And…what’s the point of posting nasty comments online? What’s the payoff received from hacking away at a stranger’s patience until they blow up and fight back? It’s just that. Mr. and Ms. Smug Jackass want a response. That’s what they came for and it doesn’t matter how long they have to wait or how many vile things they have to say…getting the job done is goal #1. Isn’t it amazing how determination can be both a good and bad thing?
Why Cyber Trolls Troll
So, you’ve been blasted online by an anonymous troll? A disgruntled ex? A former friend? Friend of a friend, dysfunctional family member, neighbor or someone you haven’t seen since junior high or…the President on Twitter? What now?
It would be so easy to just let the expletives fly and good manners be damned but the best way I put ugly behavior into perspective is to view the spewer as a damaged human being deserving of pity. Intense pity. Consider them to be like the poor kid in middle school with a bugger hanging out of their nose. Are you the, “Ha! Ha!” or “politely look the other way” sort? Don’t acknowledge their booger and eventually it will fall out on its own…and hopefully they will swallow it! Chant with me. Swallow it! Swallow it!! Swallow it!!! And, if that doesn’t work then consider them to be like a dirt covered, squished piece of discarded chewing gum. Gross to look at and of no redeeming value so you move on by, careful not to get any stuck on the bottom of your shoes. And, in the case of one particular Orange Being, like one of those convenience store hot dogs slowly spinning about on a grease-caked roller grill. They seem pretty tasty when you are drunk but once you sober up and realize what they are made of and how contaminated they may be then regret sets in!
Man, shit stirrers hate to be ignored but, and I have decades worth of experience ignoring people, it does calm a potential firestorm of nastiness if we can just learn to be the one that enlists the, and, we are moving on philosophy that miserable humans hate so much. They want you to look at them, to notice, to get angry…don’t and they WILL go away. Eventually. Oh, sure they will make a few more attempts at crawling under your skin but never fear, the power of ignoring an annoyance should never be underestimated. Give it a try. One way to brush off human rashes is to pretend you didn’t see their comment even though many other readers/followers/friends have acknowledged it. Another is to make your one and only “be gone” proclamation and let that be it. No back and forth with Mr. or Ms. Mental Wreckage because once you engage the door stays open. Close it.
Do I feel bad about being what some may erroneously claim is passive-aggressive? No, because what is passive-aggressive about strategically checking someone out of the room they sneakily tried to inhabit in my head? My head, my rules! They had no invitation to begin with so…buh-bye. The failure to acknowledge someone who has been shitty to you is a right everyone has and no one should be forced to engage with miserable people against their will. I have seen many examples of trolling comment crappers trying to turn the tables on those attempting to defend themselves online by saying, “But, aren’t you being just as intolerant as they were?” Huh? How?
Tips on responding to trolls without having to actually "respond"
Telling someone to get the hell off my cyber lawn or just ignoring them until they go away is intolerant? By that logic it would seem that everyone online is supposed to just fight and fight until it’s all ruined for everyone and the free exchange of ideas and cute stories disappear in deference for vile rhetoric and conspiracy theories. Assholes are not the boss of me! And assholes that try to use some twisted logic to put others in their supposed place really have no power with me. If anything, I get great delight from ignoring them, a kind of psychological, cold-shoulder zeal if you will. Thanks! That felt good!!
I agree that there are times when the turd in the punch bowl can’t be ignored but baiting cyber trolls can be avoided and in order to tolerate something you kind of have to acknowledge its right to exist. If no acknowledgement is received after a while they will slink away because being shitty just for the sake of being shitty receives no gold stars in my world. It’s neither legally nor socially acceptable to walk into someone’s home, uninvited, to take a shit on their kitchen floor. And, giving out uninvited snide, hateful and baiting comments on a personal blog or social media account is the same thing.
Be careful where you shit cyber trolls, sometimes you don’t always cover your tracks and the stench is easy to follow back to the one who dealt it.
© 2016-2017 Laura A. Askew, All Rights Reserved
As a gentle reminder: People who steal the creative property
of others deserve a swift donkey kick in the crotch
Don't steal my stuff!
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