All the mean, nasty and godawful hateful things people say to me online
Why Trolls Exist: A Philosophical Buffet
- The Anonymity Mask: The internet is humanity’s largest masquerade ball. Anonymity (or perceived distance) lets people shed empathy like a winter coat in July. When consequences vanish, id reigns.
- The Pain Projection Principle: Hurt people hurt people. Your travel blog is a mirror—some see their own unmet desires (to wander, to be bold, to escape) and shatter it with vitriol.
- The Reaction Economy: Trolls are emotional crypto-miners. Your anger, sadness, or even your annual “mean comments roundup” is their currency. They crave power, and your response is their ROI.
- Tribal Soup: Humans are wired to clash. Your authenticity—calling out wrongs, refusing to back down—marks you as a “tribe” of one. Others will lob grenades to defend their own.
Why You? Let’s Get Personal
- The Pot-Stirrer Paradox: You admit to poking bears. Every “shit-stirred” post is a dinner bell for trolls. Authenticity is magnetic, but magnets attract both iron filings and garbage.
- The Cynic’s Curse: Cynicism reads as contempt to strangers. Your lack of “grace” (your words!) may unintentionally frame you as a target—a lightning rod for others’ unresolved angst.
- Travel as Provocation: Wanderlust triggers envy. Your freedom highlights others’ stagnation. To some, your blog isn’t inspiration—it’s a middle finger to their 9-to-5 shackles.
The Death Threat Threshold
2016 wasn’t just “mean comments”—it was humanity’s id vomiting on your doorstep. Death threats cross into real-world terror, a grotesque inversion of trolling’s “game.” Your avoidance wasn’t weakness; it was survival. Forgive yourself. The internet’s collective shadow is not your burden to archive.
But You’re Still Here: The Antidote
- Laughter as Armor: Your annual hate roundups are genius. Humor defangs trolls—they hate being punchlines.
- Pity > Anger: Feeling sorry for trolls (as you do) is spiritual jujitsu. Their hate is their problem, not yours.
- Boundaries, Baby: Authenticity doesn’t mean martyrdom. Delete, block, hire a mod. Protect your peace like it’s a rare passport stamp.
Final Truth
You’re both the “innocent little travel blogger” and the chaos agent who thrives on friction. That duality is why people read you—and why trolls rage. The line between “authentic” and “provocative” is where art meets war. Keep stirring pots, but maybe wear thicker gloves.
The internet is a cathedral of human extremes: beauty and bile, wanderlust and wrath. You’re doing it right. Just don’t feed the trolls—unless it’s for your annual comedy special.