There have been a bunch of posts lately, both diaries and comments, about how obnoxious and over bearing we Hillary supporters can be. I thought that was kind of funny. Hillary gets maybe 10% support on kos, and you're punished if you challenge the orthodoxy and express opinions in her favor.
Anyway, I figured I'd do a little social experiment. In campaign diaries, regardless of candidate, I'd post the comment, "Well, I love Hillary." Nothing more, nothing less. No snark, no insult, no hostility. Just the simple declarative statement of affection and support - - "Well, I love Hillary."
I figured it was a non offensive non aggressive response, that no one could object to, but a suitable reply to any campaign diary. You like Edwards? Well, I love Hillary. You like Obama. Well, I love Hillary. You like Hillary? Well, I love Hillary. No harm, no foul. So, I posted it on the next 20 campaign diaries I saw, once each, a total of twenty times.
And, for the record, before doing this, I read the FAQs again. Because "I love Hillary" is not negative or disruptive or disparaging, because "I love Hillary" was only posted once per diary, because "I love Hillary" was posted were it wouldn't hijack any conversations, and because "I love Hillary" was posted selectively (only in campaign diaries), what I did was not spam or in any way violative of the FAQs.
How'd it turn out? Well, let's just say that some of our self proclaimed "progressive activists" ain't all that tolerant! It turns out that saying "I love Hillary" is enough to get you troll rated enough times to lose your trusted user status! Think about - - I could post the most profane, obscene, irreligious comment imaginable (and I've read some!) and probably not get any TR's. But, "I love Hillary"? The horror! The horror!
Anyway, here's some sample replies to "Well, I love Hillary":
I was called "spam meister" by someone who posts almost daily on behalf of one of the campaigns (and really should know the rules better), thereafter received four troll ratings from her minions, and was called a "troll" repeatedly on "This Week with Barack Obama".
http://www.dailykos.com/...
I was troll rated and told "I hate Hillary and all her DLC cronies" (funny, this morning I was told to stop saying Hillary-hater because there are none!) on
http://www.dailykos.com/...
I was troll rated twice, was told I’d be trolled rated "if you don’t stop", had a fellow tell me he was "developing a distinct dislike" for me and was called a "spamming troll" at
http://www.dailykos.com/...
I was troll rated twice, told to "stop spamming diaries with this twaddle, you dumbbell", had someone try to organize a TR posse with "I've tried TRs in at least one other thread, but I can't do this by myself", read someone post "TR'd his ass in another thread anyway, because it was a friggin' Obama diary" in a Kucinich diary.
http://www.dailykos.com/...
I was troll rated, told I was "not helpful", and told it was "not f@$%ing relevant AT ALL" (funny, cursing for no valid reason was not troll-worthy) at
http://www.dailykos.com/...
I was told I was "not helpful" and "bitter and trying to cope with it by posting the same spam message on every diary" at
http://www.dailykos.com/...
Of course, some got "it". Some realized what I was doing. Some evidently appreciated it, and have a sense of humor.
But I want to point out that an expression of support and affection, purely positive, regarding your preferred candidate, is what we should aspire to and should be the preferred mode of expression. It should not cause anyone anger or discomfort. If you post a diary that says "I like Obama" and I reply with "Well, I love Hillary", that should be the expected level of discourse, not an objectionable riposte.
In summary, I posted "Well, I love Hillary" 20 times. and was TR'd 10 times. To those who called me a troll or gave me a TR, I suggest you bend over, grab it with both hands, and pull down real hard. It'll slide right out!
UPDATE - Here's a copy of a responsive email I received - yikes! Again, kind of sort of proves my point, no?
I'm playing the world's tiniest violin for you
Here's my reasoning:
Suppose you said "Well, I love Bush".
Would you expect a similar response, only more negative?
We don't like Hillary because she likes Bush and votes with him on
this despicable occupation of Iraq.
She's so nasty that an expression of your endearment to her which is
repeated 20 times nauseates people, and rightfully so.
Also, take into account, I've been banned from DailyKos about 20 times
because my opinions are not popular with Kos and his assholes like
DHinMI (who is really a paid shill in DC).
My opinions are popular with almost everyone else. If I were not
banned, I would be very popular for my opinions which are hated by
Hillary's shills, Kos and his knee-capping Pinkertons.
So, Hillary stinks to high heaven. We can't stand her. I'm
unsympathetic to your plight.
Paul