

It's just really sad

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Austin_Era_II posted...

I've trolled for years here mainly for lolz due to bordem. It's not hard to understand human behavior.

it's not. but it's hard for me to understand this extremely specific behavior

hey TC

you're subconsciously trying to guilt trolls by sharing this information

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People going out of the way to troll hard for hatred is sad. Very sad.

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MedeaLysistrata posted...

hey TC

you're subconsciously trying to guilt trolls by sharing this information

trolls dont feel guilt

"I get it but i dont get it"
-TC

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Lysandear posted...

trolls dont feel guilt

and yet you continue to try

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ok

TC making a troll topic saying he not a fucking troll then posts "ok" to troll. Troll harder n00b.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16aTzvN0nTI
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I do feel like its kind of a... sad existence, really. I mean, what kind of issue does a person have to compel them to (for example) post weird news articles and type in a very bizarre way, go out of their way to add ok? to everything they say (but only on this board), make topics about their son and so on?

I honestly feel bad.

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rexcrk posted...

I do feel like its kind of a... sad existence, really. I mean, what kind of issue does a person have to compel them to (for example) post weird news articles and type in a very bizarre way, go out of their way to add ok? to everything they say (but only on this board), make topics about their son and so on?

I honestly feel bad.

So you have an issue with Saxon, Sunhawk, duckbear and vegy?

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hey austin im tryna actually have a serious thread here so i gotta give ya the boot sorry bud. i'll take you off block in a day or so

rexcrk posted...

I do feel like its kind of a... sad existence, really. I mean, what kind of issue does a person have to compel them to (for example) post weird news articles and type in a very bizarre way, go out of their way to add ok? to everything they say (but only on this board), make topics about their son and so on?

I honestly feel bad.

And their defense is always Im bored. But then they do it for years, if not over a decade.

Lysandear posted...

hey austin im tryna actually have a serious thread here so i gotta give ya the boot sorry bud. i'll take you off block in a day or so

the power thing revealed, you revel in it.. you bathe in it until you become power itself

RedJackson posted...

the power thing revealed, you revel in it.. you bathe in it until you become power itself

All Austin does is troll, so I cant really blame a block.

Like anything, trolling comes in varying degrees of severity. The average troll is just having fun poking at people to see their reactions.

Classic "troll questions" are totally harmless. An example is something like "why does Metroid have a gun on his arm?" or "What is Obama's last name?"

They're not trying to hurt anybody sincerely, they're just goofing around and playing with the absurdity of things. I used to be a bit of a troll in WoW trade chat, and that's the sort of thing I'd do.

There are genuinely terrible people who troll more seriously, though. Making light of tragedies, like asking "who?" in memorial topics here, brushes a lot closer to being malicious.

The short answer to your question is that there is no short answer. Trolling covers a wide range of different behaviors that all have different causes and motives attached.

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Gobstoppers12 posted...

Like anything, trolling comes in varying degrees of severity. The average troll is just having fun poking at people to see their reactions.

I'm not asking what a troll is. I already know that. I'm asking why they do it

The thing I dont get about specifically the far-right trolls here is that, like, when they try to troll they just get constantly dunked on by everybody because their intent is obvious and their worldview is awful. So it has to take some extremely serious delusion for them to be able to derive any sort of satisfaction from that.

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Shablagoo posted...

The thing I dont get about specifically the far-right trolls here is that, like, when they try to troll they just get constantly dunked on by everybody because their intent is obvious and their worldview is awful. So it has to take some extremely serious delusion for them to be able to derive any sort of satisfaction from that.

Dunking on a troll isn't really a thing. To them that just conveys they were able to manipulate your emotions

Lysandear posted...

I'm not asking what a troll is. I already know that. I'm asking why they do it

Gobstoppers12 posted...

The short answer to your question is that there is no short answer. Trolling covers a wide range of different behaviors that all have different causes and motives attached.

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Better get working on that long answer then eh bub

CrimsonRage posted...

they have no life and no friends so trolling is the only attention they get

Nah, I don't buy this at all

Also I hate people who dunk on trolls or point out their lies or inconsistencies, as if theyre getting them in some epic gotcha! moment. They dont realize that thats what the trolls want.

BroodRyu posted...

Also I hate people who dunk on trolls or point out their lies or inconsistencies, as if theyre getting them in some epic gotcha! moment. They dont realize that thats what the trolls want.

Yes, those people are quite stupid IMO

This is the only trolling I like.

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Lysandear posted...

Nah, I don't buy this at all

Well buy it. Theyre typically losers who are bitches in life so they come online to troll in anonymity to feel superior rather than work on themselves.

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SmidgeIsntBack posted...

This is the only trolling I like.

this perfectly articulates how I feel wrt those people

ahem

@Bishop9800

TheVipaGTS posted...

Well buy it. Theyre typically losers who are bitches in life so they come online to troll in anonymity to feel superior rather than work on themselves.

I think you're just telling yourself this. It's like when people say bullies have sad home lives and are neglected and all that jazz. Nah, some people are just assholes and it doesn't matter if they're doing well in life or not, if they have friends or not. I think people just say this to feel better

Its more a negative reenforcement thing. Be nice/fun/normal and no body talks to you, be an asshole and people respond. Trolls just like any other human just want someone to talk to.

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Lysandear posted...

ahem

@Lysandear yes?

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Why would you @ me in my own thread

Lysandear posted...

Why would you @ me in my own thread

Who cares.

Whats the point of you @ me in your topic?

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ight

It's less a power thing and just more entertainment. I've never understand how people act like they'd take a bullet for a company. So those types of user are fun to rile up. I get a kick out of getting so mad at a stranger you block them.

It also gives me something to do between meetings.
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People who are shitty assholes full-time on the Internet are in all likelihood shitty assholes full-time off the Internet too.

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BroodRyu posted...

All Austin does is troll, so I cant really blame a block.

I mean to be fair he basically said that a chub is still a penis so it doesnt matter what the TC thinks because he half trolls anyhow

It's mostly mental illness(es) of some kind. I'm going to get modded for saying that too.

I don't get the "killing time/it's entertaining" excuse either. You have the whole internet at your disposal and you decide to go be a prick to others. You're not bored. You're just an asshole.

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Southernfatman posted...

It's mostly mental illness(es) of some kind. I'll probably get modded for saying that too.

Yeah I'm not gonna deny there's mental illness involved.
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