Soxs Blog

When attacked by an online bully, do you STFU or defend your corner?

Blogging is about communication.  And communication can bring out the best and the worst in people, especially in the so-called anonymity of being online.  In this scenario, bullies can appear to flourish.

My sister (never one for thinking before she speaks) has got herself involved in a bit of a flame war, with a guy well-known for using bullying tactics.

The result is that, not only has she been verbally abused, she has been openly threatened (and although I know that’s a strong word to use, I have seen the evidence).

Evidently, one loud-mouthed MMO ‘guru’ didn’t like her questioning his tactics.  So now he is saying he can affect her online income if he chooses to do so.

He has been quite specific too.  Without ever saying he will do this, of course.  The guy isn’t quite the dickhead he comes across as.

My advise to her has to be "Shut the fuck up.  This guy is an arrogant bully, who obviously gets a hardon from bullying people.  Arguing with him isn’t worth the effort."

I’ll admit that thoughts of self-preservation are high on my list here, as I share hosting and sites with my sister and have a family to feed from the proceeds.

Perhaps some serious ass licking is in order.

Nevertheless, I’m pretty sure my sister will not listen to me.  She hates bullies as much as I do.  And, although both of us need to protect our online income, whereas my answer is to keep my head down, hers is to fight back, guns blazing.  She even has an avatar for this!

The guy in question says he is pretty powerful.  I see no reason to question that.

In fact, cowardly as it may seem, I see no reason to question anyone online.  It’s just not worth it.  And the only time I did, it came back to bite both me and my sister in the ass.  She has never let me forget it, telling me to STFU.

Nevertheless, this ‘rule’ does not appear to apply to her.

My sister believes in questioning people for all their motives.  I’ve told her many times she should set up a site for this. 

Of course, that would depend on whether she has any hosting left after the bully has finished with her…

Arguing with an online bully never turns out well.  There are no winners.  Each ’side’ thinks they are in the right and cannot be persuaded otherwise.  Because the bully is more powerful, he usually ‘wins’ – at least in his eyes.  But I’m not so sure he really does.

Online bullying is usually dominated by men.  Perhaps it’s a ‘male ego’ thing?  Or just that it makes them feel hard, taking pot shots at the opposition?  Perhaps they even jerk off while thinking about how they ‘hit their target’?

I’ll go back to building my adult sites now, and hope not to get hit by the shrapnel as my sister goes into battle against the bully.

But if this site goes down, you may well assume it was taken down when it became an unwitting victim of bullying online.