Pet Shills
The following does not apply to garden variety trolls and, specifically, is talking about the type who is only here to derail us.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
one way to deal with these poor creatures, that anyone can do, is to adopt one the moment your concern is aroused. It takes a little work, but the rewards of ownership can be priceless...
For certain, the skills one aquires, for the proper handling of the beasts, will help you in most every other facet of your lives where you interact with others.
Secondly, the virtual pen you build to contain your little critter can be a real benefit to this community. And there is satisfaction in knowing you are doing something productive, (to help the free exachange of ideas), towards the cause of liberty. This is truly a noble pursuit
Thirdly, who knows, maybe your kind attention will be like the kiss of a princess and the piddlers may just metamorphasize back into the humans they were born as. The poor saps have been fed a lifetime of lies and they deserve our pity.
Now like I said, this'll take a little work. I'd recommend a Hawaiian technique known as "Killing em wit Kindness".
First and foremost, this involves being polite, respectful, and maintaining a good natured attitude. It is imperative that you refrain from "calling TROLL" or announcing your intentions to adopt. You want your pet to feel the lov3 you have to offer, not get all defensive and skittish. They are impossible to catch when they are spastically running all around the forum, (and they usually end up pi$$ing and $hitting all over the place in their excitment. It can be quite messy,
, please don't go there.)
Instead, just quietly click on the targets name and search the posting history. Perhaps the poster is just having a bad day/week outside of this forum; Or is losing heart and needs some encouragment. Maybe they are just trying to think outside of the box, or simply asking a dumb question ( who hasn't done that a time or two in their lives?) Keep a close eye and don't rush to judgement; maybe it is just an overly enthused newbie, or a crotchety old fart:o.
The point is to be very careful about driving anyone away and spreading negativity. We need this community to grow for our cause to prosper...
The next step, (should you still want to adopt), is to begin engaging the target with intelligent discourse. Yes, I know this flies in the face of traditional wisdom, but in order to pen up your troll you must feed it.
Just don't gang up on them. The multitude of posts and style makes it harder for the casual reader to see what is going on and tends to evoke the pity factor of the more compassionate among us. Once we notice one or two members engaging a troll, back off and enjoy the show. If you feel the potential adopter is losing and you have some advice, PM. I see nothing wrong with trading and sharing your trolls, just do not gang up on them. It is counter-productive.
Here, it will help to understand the traditional concepts of
rhetoric and
debate. Also, you may want to keep these guides around:
Rhetorical Devices
Debate Tactics
The World of Bashers (thanks emilysdad)
With proper knowledge and research we will find it easier to contain these beasts. Gently hold them accountable to every word; softly point out every dis-honest tactic. Good natured ribbing is fine, outright insulting is not. Work them until every word they write just makes them look sillier and sillier. This is when they truly become pets and people will enjoy watching you play with them. The end result is that any casual reader will clearly see the cute little buggers for what they are...
In the spirit of RP, have some fun
jus musing
m
