Boomerang Bannings

[SpoiledPrincess]

Trolls get banned and we know they're going to come back, the second/third/hundredth time around they usually manage to stay around a little longer, but what do they get out of it? The internet is communication, communication runs a wide gamut of variety from friendly flirting to full on war, but they don't get that range of communication, all they get is the sense of being disliked, probably paranoia and because they're inflammatory a lot of people won't even answer them seriously on the occasions they do try to make a post that will 'fit in'.

I'm against banning for all but the most serious cases (when someone has purposely tried to hurt someone specifically for instance) for a number of reasons

1 - I believe people have the right to voice their opinions.

2 - We know they're only going to come back and they'll try to disguise who they are and lay low for a while, it's a waste of our time banning them as we then have to work out who they are again.

3 - Often if you don't ban someone they go on to become a normal member, they make connections with people, invest time in the site and cool down to normality.

But what do the members who join and rejoin and troll from the start get out of it, and why do they do it?

 

[B_ScaredLittleBoy]

Edward Yawn has a small cock and coming here acting like a neglected child (which he most likely is) makes him feel like an e-man. :tongue:

Who knows why they do it, I just feel sorry for them. Then I laugh.

 

[Mem]

I'm against banning for all but the most serious cases (when someone has purposely tried to hurt someone specifically for instance) for a number of reasons

? You mean like reach thru the monitor and bonk them on the head? I'm being facetious, but I think that hurting people's feeling is common here.


2 - We know they're only going to come back and they'll try to disguise who they are and lay low for a while, it's a waste of our time banning them as we then have to work out who they are again.

3 - Often if you don't ban someone they go on to become a normal member, they make connections with people, invest time in the site and cool down to normality.

But what do the members who join and rejoin and troll from the start get out of it, and why do they do it?[/quote.]

If they are not banned they will not change their behavior, or they can't.

They either like this place and will try to fit in. Or they will come back as revenge.

 

[Wrey]

A couple of weeks ago I would have disagreed. Not today. When I realize how much emotional energy I willingly gave to these individuals there is a small part of me that feels silly and somewhat ashamed.

Attention is what they sought and I gave it to them.

I now think the best way to undermine those who wish to disrupt the friendly flow of intellectual discourse is just to ignore them.

I think SpoiledPrincess has it right. Let these poor sods have a chance to read and ponder what we have to say. Let them see that people from across the globe, from different cultures and walks of life, can agree, and sometimes disagree, in a friendly and peaceful manner.

If they don’t get the point from what we have to say to each other, are they really going to get the point from our hollering at them?

 

[DaveyR]

I agree with most of what you say SP. There are times when someone becomes completely disruptive to the board and then action might be necessary.

As for hurting people. You can choose to let people hurt you or not on the internet in most cases. Strong disagreements are healthy and often interesting. If IMO someone goes too far then they wont hurt me in any way. I'm happy to tell them to fuck off and ignore from then on in unless they change their behaviour towards me.

As for banned folks coming back time and time again I cannot understand them. I certainly wouldn't want to be where I wasn't wanted.

 

[DC_DEEP]

I agree that banning should be a last resort, but sometimes, the troll begs for it.

As for why they do it, the only thing I can think of is that they need much stronger doses of Haldol or Thorazine. They obviously have some serious psychological and emotional dysfunction and pathology.

 

[frizzle]

I seriously don't care. I find very little offends me, and I usually ignore people that try to anyway.

 

[guiltrip]

I think you're taking things too seriously. Its just a website.

 

[Mr. Snakey]

The past sure is tense. The door is cold and closed. The future is there a warm and open door.

 

[wldhoney]

Unfortunately there are some people who need and thrive on anger and chaos. Not only does it give them attention they need, which in some cases are the norm for them thru their personal environment and relationships, but it also gives them the opportunity to insult others which makes them feel better about themselves.

One thing that I have noticed is that there are members here, a couple long-standing, that purposely go into threads and push buttons. If you look thru their history just about everything they post is an insult hidden under the guise of being "blunt". It increases the attention and tension to a thread, the troll gets what they need, while the hidden troll gets away with it's antics while feeling justified.

In addition, you will always have the emotionally wounded and those with disorders who find the internet an easier place to communicate in any manner. Though others may recognize a personality issue, and even the person may refer to or recognize the same issue in themself, they are unable to stop the behavior.

One tactic that I have noticed in this forum and others that seems to frustrate the heck out of trolls is to respond with nothing but logic. Don't allow emotion to enter the post except for expressing an easy going amusement and friendliness. If you don't go where they want you to, and they are unable to form a valid and reasonable argument, they will generally leave you alone or ignore you. Problem solved.

 

[Mem]

One tactic that I have noticed in this forum and others that seems to frustrate the heck out of trolls is to respond with nothing but logic. Don't allow emotion to enter the post except for expressing an easy going amusement and friendliness. If you don't go where they want you to, and they are unable to form a valid and reasonable argument, they will generally leave you alone or ignore you. Problem solved.

I find the best way is to not respond to them all. Once you respond to them with logic, they know they got you.

I got a few of them to stop bothering me by ignoring them.

 

[Osiris]

Unfortunately there are some people who need and thrive on anger and chaos. Not only does it give them attention they need, which in some cases are the norm for them thru their personal environment and relationships, but it also gives them the opportunity to insult others which makes them feel better about themselves.

One thing that I have noticed is that there are members here, a couple long-standing, that purposely go into threads and push buttons. If you look thru their history just about everything they post is an insult hidden under the guise of being "blunt". It increases the attention and tension to a thread, the troll gets what they need, while the hidden troll gets away with it's antics while feeling justified.

In addition, you will always have the emotionally wounded and those with disorders who find the internet an easier place to communicate in any manner. Though others may recognize a personality issue, and even the person may refer to or recognize the same issue in themself, they are unable to stop the behavior.

One tactic that I have noticed in this forum and others that seems to frustrate the heck out of trolls is to respond with nothing but logic. Don't allow emotion to enter the post except for expressing an easy going amusement and friendliness. If you don't go where they want you to, and they are unable to form a valid and reasonable argument, they will generally leave you alone or ignore you. Problem solved.

God I've missed your sane logic the past few days. Welcome back!

 

[SpoiledPrincess]

I meant the kind of person who will purposely and maliciously target one person mem, not the normal kind of troll who's just out to annoy everyone.

 

[Mem]

I meant the kind of person who will purposely and maliciously target one person mem, not the normal kind of troll who's just out to annoy everyone.

I know, I was just in a mischievous mood when I answered the post.

 

[DaveyR]

I meant the kind of person who will purposely and maliciously target one person mem, not the normal kind of troll who's just out to annoy everyone.

Most of us knew what you meant :wink:

 

[SpoiledPrincess]

I just wanted to be clear for Mem or to use his official title Mem the Awkward

I do wonder about trolls, is that how they carry on in their everyday life and do they get a smack in the mouth on a daily basis, I think it's much more likely that in their real lives they wouldn't say boo to a goose and the net is the only place where they can say what's fermenting in their minds.