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Wednesday, March 8th, 2006
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10:53p
A very dear friend has had to delete her Livejournal.
Not because of something she said, but because of something another person said in the comments.
Putting free speech issues aside here for a moment - I maintain tight control over what is said in my comment fields. I only sporadically allow anonymous commenting. (Right now, I do not.) I delete comments if they are going to cause drama wanksplosions. I do not need a dogpile on a particular user who flames me. (I am, however, dedicated enough to wank that I will do so on behalf of others if requested. I like seeing stupid people get angry, and when I do flame, I do so for my own amusement. I like watching mean people flail.)
One thing I've never cottoned to, whether it's in concert with a troll dogpile or alone, is the issuance of threats over the Internet.
First, they're not funny. Saying "I'll track down so-and-so, here's her address" or any permutation of the above doesn't try very hard. "I will beat your ass with your own shoe" is funny. "I want to kill this person for you" is not.
Second, and of a lesser concern to us wordsmiths: no matter how joking you are, unless you work very hard to make sure there is no real threat conveyed, someone will see it and think you're serious. Because some people are serious about these things, and will take action accordingly. We're so accustomed to hyperbole - how many times have people said that Anne Rice should go die in a fire? - that we're starting to throw around realistic death threats as though they were standard greetings. Our intent doesn't always come through in our zeal to defend our friends.
I've had a website more or less since 1997. In that time, I have gotten flamed. I have gotten someone fired for using his work computer to type up a massive anti-me credo. I have made generous use of tracked IPS and headers, I've helped trace honest death threats made "anonymously" (or so the person thought; you are never anonymous). I have a couple of dedicated but uncreative trolls right now, who follow me from service to service, flaming my various profiles and websites, tracking posts I make on communities, even one who just today flamed me. (And thanks to IPs, I know exactly who my trolls are. Classssy! Can't help but wonder what that's supposed to accomplish, but I guess there's only so much you can do typing and masturbating to HoffCrotch at the same time, and maybe someday you'll work up to something not generally followed by "I'm rubber, you're glue." I have faith. And I am sure you'll keep me updated.) I delete those comments. All I need is for someone to make a death threat, however jokingly; if I'm publishing this Livejournal, I'm responsible for its contents, however remotely and indirectly they might be submitted.
It's really, really tempting to stick up for someone you respect and admire, especially when they're being buffeted by the capricious whims of petty politics. I understand that, I do. But our comments can have unintended repercussions, particularly in an era that has given birth to a verb that means "getting fired 'cause of your website." (Dooced, if you haven't heard.)
Yes, you can say what you want in your own journals, within the LJ ToS, void where prohibited, blah blah. All I'm asking is, if you must flame someone, if you must stick up on someone's behalf, if you're offended or bored by something you see and want to stir up trouble - be creative. Don't be banal. And try to think.
(comment on this)
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