Trolls

[seriouschanger]

How do you spot them?

As peed off now!

Am I looking at a good writer that just draws me in?

Any tips on spotting one before I foolishly put heart on sleeve?

[festi]

what is the defination of troll though is it someone just posting to get a gratifying or political responce like in SN, or is it someone who through persoanlity or circumstances craves that attention of a fictonal drama. It is easier to let a known poster get away with that but I wouldnt call them a troll tbh.

I think its those seeking to bash social services or the likes of those who are demanding on the fostering bored bashing the care system or disability bashing.

It is sometimes hard to work out how it will go, a post similar for example to the one I was on today discussing a disclosure will always have SS bashers on it, does the op always post for that responce or to feed a sexual desire or for a laugh, its just too hard to call but if its an unknown poster then I think is the only time troll is generaly called. Im still not sure about that post buts playing on my mind and I do regret saying bullshit on it something niggling at me.

[tethersend]

So what happened with the note-leaving DP one? Did it just go 'poof' or did MNHQ give a reason?

[seriouschanger]

they do evoke a lot of are you ok poster and where are you OP and sending you lots of hugs etc... will look out for those more in future!
and check history too! I don't have a intution blardy hence my own situation doh!

[NorkyPies]

MNHQ posted that they had discovered OP was a 'hairy-handed one' (or something similar), and that the thread was about to be deleted. They also nicely thanked MNetters for offering support and sharing experience, regardless.

[Arcadie]

seriouschanger At the moment, the best way to spot if a thread is actually written by a troll seems to be "Has Arcadie put it on her threads to watch?" :(

It's getting irksome. I allow myself one AIBU a day and it ALWAYS ends up being a troll.... I'm a fool to myself.

[seriouschanger]

thats a lot of trolls Arcadie

Could it be a lot offailed fiction writers that work for DM

[tigerdriverII]

What about the baby sitter thread, that seems to have ground to a halt?

It's so SILLY all this. But there again, some of the novels you can buy at the moment are complete tosh, so perhaps all this is just practice.

What I really loathe at the moment is how every thread is divisive - there is someone waiting to take offence, someone willing to give it, someone calling troll - it's too tiring!

[PishWife]

I was stung by Dizzymare almost exactly 2 years ago, stayed up all hours talking to her. She was a peculiar case though, as she'd invested months in building up the story of the death of her newborn twins. I remember her asking another poster (sockpuppet maybe? Sorry to that person if still around, but I've always wondered) to post the news of her babies' death. She then popped up herself 2 days later in a post riddled with typos and many of us sprang to her aid.

I believe some MNers were then anonymously sent a trolling profile of her, giving her real-life name (supposedly).

One thing that stands out is how kind some posters were to me when I realised I'd been duped and had a rant about it. (BitOfFun in particular).

[festi]

i belive the babysitter thread seems legit to me...is arcadie watching it?

[tigerdriverII]

I thought so - it seemed to disintegrate into "where is the OP" etc etc and arcadie was watching... NB first time I've come across arcadie so this doesn't mean anything to me.

[FabbyChic]

Whats arcadie?

[PotPourri]

I remember that one. It was a horrible intrusion into the bereaved boards. So sick. The support from people to those who had been hurt is always a revelation. So in the long run, the troll loses, and our community gains. It would be so much better though if we could just grow our support without the liars. A bit like real life I suppose, without the physical constraints

[festi]

I did search you, arcadie. name changer I assume.

[FabbyChic]

Ah shit a poster! Really sorry.

[festi]

oh bloody hell no it wasnt you I searched. mistaken identity. sorry

[carantala]

Just wish that WWIFN was back! Did the trolls force her off the site?

[LoopyLoopsPussInBoots]

Do you know what the worst thing that trolls have done to me (and therefore presumably others)? Made me too paranoid to post. When I first joined MN I had just lost one of my twin babies, and needed support. My life was a mess, and lots of things have happened over the years, but the twin/prematurity/infant loss was too much for some people's trolldars, and I was accused, more than once.
The last thing anyone who reaches out for help is to be accused of lying. This is in part the fault of the troll hunting brigade, but really the fault of the trolls. In my case, the DM thing and its timing especially made things more difficult.

[RoxyRobin]

NorkyPies, you can check posting history by clicking on 'Advanced Search' (top right) and typing in poster's name.

[Arcadie]

Festi Yes I am watching it.

Crikey people. Arcadie is my username. has been for... urm... 3 years? Just don't get out from Postnatal much!

[LoopyLoopsPussInBoots]

Continuous baby making?

[Arcadie]

Mmm Hmmmm

[Punkatheart]

Am I missing something? Did the thread with the DP walking out on his pregnant partner disappear? A troll?

I am disgusted. Sorry - but there were some people who really shared some very personal details on that thread, including myself. I hope it is isn't the case.

I write for a living but everything I write on here is true - I just cannot relate to anyone who would make something up, then get thrills out of other people's pain.

[ballstoit]

With the babysitter thread earlier I was of the opinion it wouldnt have mattered if it was trollery, and could see no reason why it would have been.

OP posted all night, then stopped at 7...apparently if you have a family life or a job you must be a troll . Op wasnt giving out misinformation either. So, in that case, I think it was pointless and nasty to cry troll.

With the other thread, my concern was that the Op was trolling (what school rings the other parent and asks them to investigate allegations of abuse) either to try to gain info as to how an allegation against them would be investigated or to try to engage posters in abuse talk for pleasure. I also worried that there was so much incorrect information being bandied about from all sides...which could put a real child at risk. So, I'm glad that got pulled.

After much early morning waffling, what I'm trying to say is, there's no need to shout troll on harmless threads and any others should be reported. The witch hunting has got out of hand.

[deemented]

PishWife - i am the poster that posted of Dizzymares babies deaths. I assure you, i'm certainly no sock puppet. I've purposefully never namechanged so as not to be accused of being a troll/sockpuppet etc.

Yes, i agree i was terribly sucked in when it came to DM. I totally believed her, had no reason not to if i'm honest. But in context, at the time i was in a very emotionally fragile place myself. I'd been widowed less than a year beforehand, leaving me on my own with two young children, and i found myself stupidly pregnant with an unwanted baby (DS3 is now very much wanted and i can't imagine never having had him) and DM played on that and exploited it.

One thing though, that's always irked me about the whole thing though, is whenever the DM thing gets mentioned, people always say 'Oh i just knew she was a troll, right from the beginning'. Well, if they knew, why did they not warn me or MNHQ? They could see me obviously getting sucked in, did they not think a CAT (in the days before the PM system) telling me to perhaps be careful as DM wasn't all she seemed, or even a report to MNHQ to ask them to say something to me would have been a good idea?