To NOT believe some of the threads posted on Mumsnet?

They still do seem to have twins a lot of the time

Re the general concept and understanding of free speech/freedom of speech.

Freedom of speech means a government can't/won't make you disappear for criticising them. It means you have the right to express your opinions ... with exceptions. hate speech, terrorism, etc.

It doesn't mean people can spout anything they want on the internet without any consequences or discussion or opinions expressed about their opinion.

I can say I hate the government and campaign for change and be confident that I won't be chucked in jail for it.

I can't say x poster is talking bullshit and is a grade A twat and expect not to be challenged on that or for it to be against the terms and conditions of a forum.

It's not a hard concept to grasp. Why is it that so many people think freedom of speech means they can say whatever they want to whoever they want and have the right not to be challenged on that?

Freedom of speech means the freedom to respond to someone's views that they are expressing because of their own freedom of speech.

It's used more and more often to mean shut up waah waah I said something and you disagree with me waa waa I don't like being disagreed with waa waa I shouldn't have to deal with your opinion about my opinion because Freedom Of Speech.

Whenever people in an argument or debate start wanging on about their freedom of speech I want to tell them suck it up buttercup.

It’s absolutely not freedom of speech here.

Reminds me of people in the days when 'agony aunt' columns were a thing, those who tried to see what story they could invent, to see if it would be published.

You're not allowed to 'troll hunt', i.e. call out obvious bullshit.

Yes, I was going to say this.

All they can do is check out previous posts under previous names.

But if there's nothing obvious (such as they used to be a 58 year old grandmother and now they're a 21 year old first time mum) there's nothing they can do.

I never change my name on here, and I have been accused of making up the content of my post.

There are a lot of bullying trolls on here, and they live in the comment section!

I think accusing someone of making up your post when you're distressed and looking for support is an evil, evil thing to do. Which is why I hardly ever make posts of my own, I just prefer to comment on others.

Of course. Same as everywhere else, a lot of what's posted is bollocks.
That's why it's important to not get invested.

Mumsnet can't actually tell you are a genuine poster though.

I agree and I think I’m starting to spot the trolls more quickly a couple of months in to MN. But many threads are genuine and offer opportunities to learn from other people and sometimes help , as well as opportunities for a good gossip.

The flip side of this is that genuine posters are accused of being trolls/lying.

I can't remember much but years ago I was accused of this. My post was truthful! But it didn't stop a pipe on! It was very upsetting.

MNHQ came on to say I was a genuine poster but I still got slammed.

So I just treat people on face value even if lots of threads I go back to later say they've been pulled.

oh the horror, 'gotten'

Oh lordy, I miss scottishmummy.

Fake posts aren’t nice, I felt like rubbish once when I post of given advice on, turned out to be false. However the info I,, and others had given could potentially help someone else in a situation like it. So though they are annoying, they may come in handy at some point! Unless they are pulled down like!!

I just asked chat gbt to write me a thread about an item that was not returned. Interesting how it says 'has anyone had similar happen?' I've seen that a few times at the end of a post...

Title: Friend Borrowed Expensive Item and Hasn't Returned It – What Should I Do?

Hi all,

I’m in need of some advice. A while ago, a good friend of mine borrowed something quite expensive from me – an item I really value (it's not a super common item, so it's not like I could easily replace it). She was going through a tough time, and I agreed to lend it to her without hesitation, thinking it was a temporary arrangement.

Well, it’s been months now, and she hasn’t returned it. I’ve brought it up a couple of times, but each time she either forgets or makes excuses. I feel awkward asking for it back directly, but I’m starting to feel really uncomfortable about the whole situation. It’s not about the money, but more about the principle and the fact I trusted her.

Has anyone been in a similar situation? How did you handle it? Should I give her a firm deadline or let it slide and hope it comes back eventually? Any advice would be really appreciated!

Thanks in
advance.

What were they about?

There was one earlier in which each update became more outrageous.
The ones that open with a brief paragraph, then drip feed a sentence at a time are a dead giveaway.

YABU

Everyone knows every word published on the internet is absolutely true facts.

Not coming back to a thread doesn’t necessarily indicates they’re not real. Especially as you can get some crazy replies that could put them off engaging. If anything I’m more suspicious of the ones where they’re regularly updating their major life events as they happen.
I do think though that you should reply as if they’re real just in case.

I’d wager that the majority on AIBU aren’t genuine and that even the ones based on a real situation are exaggerated with extra details fabricated. I feel like almost any which goes across more than one thread is sure to be mostly bollocks, even if the initial post was based on something true I never believe the updates are. I enjoy reading threads but I would never invest too much care or emotion into any, I mostly view mumsnet as a live fiction website, not as real people sharing real lives. It would be boring if the threads were all people’s real lives!

Yep.
I often read a thread from a ai or troll and feel bad for the nice, genuine people who reply and try to give "it" advice.

I’m beginning to think this. I’ve seen a few recently that made me raise my eyebrows.

Just exited a recent thread where a poster who claimed she earns 6 figures seemed so completely clueless, lacking in financial and common sense and utterly passive about the fact her partner is clearly using her.

Everyone was trying to sound the alarm but the poster was focused on minor things like where he buys his groceries. And then other details just didn’t add up.

I eventually just left the thread. They are either taking the piss or they’re so far gone.
Some posters do seem to be winding people up and their responses don’t seem real.