Troll? March 12, 2001 1:58 PM   Subscribe

Is the_One a troll?


posted by Sean Meade to Etiquette/Policy at 1:58 PM (8 comments total)

I see nothing in the two posts you've referenced to indicate he is a troll. I see plenty in them that you probably did not like to hear (judging from your own MeFi links), but that's not what trolling is.
posted by aaron at 2:05 PM on March 12, 2001


Nah.
posted by cCranium at 2:07 PM on March 12, 2001


I don't *think* so, at least intentionally. I do think that the_0ne merely combines strong beliefs with poorly structured arguments, comments prolifically (16 comments in three days?), and seems fixated on one topic.
posted by Avogadro at 2:11 PM on March 12, 2001


The strict definition of a troll is someone who "regularly posts specious arguments, flames or personal attacks to a newsgroup, discussion list, or in email for no other purpose than to annoy someone or disrupt a discussion (emphasis mine)." Thus, if the_One truly believes what he's saying, and is here because he disagrees with other posted opinions, then he's not trolling, no matter had poorly argued his responses might be.

Besides, a real troll would just toss up a front-page link out of nowhere, fill it with over-the-top invective, and walk away from it, choosing to watch the inevitable flamefest from a safe distance.
posted by aaron at 2:24 PM on March 12, 2001



No more mithuth of th' term 'troll' pleath.
I propose that no one jump and point troll unless they agree w/ the general gist of the troller :)
posted by sonofsamiam at 2:30 PM on March 12, 2001


Question: Would the_One seem less like a troll (to those who think he is) if he included an email address so people could take it offline (.com)? I remember wanting to email someone about a post a few weeks ago but not being able to find any contact information.
posted by snarkout at 3:38 PM on March 12, 2001


hmmm. don't even know if anyone will come back to read this, but here goes.

note: i never said he was a troll. can i please have a little credit for that? i asked a question. and, aaron, i bet you don't have me quite as pegged as you seem to think.

i'm happy to abide by the strict definition above. i really was just wondering. i guess he was simply arguing passionately and poorly and unabatedly. Avogadro's comment here is incisive, as usual.

i like snarkout's question. should this be a more regular occurence in such instances?

mainly i wanted to explore the definiton of 'troll'. i should have asked the question that way, with the_One as an example. i apologize for my imprecision.
posted by Sean Meade at 7:48 AM on March 13, 2001


the_One does remind me a bit of JeffK...
posted by Neb at 12:50 PM on March 13, 2001


« Older Can the stylesheet please be changed to not...   |   Cheap bastards Newer »

You are not logged in, either login or create an account to post comments