THE trolls of today are like worms from the woodwork! They roam the face of websites, whatsapp groups and have a huge online presence! In the good ole days, when one read or heard fairytales on one’s mother’s lap, the troll was a dwarf in Scandinavian folklore who dwelt in the hills, small, tiny fellows, who were afraid of the outside world, hid themselves from the public eye, but were mean, nasty and vicious, in the way they carried out little cowardly attacks on people at large, not directly, but behind their backs.
Today’s trolls, aren’t any different. They are like worms in the woodwork, who come out at night and scratch, irritate, and cause small annoyances.
They are basically cowards, who have the same agenda of terrorists; hit and run. I know a fellow, who loves to attack the views of others in his group.
I had known him before the advent of the internet, when his trolling traits had no exposure; he was a shy, insecure fellow, who loved dressing the macho, but it ended there.
He did not have the confidence to be that macho. He would wear the skimpiest shorts to an official event just to be noticed.
This bizarre dressing, revealed a little fellow who wanted to show he was a big man. Later when he started trolling, I realized it was an inborn trait; hiding behind the anonymity and security of online activity, knowing, he could not be physically harmed, he went about his trolling activities, which I must say would have been interesting for any psychologist to observe.
He portrayed himself a giant, walking the face of the earth, flexing muscles and pretending to have biceps and six pack chests, with his four letter words, and mockery.
They are like shadow giants, holding a focus light to their dwarf figures, so the screen will show them off as monsters.
Their fighting is similar to a terrorist: As much as the terrorist targets women and children, trolls, target innocents, and others who have just come online to make a statement or share their views.
These are the fairytale dwarfs and midgets of yesteryears who have got a voice of anonymity through the internet! How do you deal with them?
The best and most effective way is to Ignore them, though same troll always has little baby trolls, who encourage him be sending smileys or little thumbs up signs whenever he says something.
Though ignoring is difficult, it still works. It’s like the victor of a marathon who when asked, what his biggest obstacle was, replied, “Pebbles and dirt in my shoes!” That’s all they are, these trolls; worms from the woodwork, or just dirt in your shoe..!
