Presumably these folk are not all such awful humans in their "real" life. I recall a story somewhere in the past few weeks about someone finding out their husband was a "troll" online, posting horrible, awful, nasty stuff — but this was a guy who, the rest of the time seems to be a nice, loving, positively non-abusive guy.
It almost seems like a sort of situational psychopathy — I'm online, so nobody can see me. And they're online, so they're not really really. I don't have to worry about a real human being hurt. And I can't be seen, so I can't be retaliated against. And I can smash all the virtual windows and make all the virtual personalities cry I want, because I can.
And then they logoff, go and hug their kids, mow the lawn, pet the dog, and have a friendly beer with their buds.
At least I'd like to think that these folks aren't just as nasty in their real life.
Note: This kind of thing is different from, say, a Rush Limbaugh blaming Williams' suicide on something left-wingish. He just does that for money. Ditto for whatever Anti-Abortion yahoo was claiming it was delayed guilt and depression over an abortion back in the 1970s; that's just being an ideologue.
Or maybe those are forms of psychopathy, too, in a profound lack of compassion for the sake of some personal priority.
(h/t +Les Jenkins)
Reshared post from +Mashable
"I'm sorry. I should've risen above. Deleting this from my devices for a good long time, maybe forever. Time will tell. Goodbye."
Zelda Williams Quits Twitter, Instagram After ‘Cruel and Unnecessary’ Comments
Robin Williams’ daughter quit Instagram and Twitter after trolls wrote insensitive comments and sent her photoshopped pictures of her father’s body.
i received disgusting abuse on YT shortly after my father died, i wouldn't even reprint it anywhere. It was the invention of an incredibly sick, perverted in the extreme, individual. Unfortunately they hide(think they hide) behind bouncing ip's.
Hmmm. Maybe the trolls really are psychotic: http://www.themarysue.com/study-says-twitter-use-linked-to-psychosis/
Here was the "My Husband Is A Troll" story: http://www.themarysue.com/woman-discovers-husband-is-internet-troll/
In Ireland we generally do 'death' better than most. But 'celebrity' is a challenge for all of us, since it invites us to beleive we know real people better than we reasonable can.
This, I think, is a good half way attempt: http://sluggerotoole.com/2014/08/13/scars/
+Mick Fealty I've seen a lot of really good writing in the past few days from folks who have (or do) suffered from serious depression, including suicidality. It's been refreshing to see, as a counterpoint to some of the asninity that has also been floating around out there.
I also loathe with the fires of a thousand dying suns the armchair speculation of what triggered a suicide. Unless the dude wrote a note (and sometimes not even then), it's either pathetic ("There must be some reason we can grasp and understand and not be scared by!") or ghoulish.