And real people who resubmit choice things at choice times, switching from username to username. There is obviously also a lot of baiting (with upvotes by bots and the like) to foster guided conversations.
Ever see a thread explode with bad blood, only to have one person back out and delete everything after they've gotten a rise out of other users?
During the Ferguson thing, I'd make a comment generally in opposition of police brutality. My post would start at +10. An hour later I'd suddenly be at -15. It was certainly weird.
Ever notice what happens to comments that voice an incorrect opinion? It's like a football game and you're the guy with the ball. Everybody piles on top and the play stops.
Make a comment that goes against the groupthink and prepare for downvotes... even outright hostility.
Now this is where I'm going to go into deep conspiracy territory. I actually wonder if this isn't the result of mass behavioral conditioning. For some reason, some of us are still able to ask questions... to doubt the official narrative and think for ourselves.
The other 80 or 90% have been conditioned. But we, as reddit members, are still part of their peer group. When they go online and see comments that contradict the programming it actually causes them some form of mental pain.
They are unable to suddenly start thinking for themselves or rearrange their worldview to make sense of things. Instead, they lash out with angry comments and downvotes.
I actually wonder if this isn't the result of mass behavioral conditioning. For some reason, some of us are still able to ask questions... to doubt the official narrative and think for ourselves.
The other 80 or 90% have been conditioned. But we, as reddit members, are still part of their peer group. When they go online and see comments that contradict the programming it actually causes them some form of mental pain.
They are unable to suddenly start thinking for themselves or rearrange their worldview to make sense of things. Instead, they lash out with angry comments and downvotes.
dude. this. I see this all. the. fucking. time.
I like to do this: I troll with some facts, and then round it out with some conspiracy ideas (No Agenda show, anyone?) Attitudes are almost always the same -- outright derision. There's no room for growth, or at the very least, discussion of said ideas. Just "no, you're wrong" in so many ways.
Have you ever tried to explain to an Obamabot that Obamacare doesn't fix the problem of health insurance because health insurance is the problem? It only eliminates the barrier to entry (which still cost decent money!) I once suggested that Obama could be more effective with executive actions when it came to changing the shape of health insurance, and I was ridiculed on that.
guess how many people want to hug obama on his executive action for immigration?
I can't believe there are still people who think Obama is trying so hard to help us and that its all those dirty republicans' fault. It must be tiring to stay so willfully ignorant.
Yes and no. Herd mentality is just a fact for humans. But I do agree that our tendency to conform has been manipulated and abused by the media, ads, the govt...
Couldn't a non-shill display similar behaviour? Essentially all you described was someone who disagrees with conspiracies and may be condescending/emotional. Also, I'm not really sure how the unrelated subreddits people comment in have anything to do with them being a shill or not?
Couldn't a non-shill display similar behaviour? Essentially all you described was someone who disagrees with conspiracies and may be condescending/emotional
Why would someone who disagrees with conspiracies be posting in r/conspiracy, though? Surely this is the one sub they don't want to be in.
Also, I'm not really sure how the unrelated subreddits people comment in have anything to do with them being a shill or not?
This is a pattern I've noticed around here lately. Nearly everyone who comes here to whine generally displays this type of behaviour.
I don't see why a person has to believe in conspiracies in order to participate here. Often times people are motivated to correct or argue with people when they see someone spreading information that they believe is untrue. Take this conversation for example. I browse this subreddit mainly looking for views that may challenge my own. I saw your comment and chosen to express skepticism of your methods. Considering this is a community of supposed skeptics, im surprised
dissenting opinions are so discouraged.
In the same way people stare at downsyndrome kids, sure you don't have downsyndrome, but it is funny to laugh at them
There are very few people in the world who can make a funny Down's syndrome gag and my guess is that you are not one of those people. You'd get booed off the playground for that one. Shameful display.
There are some. They seem to mostly spew irrelevant insults that can be generically applied, like:
OMFG did you really just type that?? What a moron lol...
Somebody is off their meds.
that is the dumbest thing I've read all day
I think the shills are still mostly human, but we've gotta be getting close to where a common bot can pass a Turing test. When it's trivial to corrupt Internet conversation, en masse, I don't know where that leaves us.
Absolutely. There was a wonderful screen cap someone posted here a while ago that had 3 different reddit users posting across a couple different threads. The comments these users posted were exact copies of each other from one thread to the next, but the user names were switched around between the threads. If that isn't proof of botting, I don't know what is.
There is a never ending supply of people who get their panties in a twist for one reason or another, usually when they've been proven wrong or are over-emotional young adults.
This can manifest in many ways: stalking and downvoting all pf a user's comment history, copying and pasting irrelevant attacks based on a user's history, or even manipulating votes (like /u/unidan got caught doing) by using multiple accounts to influence public perspective.
I could be wrong, but most of the trolls fall into the category above, ie the petulant deceptive child mindset rather than automated bots.
But yeah, there are at least some bots doing similar things, just not on the same scale. I hope.
in thread X user A posted comment 1, user B posted comment 2 replying to comment 1 and user C posted comment 3 in response to comment 2, but in thread Y user B posted comment 1, user C comment 2 and user A comment 3. Letter for letter. The "conversation" was exactly the same between threads except the user names were switched around.
I do agree that people downvote from impotent rage but the post I am thinking about was absolutely bots.
I wouldn’t doubt it if my posts in r/worldnews (and other major subs) are eyeballed and brigaded (most likely by humans!). Techniques seem to be: downvotes, comments using negative language which have nothing to do with my comment, stacking comments above mine which results in my comment being pushed down, the entire article/post being erased by mod or user...
Of course this isn’t happening every time I post a comment or link--but one day I think these techniques were used on me in 3 consecutive comments I made. A large part of it is the subjective enforcement of the rules which the mods in the larger subreddits censor the articles with.
Articles questioning authority (Pentagon, CIA) seem to be stricken from the record. I feel this is dangerous--imagine if the MSM had allowed more voices of dissent in the run up to the Iraq invasion in 2003.
Couldn't a non-shill display similar behaviour? Essentially all you described was someone who disagrees with conspiracies and may be condescending/emotional. Also, I'm not really sure how the unrelated subreddits people comment in have anything to do with them being a shill or not?
In the same way people stare at downsyndrome kids, sure you don't have downsyndrome, but it is funny to laugh at them
There are very few people in the world who can make a funny Down's syndrome gag and my guess is that you are not one of those people. You'd get booed off the playground for that one. Shameful display.
There is a never ending supply of people who get their panties in a twist for one reason or another, usually when they've been proven wrong or are over-emotional young adults.
This can manifest in many ways: stalking and downvoting all pf a user's comment history, copying and pasting irrelevant attacks based on a user's history, or even manipulating votes (like /u/unidan got caught doing) by using multiple accounts to influence public perspective.
I could be wrong, but most of the trolls fall into the category above, ie the petulant deceptive child mindset rather than automated bots.
But yeah, there are at least some bots doing similar things, just not on the same scale. I hope.
27 comments
6 [deleted] 2014-12-01
[deleted]
8 Inside_out_taco 2014-12-01
And real people who resubmit choice things at choice times, switching from username to username. There is obviously also a lot of baiting (with upvotes by bots and the like) to foster guided conversations.
Ever see a thread explode with bad blood, only to have one person back out and delete everything after they've gotten a rise out of other users?
5 StinkyMcWelfare 2014-12-01
During the Ferguson thing, I'd make a comment generally in opposition of police brutality. My post would start at +10. An hour later I'd suddenly be at -15. It was certainly weird.
4 LordPubes 2014-12-01
There has been a major, sudden influx of cop apologists, no question.
On multi-user/botting/shilling, if the church of scientology was doing it during the late 90s, how can bigger organizations not be doing it in 2014?
3 OB1_kenobi 2014-12-01
Ever notice what happens to comments that voice an incorrect opinion? It's like a football game and you're the guy with the ball. Everybody piles on top and the play stops.
Make a comment that goes against the groupthink and prepare for downvotes... even outright hostility.
Now this is where I'm going to go into deep conspiracy territory. I actually wonder if this isn't the result of mass behavioral conditioning. For some reason, some of us are still able to ask questions... to doubt the official narrative and think for ourselves.
The other 80 or 90% have been conditioned. But we, as reddit members, are still part of their peer group. When they go online and see comments that contradict the programming it actually causes them some form of mental pain.
They are unable to suddenly start thinking for themselves or rearrange their worldview to make sense of things. Instead, they lash out with angry comments and downvotes.
2 EntCash 2014-12-01
dude. this. I see this all. the. fucking. time.
I like to do this: I troll with some facts, and then round it out with some conspiracy ideas (No Agenda show, anyone?) Attitudes are almost always the same -- outright derision. There's no room for growth, or at the very least, discussion of said ideas. Just "no, you're wrong" in so many ways.
Have you ever tried to explain to an Obamabot that Obamacare doesn't fix the problem of health insurance because health insurance is the problem? It only eliminates the barrier to entry (which still cost decent money!) I once suggested that Obama could be more effective with executive actions when it came to changing the shape of health insurance, and I was ridiculed on that.
guess how many people want to hug obama on his executive action for immigration?
2 digdog303 2014-12-01
I can't believe there are still people who think Obama is trying so hard to help us and that its all those dirty republicans' fault. It must be tiring to stay so willfully ignorant.
1 digdog303 2014-12-01
Yes and no. Herd mentality is just a fact for humans. But I do agree that our tendency to conform has been manipulated and abused by the media, ads, the govt...
1 star_particles 2014-12-01
101000100110100101010011100
5 SweatyBollocks 2014-12-01
The human shills are definitely on the increase. Thankfully, they're quite easy to spot. They will generally:
If you want a good example of this behaviour check out /u/FreeThinkingMan
0 BeardslyMcGee 2014-12-01
Couldn't a non-shill display similar behaviour? Essentially all you described was someone who disagrees with conspiracies and may be condescending/emotional. Also, I'm not really sure how the unrelated subreddits people comment in have anything to do with them being a shill or not?
2 SweatyBollocks 2014-12-01
Why would someone who disagrees with conspiracies be posting in r/conspiracy, though? Surely this is the one sub they don't want to be in.
This is a pattern I've noticed around here lately. Nearly everyone who comes here to whine generally displays this type of behaviour.
1 BeardslyMcGee 2014-12-01
I don't see why a person has to believe in conspiracies in order to participate here. Often times people are motivated to correct or argue with people when they see someone spreading information that they believe is untrue. Take this conversation for example. I browse this subreddit mainly looking for views that may challenge my own. I saw your comment and chosen to express skepticism of your methods. Considering this is a community of supposed skeptics, im surprised dissenting opinions are so discouraged.
1 SweatyBollocks 2014-12-01
I'm not talking about dissenting opinions; I'm talking about trolls and shills. I'm quite open to dissent.
-2 cggreene3 2014-12-01
In the same way people stare at downsyndrome kids, sure you don't have downsyndrome, but it is funny to laugh at them
3 SweatyBollocks 2014-12-01
There are very few people in the world who can make a funny Down's syndrome gag and my guess is that you are not one of those people. You'd get booed off the playground for that one. Shameful display.
1 [deleted] 2014-12-01
[deleted]
1 SweatyBollocks 2014-12-01
And these are the people who come here and patronise us. Crazy shit.
4 LetsHackReality 2014-12-01
There are some. They seem to mostly spew irrelevant insults that can be generically applied, like:
I think the shills are still mostly human, but we've gotta be getting close to where a common bot can pass a Turing test. When it's trivial to corrupt Internet conversation, en masse, I don't know where that leaves us.
3 digdog303 2014-12-01
Absolutely. There was a wonderful screen cap someone posted here a while ago that had 3 different reddit users posting across a couple different threads. The comments these users posted were exact copies of each other from one thread to the next, but the user names were switched around between the threads. If that isn't proof of botting, I don't know what is.
1 CantStopWhitey 2014-12-01
It's not always botting.
There is a never ending supply of people who get their panties in a twist for one reason or another, usually when they've been proven wrong or are over-emotional young adults.
This can manifest in many ways: stalking and downvoting all pf a user's comment history, copying and pasting irrelevant attacks based on a user's history, or even manipulating votes (like /u/unidan got caught doing) by using multiple accounts to influence public perspective.
I could be wrong, but most of the trolls fall into the category above, ie the petulant deceptive child mindset rather than automated bots.
But yeah, there are at least some bots doing similar things, just not on the same scale. I hope.
2 digdog303 2014-12-01
The thing I am referencing was like:
in thread X user A posted comment 1, user B posted comment 2 replying to comment 1 and user C posted comment 3 in response to comment 2, but in thread Y user B posted comment 1, user C comment 2 and user A comment 3. Letter for letter. The "conversation" was exactly the same between threads except the user names were switched around.
I do agree that people downvote from impotent rage but the post I am thinking about was absolutely bots.
1 CantStopWhitey 2014-12-01
Ah, thanks for clarifying. I've definitely seen this as well.
It's most obvious in /r/worldnews threads regarding isreal.
Every. Damn. Time.
2 digdog303 2014-12-01
Props for even trying to participate in worldnews. That place is a cessshitpool.
3 cggreene3 2014-12-01
Nope we are real, the fact that you posted this, shows that you have a very high level of autism
2 smokinbluebear 2014-12-01
I wouldn’t doubt it if my posts in r/worldnews (and other major subs) are eyeballed and brigaded (most likely by humans!). Techniques seem to be: downvotes, comments using negative language which have nothing to do with my comment, stacking comments above mine which results in my comment being pushed down, the entire article/post being erased by mod or user...
Of course this isn’t happening every time I post a comment or link--but one day I think these techniques were used on me in 3 consecutive comments I made. A large part of it is the subjective enforcement of the rules which the mods in the larger subreddits censor the articles with.
Articles questioning authority (Pentagon, CIA) seem to be stricken from the record. I feel this is dangerous--imagine if the MSM had allowed more voices of dissent in the run up to the Iraq invasion in 2003.
1 RuzzeII 2014-12-01
No
0 ninjaholiday 2014-12-01
You're a bot, no jk, okay I accept that
-1 RuzzeII 2014-12-01
Nuh uh, not a bit. :-pPpPpPp
0 BeardslyMcGee 2014-12-01
Couldn't a non-shill display similar behaviour? Essentially all you described was someone who disagrees with conspiracies and may be condescending/emotional. Also, I'm not really sure how the unrelated subreddits people comment in have anything to do with them being a shill or not?
3 SweatyBollocks 2014-12-01
There are very few people in the world who can make a funny Down's syndrome gag and my guess is that you are not one of those people. You'd get booed off the playground for that one. Shameful display.
1 CantStopWhitey 2014-12-01
It's not always botting.
There is a never ending supply of people who get their panties in a twist for one reason or another, usually when they've been proven wrong or are over-emotional young adults.
This can manifest in many ways: stalking and downvoting all pf a user's comment history, copying and pasting irrelevant attacks based on a user's history, or even manipulating votes (like /u/unidan got caught doing) by using multiple accounts to influence public perspective.
I could be wrong, but most of the trolls fall into the category above, ie the petulant deceptive child mindset rather than automated bots.
But yeah, there are at least some bots doing similar things, just not on the same scale. I hope.