nevermind
Once in a blue moon…
[…]
~Max
I’m not yet convinced of trolling, but it’s a distinct possibility. I think this post, courtesy of @Temporary_Name, is a textbook example on how to feed a troll.
https://boards.straightdope.com/t/democratic-party-seems-determined-to-allow-the-perfect-to-be-the-enemy-of-the-good/951791/126
Notice first that we have a wall of text disproportionate to the post it is addressing. This is not a good thing for a few reasons.
- Effort imbalance. The troll has succeeded in wasting your time, if it was a troll.
- Too long didn’t read. The poster being responded to may be intimidated by the wall-o-text and not respond, even if not a troll. Depends on the poster.
- Effort imbalance II. The author of the wall-o-text may be annoyed that there is no response. Depends on the author.
I will say, however, Temporary_Name had a very nice and friendly tone. The members responding to gandrews3367 as if he were some alien specimen are jerks.
“Always interesting to hear these dispatches from Trumplandia.”
“Yeah, that’s a lot of misinformation in one post. It’s like talking to someone from North Korea or something, with the amount of falsehoods and propaganda that a North Korean has internalized.”
“Yeah, it is interesting how the board gets those “Trumplandia Dispatches” as andy calls them from time to time. I assume it’s a random Trumper who ends up here via some search engine or something, sees a political discussion and decide to just data dump all of this month’s talking points from Tucker Carlson. Most of the time I notice these sort never respond again, probably forgetting the board exists soon after posting and moving on to their next culture war front.”
Did you all forget you weren’t in the Pit or something? You all came across as a clique of snooty girls sitting in a treehouse, greeting the new kid with a snarky “I didn’t realize they let plebs in here.” “Oh, but they can be so interesting!” “But they never stay, what a shame.” 
~Max
The poster you’re referring to prompted this thread in ATMB:
I’d say the comparison is apt.
Well that was quite a while ago wasn’t it. So, as it turns out the following was posted by a former Starbucks barista, concerning the old Pay it Forward thing. Beware of logic and apparently friendly gestures, kids.
“I just want to say publicly, as a former Starbucks barista of nearly seven years, since the current Starbucks employees can’t say it,” she wrote in her public service announcement-style Facebook post.
“Pay it forward is extremely annoying and makes everything confusing. It makes it easy to hand out the wrong drinks and just sucks…Instead of paying for the people behind you, who can probably afford their own stuff since they’re in line intending to pay, tip the people making your drinks who have been understaffed for months.”
That member’s vaccine information/misinformation is to be distinguished from his or her participation in P&E. IMO it’s harassment if people are following the poster across the board and commenting on what a queer member we have, (rather than replying to the substance of the posts in good faith, or not replying at all,) because of the unrelated vaccine issue.
~Max
I meant my post sincerely. It really is interesting to see what the hardcore Trumpists believe. It’s a window into a totally alien way of thinking (to me, anyway). I think it’s largely terrible, but a lot of terrible things are nonetheless interesting.
Getting a femmejean vibe from El_Deluxo’s latest OP, but it looks like they’ve been on the board since '07, which makes it less likely.
I have no doubt you do, but the substance of your post was basically shit. You called him/her out for posting misinformation, but instead of saying what it was that was wrong or acting to correct it, you’re just like, what an interesting specimen… by not addressing the person or substance of the post you were talking about, you belittled the poster as an object of interest rather than a person to hold a discussion with. And you made fun of their ideology to boot (“Trumplandia”, “bullshit”, “laughable”, and “sad” aren’t endearing terms).
It may be a troll after all, but it also could be a stranger in our lands.
~Max
I agree with everything you said aside from the first sentence. Snarking idiot posters is a sort of substance, even if it’s not your cup of tea, and it’s a big reason to be on the Dope. YMMV, but I see no obligation to be gentle with random idiots on the internet.
It would be fine if you had posted in the Pit. But you made a post that amounts to nothing but contempt and snark, directed at a (presumed) newbie, outside of the Pit.
~Max
AFAICT that kind of snark, when directed at posts rather than posters, is allowed even outside the Pit.
Allowed or not I think it makes you a jerk.
~Max
You are free to have such an opinion.
Obvious troll is obvious. It also started the thread Dave Chappelle is hilarious in CS. Started, and then never engaged beyond the OP even as there have been 90+ replies.
Given its join date, its relatively voluminous posting history over that short span of time, and its success at generating a massive response for minimum effort, I’d vote sock, too.
Dude, when you critique other peoples responses by saying completely opposite things (“Some of you didn’t bother to address the poster on the issues” and “You put too much effort into your responses so the poster is likely not going to read all that”)… especially when this critique is coming from Max_S, a poster well-known for his painstakingly detailed writing… all I have to say is maybe you’re becoming too invested in this place.
Not my fight, but if you think one of the most diplomatic, word careful posters here is a jerk, then you must admit that you’re kind of a dumbass.
I think it’s pretty much the signature of this particular dumbass not to know that he’s a dumbass.
Well let’s hope it’s cleared up now. 
Without wanting to get in the middle of this, I had the same thought (exactly!). Thank you JohnT for saying publicly what I was thinking in private.
Max_S, you are certainly entitled to your opinion, and I at first believed the post I replied to might be disingenuous. But upon reflection decided to treat it as legitimate (I certainly know people who hold similar views in real life – check a few of my previous posts in various threads for examples).
While I did write more than I had originally planned to write, I came nowhere close to addressing all of the things I found erroneous in his none-to-brief initial post. I also made a point of not bombarding the new poster with source after source making my reply seem like the only correct answer to any question. I tried to be friendly and conversational; I do not think everyone-- or anyone needs to share all of my views to be my friend, to discuss ideas with, for me to show them respect.
I will now follow my habits, the faults you kindly pointed out in my efforts, and make a lengthy reply to you as well
- Effort Imbalance: I do not consider it a waste of time to articulate my views, to try to explain my thoughts and feelings and reactions. It allows me to examine my own beliefs, consider the beliefs of others, and perhaps arrive at a synthesis addressing all of the views on a topic. Sometimes I become more committed to a certain view, sometimes I realize that I had made unfounded suppositions and try to correct errors, and sometimes I realize that I had not thought the whole matter through completely. I have been known to alter my views based solely upon stating them out loud.
- Too Long; Didn’t Read: Since I had decided to treat the poster and his posts as genuine, I made the assumption that he cared enough about the topics he brought up himself to hear a reply-- even if it did not agree with his own. If he chooses to ignore it, it does not bother me, neither does it make my effort useless. I believe that if the poster did purposely ignore a (in my, perhaps, not so humble opinion) thoughtful and kindly worded response that he missed out on a good opportunity to learn and grow (even if he would have only learned how to more effectively dispute my arguments). I do not control what other posters read or don’t read, but I do try learn from others- even the ones with whom I disagree.
- Effort Imbalance II (The Second Story! [Get it? like second narrative?]): I do miss the adulation of the masses, but truth be told I am quite used to being ignored. I have been ignored by way better and more thoughtful posters and real life acquaintances in the past. Somehow I have managed to soldier onward through all of that. In all honesty, I am seldom annoyed by everyone ignoring my serious posts. What DOES annoy me is when I think I have made some very clever Cecil Adams approaching witticism and THAT goes ignored. Very, very rarely do I ever think I have a unique or hyper insightful thought or post so lack of a response is hardly ever a big deal to me.
All of that being said, thank you for noticing my wall-o-text and for commenting upon it. I would further like to thank you for noticing that my response to gandrews3367 was nice with a friendly tone. Both my mother and my ex-wife would be very proud of me for overcoming my natural talent for being abrasive if they knew you had said that.
As for our fellow posters, I realized some of those posts were not the kindest replies ever, but I am inclined to excuse them in this case. I used to spend my Summers with an uncle who very much reminds me of 3367, and I truly admired that guy. At one time my views were more similar to those that perhaps his views and posts grew out of, so it is easy for me to be tolerant of them (in most cases). But essentially the guy walked into a Democratic Barroom, ordered three shots of rotgut, threw them down his throat, took off his jacket and said: “I can whup any Democrat in this here bar – and what is more, I can whup any TWO Socialists in this here bar!” Flex, exclamation point!
Call me shortsighted if you must, but I don’t believe he was looking for a warm reception. (And I also don’t believe he was necessarily trolling. He may have just had some things he wanted to get off his chest. I will hand him this much, it is easy to spout ones opinion in places where one knows he or she is likely to be well received. But gandrews3367 had the starch to say his piece where he knew it would not likely be well received. Even if he did it in a slightly confrontational manner, I admire him for saying what [I believe] he truly believes - even in the Lion’s Den!)
Now, I hope I did not waste my time writing all the above. I hope each of you read every detail more than once (if I may recommend- print it out so you can highlight the portions you love the best!) and then make many fawning replies so I do not become annoyed!
(“See!!” my ex-wife would say, pointing at that last paragraph, “That is why people don’t like you!” But it amuses me so HAD to say it.)