Trolls or 'Internet Opinions'

APOLOGIES IN ADVANCE FOR THE RATHER CONVULUTED WAY I GET ROUND TO THE SUBJECT MATTER

I was hoping to Interview Peter Tatchell recently, owing to the fact that in a pique of optimistic correspondence, a quick e-mail to him got a quick and enthusiastic reply. I wrote to him about my confused yet liberal/green outlook. His reply:

Good to hear of your fledgling first steps into politics. I agree that
it's difficult to find a position that you are most comfortable with.
You have to work out what is important to you, what you care about,
and then that will allow you to view the world through that prism.

I left Labour and joined the Green Party some years ago as the Greens
are the party that most reflects my personal commitments to social
justice, environmental protection and human rights.

Then a suggested date for a promise of an interview...although when I rang to confirm this, he had some problems with his health, and a family bereavement and to postpone to the begining of august. Although I was, and always have been, dimly aware of Peter Tatchell, or his infamy, through incredulous laughter from more cynical members of my family, and knew of his Human Rights Campaigns. It was when I typed in his name into youtube and watched the first video that comes up: http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=peter+tatchell&aq=f which is him talking in Moscow at a protest. He is punched hard in the face and runs yelping in pain, asking for help and protection. Now my honest reaction to this is one of being profoundly upset, sickened and a little embarrassed.

To most people things like this are just a 'news story' at best, and I'm not preaching, I don't want to sound bias, even though I'm gay, that's irrelevent, in this... it's just an EXAMPLE. Now yes, upset that upon further reading that Mister Tatchell has already suffered countless beatings over the years that has left him with brain damage. Culturally it seems that due to someone peacefully protesting and shouting about things causes great annoyance by right-wing people or cynics or people who can't deal with emotional and human costs to things. But what I felt deep down first time I watched this was that his vulnerability was so clear, he was in pain he shouted for help, this strong Human Rights Protestor was reduced to yelping and running away.

Further reading shows that this heavy punch has left him with permanently blurred vision in one of his eyes.

Now, people have responded to this video here are just a few of the 11 pages of similiar comments:

Now, all I hope to show through this is the nature of people who voice 'Internet Opinions' on ANY subject, and there is a game for you to play at home afterwards :)

All I did rather than respond to what they've put, I thought about WHY?, and read up about Trolls; a subject too much blather has already been written about http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troll_%28Internet%29 pay particular attention to and perhaps research further:

On March 31, 2010, the Today Show ran a segment detailing the deaths of three separate adolescent girls and trolls’ subsequent reactions to their deaths. Shortly after the suicide of high school student Alexis Pilkington, anonymous posters began trolling for reactions across various message boards, referring to Pilkington as a “suicidal slut,” and posting graphic images on her Facebook memorial page. The segment also included an expose of a 2006 accident, in which an eighteen-year old student out for a drive fatally crashed her father’s car into a highway pylon; trolls emailed her grieving family the leaked pictures of her mutilated corpse.

But back to these lot on this one video. For instance take Spursloyal71's comment 'Ha Ha fuckin faggot that cunt Tatchell got what he deserved he believes in buggerey for 14 year old boys the dirty scummy cunt! ' Firstly, after the swearing, what he says is very misinformed, but what interests me isn't what he says, it's what you can glean from this faceless comment; if you look on his rather sparse account you'll read that he is a 39yr old 'ex-soldier' who states 'Fuck all left wing soap dodgers..I thank you!', he hasn't uploaded any video's just favourites; the top being 'SAS DEFEAT IRA', (this is all justto build your own picture of what this man must be like), as well having 3 subscribers, one being the strangest profile I've ever seen: http://www.youtube.com/user/dmsjr2 he also has 33 friends: bnprenaissurance, sameoldfitup, stbritish (lots of british flags on the profiles that haven't been ominously 'suspended' with red exclamation marks).... so he gets his 'comment' free of any reproach....

I'll do another one just to really hammer the point of the excersice home, then a little postscript on 'trolling' in general....bare with me....

Xervosch23 said: "Someone protect me! Someone protect me!" What a worthless, cowardly, mincing little faggot. He should have protected himself (from the beating administered to him by a young woman) by staying put in England. If anyone needed protection, it was those Russian patriots who might have been infected by his HIV-ridden bodily secretions." Now onto the profile: is really Kevin (And Karin) from Selma, Alabama in The United States, state hobbies as Politics, History, cryptozoology and eugenics. Although states favourite books as George Orwell's 1984.... they have uploaded a video: Stella and Juju, which comprises of a shaky home movie of two dogs, one of them on a lead held by an obese person whose face you don't see and a woman's voice calling on her 'babies' to do something... I don't know what.

Now, to sum up; I was interested that TROLLING, is a purposeful sport - designed to provoke infamy and comment and disprupt, anger and annoy people on the internet, that's what they say, people going 'OH I am glad Diana's dead' on a memorial page to upset people or with a dead child etc. They have little emotional connection with the comment other than to provoke and bait people for I assume views, own personal fun, I have considered something more cerebral myself to court public attention but nothing as cheap and obvious.

But I think if you scatch the surface a lot of these 'comments' because they are little more than swearing and nasty, ill-founded; they are not bringing anything to the table to illicit a debate or arguement, secondly, as has been shown, some actually have connections, deep-held anger they genuinely want to express, and to think of it like that is worrying to me.

I am going to think about how deal with such things, more than just getting into a conversation with them. Because I know what the responses will be.

NEXT WEEK: A choice between; Friendships, Street-art or Pornography.

BOYFRIEND

Well, I shall keep it slightly shorter and syrupy sweet, as at this moment I am on the bed of my boyfriend. Although 'boyfriend' is a rather (he's looking over my shoulder now reading this...so now I feel self-consious and I am all smiley, 'self consious has a 'c' in it' he says - :P) an understatement, to describe him ;)

'snufflehead love you' he says ;) - hehehehe anyhoodle, that's a millimetric slice of my absolute happiness, it's more than you all deserve ;) x

SPEAKER'S CORNER/SOCIALISM

(Round 1: Information scouting)

I have for, ooh a good two years now, been interested in "Speaker's Corner". It was some mythic, strange and expectant thing (like most things I am inspired by) that wasn't exactly how I envisioned it.

I lied to impress an anorexic imbecile who works for the Student's Union that I had in fact spoken at 'Speaker's Corner' when I had done no such thing, something I will put paid to in future I assure you. I also lied and said I ran as an independent candidate a few yeas ago at a party to an overweight 2nd generation Arabic Man, who was terribly enthused. - I have an idea a bit like 'My Name Is Earl' (but not run by Scientologists) to realise all the half-truths, exaggerations and bare faced embellished nonsense anecdotes I made as a lonely, isolated adolescent teenager scared to leave my bedroom AND MAKE THEM COME TRUE. (But more about that later).

There isn't a lot about speakers corner on the web there's this: www.speakerscorner.net, and of course WIKI, a lot of which I didn't take in. Only to be furnished with the knowledge, quite informally that it, takes place 'every sunday morning in Hyde Park, nearest tube st. Marble Arch', now define Morning... I thought it would be deserted come midday, and my oversleeping, I thought it would be last knockings. But oh no... by 11:30 it was still gathering steam.

It was full of religious types shouting angrily mostly, big turn-off. Although, a Muslim New Yorker type was lovely and polite, calling everyone sir, and being quite interesting. People just gather round and stare and some talk back. I think you need to have a few friends there first time so you people go near you. Definitely.

*
Beyond genuine RESEARCH, for my own 'go' at it. I.e 'where do you get the stands from?' 'Can you use amplifyers?' (Big no-no).... I got genuinely [too many uses of the word GENUINE there] inspired by the 'meeting' I attended with Dan Lambert chairing on his stand. SOCIALISM really appeals to me, in the sense that we're all part of the same human family, we shouldn't be enslaved by Capitalism and so on and so on, although I am fearful of getting locked up and such when I eventually start becoming so enthused to establish a new world order that.... yeahs... see how far my mind goes ahead! Also a young fella was there Chris, who is a member of the Socialist Worker's Party and doing 'A'-levels in Philosophy in Brockenhurst, quite near me in Bournemouth. I told them about my 'book I'm writing' (news to me...well ever since I made that promise of writing to Caroline Lucas and Peter Tatchell replied to my e-mail it's looking likelier), which is to be about POLITICAL THINKING IN THE 21ST CENTURY. It got me there e-mails which I've written to immediately. No procrastination 'ere.

So the juries out as far as SOCIALISM is concerned. My verdict: Further research required:

www.worldsocialism.org

INTENT FOR NEXT WEEK: 1 HOUR of writing (at least) per day on any project.

RADIO 5 LIVE

It was all the way back in September of last year, that I got two tickets to The Victoria Derbyshire Show; A 5Live show that does Phone-ins and mundane banter. It was through my Student's Union, they wanted some studenty types on, as it was the Lib Dem Conference, and they were having them all there so 'a cross-section of the population' could ask questions.

I didn't really have anything genuinely political under my belt, or up my sleeve, or concealed near any other bit of clothing... I just wanted to be near 'em and possibly talk to them. I

I waited for the big boi Nick Clegg, back then someone no-one had heard of, but I had, this would be the first time I'd seen him in the flesh, as a trip to Prime-Minister's Questions earlier in the year proved that the balcony seating and the perspex glass obsures the far end of the chamber where the Liberals sit (sat, sat, must get used to that), I was treated to quite a close-up view of Peter Mandleson who has obviously had a bit of work done, and was sitting opposite me chatting up a Cardinal.

So, I waited and they were gearing me up, and Nick came in and sat down and I manaed to get in just before the news. Eye contact. He was all smiles. I said something coquettish 'Oh of all the leader's you're the most attractive' the room erupted with laughter and Mr Clegg blushed, it was all rather amusing. Although I did say "I can't imagine you as Prime-Minister" but in my defense, it was only due to the fact that I couldn't see him with a cigar and fur coat.

After that brief exchange, the rest of the proceedings floundered. We were asked to write what we wanted from our M.P. on a little card beneath our seat and I scrawled something in my illegible handwriting and thought nothing of it.

Well! Just before Christmas I was called by Chris Jameson a lovely Producer bloke from BBC5LIVE, saying that they'd chosen my words to go in a book to be published at the time of the 2010 election, and to record it so they could play t on the radio. I did as I was asked. it was a rather sensible statement with a dash of the scathing.

The Family and I went on holiday to Florida at Christmas and my Mobile went walkabout on the flight back. I thought no more about it till April, when the election loomed. 'They wont be able to ring me to tell me the books ready etc." and I dashed off a quick e-mail to the show to explain everything.

Got a charming Phonecall from Chris explaining that 'yes, it's nearly ready, we just need a photo', and to send one, which I dutifully did, without thinking or ego, a rather gurning pick.

Several weeks later and with the COALITION installed, I received a copy of the book, or 'booklet', my statement was chosen with 14 others out of hundruds, which is rather lovely of them.

But, it was the fleeting opportunity of appearing on radio again, this time as a guest on a panel, talking to lots of politicians. It seemed a whimsical maybe, a few more phonecalls from Chris. I didn't have any expectations this time, and by jove I got it.

I got to College Green by the Palace of Westminster last tuesday morning, sleep deprived and full of adrenaline, my only worries, being the rest of the panel may steal my thunder and be twatty upstarts like me, but they were lovely and I reined supreme, I made sure I said my full name, there were a lot of backroom stuff going during those two hours, and I shant name no names but I have plenty on the practices of the BBC, lovely bizzare types they are....




Chris has subsequently rung and e-mailed about what a 'star turn' I was. I used the opportunity to try and get on the show again promoting my One Man Show, he said it would be better for Richard Bacon, he wasn't promising anything, but he said to forward on some information.