Page 6 | Have you ever had a thread removed when you weren’t actually a troll?

Yoghurtpit · 2023-07-18T06:40:23+00:00

I always wonder this. Sometimes I comment on a thread then it’s gone as it’s ‘not genuine’ etc. But I wonder if sometimes the facts are changed a little to protect confidentiality and really the essence of the story is true? This happened to me many years ago now and I still remember feeling like I was at my lowest then that happened! Everything I had put was actually accurate but the situation must have seemed so awful it was unbelievable to some posters.

AnotherTownAnotherTrain · 18/07/2023 23:22

Gymnopedie · 18/07/2023 22:17

@FrugalKisses wrote that one of the things troll hunters look for as a sign that the OP is a troll is that they don't update every five minutes.

I'd add another one where they call troll- if they DO update regularly. You can't win.

There's a deletion message for threads that goes 'while we take a look behind the scenes'. I always wonder what that means but reading these stories I'm starting to get an idea.

That one has always baffled me. It's MUMSnet. Do they assume that mothers of dependent age children have a lot of free time?? It does my head in! People have a life outside mumsnet .

It's almost as if they believe that for a post to be genuine the OP has to be so heavily invested in MN that they never take a break. Yet someone who is unemployed and sitting for hours on the internet in their parents basement is more likely to be the kind of bored unfulfilled lonely person who is prone to troll than a busy (often working as well) mum

FatherJackHackettsUnderpantsHamper · 18/07/2023 23:40

When you say 'but I am genuine' that doesn't go down too well! There is nothing you can say when someone has decided you r a troll or not genuine etc..

It's the modern equivalent of the old witch drownings: any accused woman who insists that she isn't a witch has proved beyond any doubt that she must be.

That one has always baffled me. It's MUMSnet. Do they assume that mothers of dependent age children have a lot of free time?? It does my head in! People have a life outside mumsnet .

And yet, posters with fewer responsibilities, flexible working, on holiday or whatever will also be criticised for being on MN too much!

See also all the smart-arses passing their own kangaroo judgments (no pun intended) on the times of day/night when somebody is or isn't posting, when for all they know, the object of their opprobrium might very well be one of the many Australian or Kiwi MNers.

AnotherTownAnotherTrain · 18/07/2023 23:50

FatherJackHackettsUnderpantsHamper · 18/07/2023 23:40

When you say 'but I am genuine' that doesn't go down too well! There is nothing you can say when someone has decided you r a troll or not genuine etc..

It's the modern equivalent of the old witch drownings: any accused woman who insists that she isn't a witch has proved beyond any doubt that she must be.

That one has always baffled me. It's MUMSnet. Do they assume that mothers of dependent age children have a lot of free time?? It does my head in! People have a life outside mumsnet .

And yet, posters with fewer responsibilities, flexible working, on holiday or whatever will also be criticised for being on MN too much!

See also all the smart-arses passing their own kangaroo judgments (no pun intended) on the times of day/night when somebody is or isn't posting, when for all they know, the object of their opprobrium might very well be one of the many Australian or Kiwi MNers.

Exactly ! Not to mention the many of us who are night owls or don't sleep well.

Yes it's definitely a modern day witch hunt. Reminds me of playground bullies going after a kid who shows vulnerability in some way. It seems to be often neurodivergent posters as well who get a hard time. And so called "experts" who know nothing about the condition they have or who wouldn't know the poster from a hole in the ground.

Rogue1001MNer · 18/07/2023 23:56

Mysterian · 18/07/2023 16:50

I think I remember having one taken down. No idea why. I'd had a nice evening and maybe a teenie weenie drink, then posted a thoughtful, witty and intelligent thread opening post which people may have wrongly mistaken for incomprehensible slurred gibberish. Maybe I had an 'off' bag of crisps between drinks.

You're my kind of woman.

Dang those pesky bad crisps!

(I've heard some brands are even fattening! I know!!!! They're literally diet food!)

ButterflyWingsCeased · 19/07/2023 00:03

There was a poster some years back who had several threads deleted and may have been banned I don't remember now.

The posts were in the mental health topic and included criticism of appalling NHS services, and actions/choices of people working in those services. It was very odd because some posters replied and had had similar experiences and totally understood and were very kind to her, whilst others really decided to stick the boot in and were really critical of her, saying she (and other posters) were making stuff up. I noticed at the time that mental health threads would get really divisive like this if it was someone who services rejected, like posters picked up on something and rejected the person too. Horrible.

I know she was telling the truth, partly because her experiences were all too familiar to me, and partly because I got to know her as a result outside of MN. She was the most wonderfully supportive, thoughtful, kind, and amusing person.

Sadly I ended up attending her funeral after she killed herself. I know the horrible way she was treated by services that posters didn't believe, contributed to that.
Damn, I miss her.

Hawkins0001 · 19/07/2023 00:10

It seems unless your threads are not main steam then it's a mix as to weather its belived.

AnotherTownAnotherTrain · 19/07/2023 00:13

Hawkins0001 · 19/07/2023 00:10

It seems unless your threads are not main steam then it's a mix as to weather its belived.

Yes, I have noticed this .

AnotherTownAnotherTrain · 19/07/2023 00:18

ButterflyWingsCeased · 19/07/2023 00:03

There was a poster some years back who had several threads deleted and may have been banned I don't remember now.

The posts were in the mental health topic and included criticism of appalling NHS services, and actions/choices of people working in those services. It was very odd because some posters replied and had had similar experiences and totally understood and were very kind to her, whilst others really decided to stick the boot in and were really critical of her, saying she (and other posters) were making stuff up. I noticed at the time that mental health threads would get really divisive like this if it was someone who services rejected, like posters picked up on something and rejected the person too. Horrible.

I know she was telling the truth, partly because her experiences were all too familiar to me, and partly because I got to know her as a result outside of MN. She was the most wonderfully supportive, thoughtful, kind, and amusing person.

Sadly I ended up attending her funeral after she killed herself. I know the horrible way she was treated by services that posters didn't believe, contributed to that.
Damn, I miss her.

How horrible. That poor poster. And having suffered similar from M H services in real life (survived an OD a few years ago as a result) I can well believe it. I can't understand what would make others suffering similarly on a chat forum stick the knife into some one that vulnerable . It's shocking and heartbreaking .

I'm sorry for your loss. I really do believe the services that let this lady down and others in a similar situation have blood on their hands.

BodegaSushi · 19/07/2023 00:21

startingover202 · 18/07/2023 17:43

Yes I've been banned.
Old account. Posting various scenarios from different perspectives but labelled a troll.
Probably not the best way to seek advice but desperate at the time.
Changed details as didn't want to be recognised. Outed or in the daily fail.

To be fair, that is annoying.

Hawkins0001 · 19/07/2023 00:23

The other one that's a puzzlement is the frequent use of its a previously banned poster, = too many people think OMG it cannot be accurate when actually it is, that's spoiled a few threads.

Rogue1001MNer · 19/07/2023 00:26

empatheticpretzel · Today 12:19
Lots of people reported me for being a troll because I posted about the same thing multiple times

Did you fail to take advice offered on multiple threads?

AnotherTownAnotherTrain · 19/07/2023 01:13

Hawkins0001 · 19/07/2023 00:23

The other one that's a puzzlement is the frequent use of its a previously banned poster, = too many people think OMG it cannot be accurate when actually it is, that's spoiled a few threads.

I hate that. Always that assumption. As if someone who has never been banned can't possibly be a troll or a GF.

pompomdaisy · 19/07/2023 01:40

Yes they thought I was a troll but the situation was real. Felt like I had been through a trial and wasn't allowed to make my case.

LoikeanOverner · 19/07/2023 01:44

I have written many a post to just delete it myself because I suspect it would be deemed as being not in the spirit of MN.

Plus I have had a bit of a weird life, quite exciting in good and bad ways really so I don’t really share those parts as I would hate to think people would think it fake.

AlfietheSchnauzer · 19/07/2023 01:48

Yep! The deletion message even said something about me going back under my bridge or something? Was a long time ago but I was absolutely distraught as it was a very serious situation and in amongst the troll hunting, I was being blamed for something that happened to my child, even though I was in hospital when it happened and my child was with her DF. I was nearly suicidal afterwards as I was already incredibly fragile before I posted it. I was looking for support. These bullies don't give a shit what effect their words have on others

FatherJackHackettsUnderpantsHamper · 19/07/2023 01:51

Plus I have had a bit of a weird life, quite exciting in good and bad ways really so I don’t really share those parts as I would hate to think people would think it fake.

Not to be flippant, but that made me think of Bob Mortimer on Would I Lie To You - where he constantly has these absolutely absurd, crazy, ridiculous 'obvious lies' that almost always turn out to be the truth!

Ds16dv · 19/07/2023 07:49

There's a good handful of people who think I'm a troll . Just because they don't understand the challenges in life I face

I ofen get attacked gas lighted on my own threads I personally think they are trolls

LoikeanOverner · 19/07/2023 08:06

@FatherJackHackettsUnderpantsHamper exactly that, my sisters feel the same as me.

Ds16dv · 19/07/2023 08:08

AlfietheSchnauzer · 19/07/2023 01:48

Yep! The deletion message even said something about me going back under my bridge or something? Was a long time ago but I was absolutely distraught as it was a very serious situation and in amongst the troll hunting, I was being blamed for something that happened to my child, even though I was in hospital when it happened and my child was with her DF. I was nearly suicidal afterwards as I was already incredibly fragile before I posted it. I was looking for support. These bullies don't give a shit what effect their words have on others

I'm really sorry that happened to you. I hope your in a better place now. Believe me I know exactly how you felt back then. Some people are awful and they just don't care. I think MN have got better at spotting the nasty shits on here compared to several years back.

Purewhitegold · 20/07/2023 18:57

I’ve had 2 threads removed after being accused of trolling when I wasn’t. One of which was a really distraught post because work colleagues had said they wished my unborn baby would die. Everyone reported it as a lie when I really needed some kind words at that time. The other was about my child being sworn at by a teacher, witnessed by a parent who told me. I wanted to report them but wasn’t sure how to go about it, but everyone defended the teacher and said my child must have deserved it. He was 4! I haven’t been back to mumsnet since until now, but I’m hoping there are some good people around now. The troll hunting is awful, if you don’t believe a post then come off it and move on imo, don’t bully potentially innocent people for fun.