# Trolling and clarifications, UncleBeer **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [October 17, 2001, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039 "2001-10-17T19:25:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Juniper200](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@Juniper200](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Juniper200)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2001, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/21 "2001-10-19T06:59:19Z")
> [@](#): > > _origainally posted by Jodi_ > **And I would like a bag of mini-Snickers and a full-body massage from a fabulous looking guy named Sven.** Yeah, I’ll take some of that action, too. And a pony! I always wanted a pony. ---
**Author:** ![Fiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e274bd/32.png) [@Fiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiver)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2001, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/22 "2001-10-19T14:01:28Z")
I gotcher banana right HERE (gestures), **Coldfire**. Whatcha gonna do about it? ---
**Author:** ![John\_Corrado](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a88e4f/32.png) [@John\_Corrado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Corrado)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2001, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/23 "2001-10-19T15:36:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by curious george \* > I did not “make a statement that is deliberately inflammatory so as to aggravate other posters”. All of the GD posts I have made were legitamate attempts at a debate. Not that I have seen. In order to attempt a debate, you need to make a statement, support it with facts, and be willing to both rebut the arguments against it as well as counter the rebuttals to your argument. In each thread, you made a statement. You did not attempt to support them with facts. In one case, you stated that you felt there was no need to provide a cite in GD. You did not attempt to rebut the arguments against it. You did not attempt to counter the rebuttals. Therefore, none of what you posted was a legitimate attempt at a debate. It was a screed, an opinion, a rant, all of which go into forums _other_ than GD. > [@](#): > > Never have I posted anything on this board only to aggravate other posters in a hit and run. Hmm. You post something that obviously causes aggravation among most posters, and then never show back up in the thread to bother with it again. How exactly is this different from a hit and run? Your intentions? I can’t read your mind; therefore, I must judge you by your actions alone. And your actions have been trolling. > [@](#): > > If I never return to the thread, it’s because I am too busy or have nothing more to say. Too busy? Then don’t start the damned thread. The point of Great Debates is to discuss an issue; if you can’t live up to your end of the bargain, then you shouldn’t post to Great Debates. Nothing more to say? Then you’re not bothering to debate, and had no interest in actually debating the issue. Ergo, trolling. > [@](#): > > So there are no rules specifying that trolling is considered being a jerk. Nor are there rules specifying that spamming the boards is considered being a jerk. Nor are there rules that hacking the boards is considered being a jerk. We consider these truths to be self-evident. > [@](#): > > Extreme left-wing thoughts are crap? Seems biased. Are right-wing thoughts crap? Geez, I dunno, did we ban Wildest Bill after another anti-Clinton harangue in the wrong forum? > [@](#): > > Also, what if I am not sure how I stand on a topic, but would like it discussed and debated? What is wrong with making an OP in GD saying: “here are some interesting thoughts, I’m not sure what I think of them. What do you people think”? That would be fine. But posting the OP with no commentary _implies_ acceptance- silence meaning assent and all that. > [@](#): > > One poster wrote “If so-and-so sees your thread, he is going to hunt you down and kill you”. That is a death threat. Am I supposed to wonder if that other poster say my thread? We have no way of knowing, but it seems likely. Well, one would expect that had Manservant Hecubus seen your thread, he would have said something. I cannot consider it a death threat when it involves death by proxy. Had someone said, “I’ll kill you for writing that”, that would be one thing. But opining that another poster would do something- that’s an opinion, and not a threat. ---
**Author:** ![beyondblender](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/45deac/32.png) [@beyondblender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beyondblender)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2001, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/24 "2001-10-19T19:28:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Coldfire \* > \*\*So, how about that Jordan? Will he score more than 20 points against the Knicks? > > I think he can. \*\* To my mind this quote is the essence of trolling/ hit and run/ hazing/ filler/ the actions of a jerk/ :wally. ---
**Author:** ![curious\_george](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b487fb/32.png) [@curious\_george](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/curious_george)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2001, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/25 "2001-10-19T22:03:04Z")
John Corrado: “Well, one would expect that had Manservant Hecubus seen your thread, he would have said something. I cannot consider it a death threat when it involves death by proxy. Had someone said, “I’ll kill you for writing that”, that would be one thing. But opining that another poster would do something- that’s an opinion, and not a threat”. Using that logic, when bin Laden said something like “Muslims will wage war on the US if they can”, he was not making a death threat. He didn’t say HE was going to kill any Americans himself. It is just a threat that involves death by proxy. Thus, he is not guilty of any crime. He and the Taliban probably inspired the hijackers to hijack planes and fly them into towers, but he and the Tal didn’t do that himself. So, OBL is guilty of no crime, and the US has no reason to attack him or the Taliban. The hijackers are dead. Case closed. I don’t understand that logic. Saying a third party will kill you is still a death threat. I see no place for talk like that on a message board. ---
**Author:** ![annalamerino](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b3f665/32.png) [@annalamerino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/annalamerino)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2001, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/26 "2001-10-20T00:19:18Z")
It seems some death threats are considered allowable. I remember when “squick to death” was in style, and before that “brick to death”. I think you have to expect a lot of stuff on any message board, indeed the entire web that’s not allowed off-web (e.g. in the Op Ed pages of the Reader). And of course, since you are using at least a partial pseudonym, the whole thing seems like a masquerade, so it’s probably not actionable by your heirs, should it come to that. ---
**Author:** ![wring](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/838e76/32.png) [@wring](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wring)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2001, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/27 "2001-10-20T00:24:10Z")
And, let us not forget “LMAO”, after all, w/o an ass, where would you be? \*\*\*\*\* \*\*\*\*\* for the sarcasm impaired. Frankly, I used to threaten my little brother with ‘just wait til mom gets home’ all the time. Fortunately he was just as gulible as some posters here seem to be. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2001, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/28 "2001-10-20T00:54:35Z")
Wring, did you know that the word “gullible” is not in the dictionary? ---
**Author:** ![Bilder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@Bilder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bilder)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2001, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/29 "2001-10-20T01:59:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by wring \* > \*\*And, let us not forget “LMAO”, after all, w/o an ass, where would you be? \*\*\*\*\* > \*\* I believe that is not a death threat as much as a suicide note. ---
**Author:** ![Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/50afbb/32.png) [@Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duck_Duck_Goose)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2001, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/30 "2001-10-20T02:34:38Z")
> **[Dictionary by Merriam-Webster: America's most-trusted online dictionary](https://www.merriam-webster.com/)** > > The dictionary by Merriam-Webster is America's most trusted online dictionary for English word definitions, meanings, and pronunciation. #wordsmatter > [@](#): > > Main Entry: gull·ible > Variant(s): also gull·able /'g&-l&-b&l/ > Function: adjective > Date: 1818 > : easily duped or cheated What? Or was I just whooshed? [sub]I’m not good at this sort of thing[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Pinky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/848f3c/32.png) [@Dr.Pinky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Pinky)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2001, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/31 "2001-10-20T02:42:49Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by John Corrado \* > **Not that I have seen. In order to attempt a debate, you need to make a statement, support it with facts, and be willing to both rebut the arguments against it as well as counter the rebuttals to your argument.** [python on] O: Yes it is! M: No it isn’t! O: Yes it is! M: No it ISN’T! Argument is an intellectual process. Contradiction is just the automatic gainsaying of anything the other person says. O: It is NOT! M: It is! O: Not at all! M: It is! [python off] ---
**Author:** ![zut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zut/32/2875_2.png) [@zut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zut)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2001, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/32 "2001-10-20T03:22:18Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Duck Duck Goose \* > [Merriam-Webster definition of gullible] > What? Or was I just whooshed? I think you were born ninety years too late, alas! missing your true calling, that of Vaudville straight man. Suppose **Lemur** were to tell you something implausible, such as the “fact” that a well-known English word was not contained in the dictionary? Suppose, moreover, that you were of such a trusting nature that you thought this “fact” plausible enough to actually spend time looking up the word in the dictionary? What would that make you? Hint: reread definition above. Tell me, **Duck Duck Goose** , what’s high in the middle and round at both ends? ---
**Author:** ![wring](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/838e76/32.png) [@wring](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wring)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2001, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/33 "2001-10-20T03:40:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Bilder \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*Originally posted by wring \* > > \*\*And, let us not forget “LMAO”, after all, w/o an ass, where would you be? \*\*\*\*\* > > \*\* > > I believe that is not a death threat as much as a suicide note. \*\* yea, yea, yea, but it’s a threat of death anyhow… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/50afbb/32.png) [@Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duck_Duck_Goose)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2001, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/34 "2001-10-20T12:34:21Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by zut \* > Tell me, **Duck Duck Goose** , what’s high in the middle and round at both ends? \*\* arrrrrrrrrrhhhh [_stares bleary-eyed at the monitor_] … riddles at this hour of the morning? wait wait i know this one . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ohio? rrrrrrrr… bring more coffee… ---
**Author:** ![wring](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/838e76/32.png) [@wring](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wring)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2001, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/35 "2001-10-20T12:36:05Z")
I woulda been really disappointed in you **DDG** had you missed that one, you bein’ a mom and all… pass the coffee please. Of course leaded. ---
**Author:** ![Hombre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ecb155/32.png) [@Hombre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hombre)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2001, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/36 "2001-10-21T03:19:17Z")
Not much to add, really. But since everybody is bragging about death threats I’d thought I’d toss mine onto the pile: > [@](#): > > _originally posted by saepiroth_ > **oh, and hombre… > you really want me to stab you with an icepick, right?** 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Yondan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/278dde/32.png) [@Yondan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yondan)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2001, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/37 "2001-10-21T04:45:43Z")
Don’t forget, **Hombre** We have own score to settle Prepare to die, YAAAAH! ---
**Author:** ![Hombre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ecb155/32.png) [@Hombre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hombre)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2001, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/38 "2001-10-21T19:22:45Z")
Two death threats now, huh? First, deadly Crane ice pick stance - Hai -ya. **saepy** drops. **Yondan** aproaches. Sneak forum attack. **Hombre** ducks, parries, bitch-slaps foe. :ninjasmilie: ---
**Author:** ![Alpha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Alpha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpha)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2001, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/39 "2001-10-21T19:42:16Z")
I can think of at least 3 pit mods who \*deserve \*death threats, but I’m not holding my breath expecting one to stay unedited. ---
**Author:** ![SPOOFE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@SPOOFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SPOOFE)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2001, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039/40 "2001-10-21T23:16:08Z")
> [@](#): > > I can think of at least 3 pit mods who deserve death threats, but I’m not holding my breath expecting one to stay unedited. Aww… how cute. It thinks it’s people. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolling-and-clarifications-unclebeer/88039.md?page=1)