What is Trolling?

[Alfred R Jones]

Specify.

Where, when, what exactly?

They've all been removed by now I should imagine.  Please don't pretend that you don't make numerous tasteless remarks to get a rise out of people - you even admitted earlier to being a WUM!!

[faithlilly]

I really can't believe that two grown men have spent the afternoon whinging about being offended by a few risqué jokes. Do you really not see how weird that makes you appear ? How do you survive in the outside world ?

[G-Unit]

Who is talking about the law?  I'm pointing out the double standard of those defending WS's right to crack tasteless jokes and accusing others of faux outrage, who would almost certainly get on their high horse if I were to starting cracking jokes about (for example) Brenda's death.

Well, I started the thread because some people talk about trolls as if they are all law-breakers when it's clear they're not according to the law, so I'm talking about the law. i'm not talking about good taste or double standards or my own opinion of what other people say. Sorry!

[Mr Gray]

I really can't believe that two grown men have spent the afternoon whinging about being offended by a few risqué jokes. Do you really not see how weird that makes you appear ? How do you survive in the outside world ?

You find them risqué...I find them offensive...how do I survive in the outside world...uber successfully..

You have such poor judgement

[Alice Purjorick]

So basically, we shouldn't mention WS's sick humour, apart from to applaud it, otherwise we are accused of using it to fuel mock indignation.  In other words it's not the done thing to actually find his posts offensive.  I think that is what Alice is saying....  &%+((£

No! what I am saying is that I find it offensive that people use mock distaste as a device to support another theory where as in reality they probably don't give a tinkers cuss about the matter they purport to find distasteful. Just so long as they can use it to their own ends they are happy.

[Mr Gray]

Well, I started the thread because some people talk about trolls as if they are all law-breakers when it's clear they're not according to the law, so I'm talking about the law. i'm not talking about good taste or double standards or my own opinion of what other people say. Sorry!

Who refers to trolls as law breakers...the definition you gave at the start of the thread does not mention the law

[Wonderfulspam]

They've all been removed by now I should imagine.  Please don't pretend that you don't make numerous tasteless remarks to get a rise out of people- you even admitted earlier to being a WUM!!

I don't deny making remarks, but taste is a matter of opinion.

[Mr Gray]

No! what I am saying is that I find it offensive that people use mock distaste as a device to support another theory where as in reality they probably don't give a tinkers cuss about the matter they purport to find distasteful. Just so long as they can use it to their own ends they are happy.

you are making the assumption that the offense is mock...you have no way of knowing if that is true..like faith you want to believe the worst of me and others because if we are well rounded, pleasant , intelligent happy individuals all your assumptions and reasoning is flawed...and it is

[Alice Purjorick]

you are making the assumption that the offense is mock...you have no way of knowing if that is true..like faith you want to believe the worst of me and others because if we are well rounded, pleasant , intelligent happy individuals all your assumptions and reasoning is flawed...and it is

You flatter yourself old son I was not singling you out. On your side of the fence there is more than one.

[G-Unit]

Who refers to trolls as law breakers...the definition you gave at the start of the thread does not mention the law

I was interested in what a troll is and;

A subject which is very much in the news, but what exactly is it, and when will it lead to civil or criminal proceedings?

[Alice Purjorick]

I really can't believe that two grown men have spent the afternoon whinging about being offended by a few risqué jokes. Do you really not see how weird that makes you appear ? How do you survive in the outside world ?

Just maybe the clue is in the emboldened bit.

[Mr Gray]

You flatter yourself old son I was not singling you out. On your side of the fence there is more than one.

you have actually accused me directly of mock indignation

[Alfred R Jones]

I really can't believe that two grown men have spent the afternoon whinging about being offended by a few risqué jokes. Do you really not see how weird that makes you appear ? How do you survive in the outside world ?

There's been several people involved in this discussion over the last couple of hours - of course we'd all much rather have been discussing your plausible and logical theory over on the other thread but you won't play wi' us.   

[faithlilly]

There's been several people involved in this discussion over the last couple of hours - of course we'd all much rather have been discussing your plausible and logical theory over on the other thread but you won't play wi' us.   

Sorry Alfie but my mum always warned me not to play with strange men !

[Alfred R Jones]

Well, I started the thread because some people talk about trolls as if they are all law-breakers when it's clear they're not according to the law, so I'm talking about the law. i'm not talking about good taste or double standards or my own opinion of what other people say. Sorry!

No need to apologise, the problem without any thread involving numerous different people is that we will all be talking over each other and the subject will usually branch off down different paths. 

 I gave as an example of "what is trolling" our own resident troll Wonderfulspam.  Some however class him as a WUM rather than a troll though I think one of the defining characteristics of a troll is that they exist to wind people up, so I'm not sure that they aren't one and the same thing.  I don't think Spammy is a lawbreaker, just a not-very-funny distraction, mostly.  You don't have to break the law to be a troll, and I'm not sure who these "some people" are who you claim  believe that all trolls are law-breakers.