I hereby place this idea for a bumper sticker in the public domain

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=105&topic_id=3646061&mesg_id=3646388

[beam me up scottie]

1. Excellent thread!

A non-atheist posted Kissing Hank's Ass !!!
They DO listen !

:rofl:

[Modem Butterfly]

2. I think the point of that thread is disingenuous

I think the confusion over the bumpersticker may just be a pre-text.

[beam me up scottie]

3. Exactly.

Obtuse.
I've noticed a LOT of that lately.

Check this one out:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=105x3646013#3646161

I have also noticed many newcomers encouraging the tinfoil hatters, if they were really skeptics they would have noticed that.

[salvorhardin]

5. There is a lot of trolling going on here at DU (but that's not unique)

It turns out that it's very easy to game an internet based community and there are many people who get off on it. As it turns out, communities that employ user based moderation (ratings for stories and comments like dKos) are even easier to game than communities with semi-dictatorial human moderators like DU. With the former, the gaming mechanism is built into the software infrastructure and is subject to programmatic manipulation while with the latter much more depends on the social skills of the trolls. As a result, we see much more of an effort to play members against each other or to get the more reactive members to act based on emotion.

Anyway, we probably shouldn't pay too much attention to the disrupters. I think the best thing is to dispassionately debunk whatever hokum is being peddled today, hit Alert or Ignore depending on the situation and move on. True believers aren't going to be swayed, but maybe a dispassionate statement of facts and reasoned arguement will help someone who doesn't know what to think and isn't committed to a position yet.

The problem comes in when the CTers and the woo-woos far outnumber skeptics and rationalists. Then there are not enough people to argue on the side of rationality. I think that is when you begin to see a large exodus of users. I don't think we're quite there yet.

[BiggJawn]

4. What part of April First and the connextion to "fools" don't they get?

Flame bait, I think.
Perhaps I should reply "Yes, but the WISE MAN proclaims it with his MOUTH"?

Now attsa' some spicey flame bait!