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Sat 21 May, 2016 09:28 am
Pro-Bernie Trolls on Why They Harassed Nevada's Democratic Chair
Quote:Rolling Stone spoke to several of the men who sent Lange angry, menacing text messages to find out what was going through their heads as they pelted a stranger with epithets and threats, both veiled or explicit, to her and her family's safety, and to find out if — as some diehard Sanders supporters have suggested — they were actually Clinton campaign operatives out to smear Bernie.
They were not. All of the men we spoke to were genuine Sanders supporters, most with well-documented histories online of feeling the Bern. (Although only their first names are used below and their phone numbers have been redacted, we verified all of their identities.)
None of them were present at the convention; none of them even live in Nevada. They watched from their homes in Texas, Georgia and Utah, and felt the brazen theft they witnessed validated their actions. All of the men we spoke to reject the idea that their words could be interpreted as threats or harassment. And all of them were concerned about the media contorting their words. So, in their words — edited only for length and clarity — here is what they had to say for themselves.
@Robert Gentel,
It's amazing how much more rational people are when confronted face to face about their nonsense.
The RS article reminds me very much of this:
http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/10/what-was-reddit-troll-violentacrez-thinking/263648/
These are angry people, but a tiny fraction of voters. They are not Bernie Sanders.
@boomerang,
I think it shows that "normal" people are capable of such behavior. And that these people are not as different from us as we like to think. The banality of trolling, so to speak.
@Robert Gentel,
It pays to read what you printed before hitting the send button. I change many of my posts.
@Robert Gentel,
Robert Gentel's source wrote:. . . felt the brazen theft they witnessed validated their actions.
Either that is really poor writing, or evidence of the author's inability to separate her partisan position from the job of a reporter--which ought to entail impartiality.
@Setanta,
IMO this kind of journalism (not pure news) has room for the author to have and insert their opinions but that line stood out to me too as being incongruous with the rest of the piece, which is not really about what happened so much as the trolling and their justifications for it.
@Robert Gentel,
I think it also shows what people will do when they think they are anonymous. I think all three of them were embarrassed that they were outed and a couple mentioned they sent apologies when their numbers were revealed.
@engineer,
Good point, anonymity and any kind of distance or separation from others (e.g. being in a car) makes people much more prone to rudeness.
@Robert Gentel,
That was exactly why it stood out to me--i went back and read the piece again just to be sure.
Funny I have watched liberal news day after day and have never heard of this issue. Im in the dark.
@Robert Gentel,
Quote:I think it shows that "normal" people are capable of such behavior.
OK and you are normal?
Quote:these people are not as different from us as we like to think. The banality of trolling, so to speak.
I knew it was you all along.
Ok, reading up a bit...if the Bernie campaign devolves into the same lawless, undemocratic process Trumps campaign is, its all the more reason to walk away from both. They have been linked on the left and right way too closely and that makes me way too uncomfortable. Passion is one thing, disrespect for the process and resorting to violence as a way to resolve it, is too brown shirt for me, and undemocratic. Intimidating a person for a different belief is facist.
@Lilkanyon,
Quote:if the Bernie campaign devolves into the same lawless, undemocratic process Trumps campaign is,
You may want to study behavioral health to understand the differences between Bernie and Trump. Just saying you might find something interesting is all.
@Lilkanyon,
I'm uncomfortable with the way the Sanders campaign is going too. Compared to the rest of the field. . . ?
@reasoning logic,
reasoning logic wrote:
Quote:if the Bernie campaign devolves into the same lawless, undemocratic process Trumps campaign is,
You may want to study behavioral health to understand the differences between Bernie and Trump. Just saying you might find something interesting is all.
Is that what we are tapping into? The base animal of us all and only those who "study" the ill effects of propoganda understand it all? Do we need to be majors in psychology to qualify as educated voters? Are we just appealing to our base animal instincts? And people are just giving into it?
@Lilkanyon,
Quote:Is that what we are tapping into? The base animal of us all and only those who "study" the ill effects of propoganda understand it all? Do we need to be majors in psychology to qualify as educated voters? Are we just appealing to our base animal instincts? And people are just giving into it?
I am sad to say you may be correct but studying alone is not going to do it because a majority of us seem to be more interested in things that are antisocial.
@Lilkanyon,
No, RL is just chock full of pseudo-scientific psychobabble, that's all.
@reasoning logic,
reasoning logic wrote:
Quote:Is that what we are tapping into? The base animal of us all and only those who "study" the ill effects of propoganda understand it all? Do we need to be majors in psychology to qualify as educated voters? Are we just appealing to our base animal instincts? And people are just giving into it?
I am sad to say you may be correct but studying alone is not going to do it because a majority of us seem to be more interested in things that are antisocial.
I prefer the social, tyvm, lol. Ive hung with blacks, and gays and everything in between and I just cant find a bone in my body willing to hate any of these people, much less refuse them the right to be happy as long as its lawful (no serial killers pls! Lol). I cant umderstand why thats so hard.
And these are the ones who at least had the bravery to identify themselves to the journo. What does that say about those who stay anonymous?
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