To all the Russian Troll Bots and right wingers on DU today about Franken-gate

[Botany]

[Kingofalldems]

1. Kick and rec

[TheBlackAdder]

50. It's so easy for a website to block IP addresses from specific countries and anonymizers.

[defacto7]

51. It's a nice idea but...

The casualties can easily become a weapon and DU could end up cutting itself off from a lot more than certain country's IPs while doing no more than slowing down what will find its way in anyway. You can carefully redirect traffic for certain effect but huge swaths of blocks just become a target. Blocking anonymous proxies is a constantly moving target. It can stop a novice but not the ones who fake the ip, and it makes a site a target for the worst of the worst.

[TheBlackAdder]

53. There are subscription lists that are constantly updated, hourly, with new anonymous proxies.

All a site needs to do is register with them. Poof! While it's not 100%, it's pretty darn close.

[defacto7]

54. Yeah, they've been around a while.

They can slow down the novice.

[BigmanPigman]

2. I still can't tell who is a troll and who isn't.

One could be standing there with the word tattooed across his forehead and I would miss it. I think that people have different opinions and that is what a discussion is. How does having an opposing opinion make someone a troll? I was accused of being one on DU months ago when I asked a perfectly normal question about Bernie Sanders. I do not understand the word/concept it at all.

[SaschaHM]

4. The funny thing is that Russian bots/trolls were proven to play both sides in the election...

so everyone is going to like this thinking it's talking about the people that they don't like.

Not to mention, we've gone through pretty much every RW recrimination of an accusation today alone from Left-wing hoax to look at what she was wearing.

It's pretty much just a blanket reaffirmation that people will read into any way that they want now.

[trueblue2007]

25. DU should remove all trolls & russians. this is DEMOCRATIC UNDERGROUND noy GOP under

[SaschaHM]

27. How would they know? You're a troll on DU right now if you think that

working at Playboy or Hooters doesn't immediately discount someone's accusation.

A couple of months back, you were a troll if you didn't think that Bill Maher shouldn't be using "House N*gger" so freely and that democrats shouldn't be defending him.

I'd imagine if everyone accused of being a troll was removed, DU would start looking like GOP underground.

[Maraya1969]

46. If you are a true Democrat you can see. Sometimes we see thing

but we can't really do anything about it at the time.

[mythology]

56. Have you heard the one about the true Scotsman?

[Turbineguy]

6. If a post gets you angry

(pushes your buttons), figure it's from a Russian troll. And yes, the direction does not matter when the job is to divide.

[Honeycombe8]

12. I don't agree. That makes everyone suspect anyone they disagree with. No...look for...

what I look for is someone who joined not long ago and/or has not many posts.

Usually (not always, but usually), a newbie doesn't come out of the gate swingin' with a controversial hard line post that borders on flaming.

I think the troll posts are usually controversial (not reasonable people...taking a hard line on any subject, that he knows will be controversial & push buttons), by newbies. No middle of the road stuff. No intelligent, rational thoughts. The point of the post is to stoke the flames of discord. OR try to get Dems to believe ridiculous fake stories; however, I think the trolls know that Dems are less likely to believe such things than the uninformed Repubs, who will believe things like Clinton murdering people.

[Turbineguy]

14. Not at all.

The idea is not to let these things get to you. Easy advice to give, hard advice to follow.

[Honeycombe8]

16. I might get angry at a position in a post. That does NOT mean the person is a troll or bot.

That's just ridiculous.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

7. Look for posts designed to stir the pot, poison the well, instead of advancing discussion. . . nt

[maxsolomon]

8. Low post count, but not under 10

somewhere around 60 to 200.

Their name will be something short followed by some numbers. "QCDem865" or "Jimb999".

The OP will tempt you to agree with something that you should know better than to agree with.

[Honeycombe8]

13. Low post count OR higher post count but not a member for a long time.

Controversial post intending to stir the flames of discord. Newbies don't normally join a forum and come out swinging, knowing a fair number of the members won't like the post. It happens, but it's been my experience that newbies wait a while before stoking flames.

[uponit7771]

31. +1

[Honeycombe8]

39. I am seeing these posts about Franken. Low post count...newbies fanning flames. Be on the lookout!

Don't get into discussion with them.

[MaeScott]

60. Dont engage...let it die from neglect.

[Leith]

62. Give Us an Example of When That Has Ever Worked

Just one time that ignoring a troll (Russian or otherwise) has made him go silent.

[PatrickforO]

24. LOL. I'm a short rather unattractive man who does kind of LOOK

like a troll...but I'm not one for our purposes here. I do support the sentiment of the original poster, though. There's a bit more to this than meets the eye, and Franken has called for an outside investigation apparently, so this might be a false accusation.

[xor]

35. I'm skeptical of anyone with any extreme or divisive "opinions"

and who seem to have little interest in discussion. I wouldn't assume anyone who falls in that category to automatically be a disruptor, but a history of just that sort of behavior raises a lot of red flags. There's only been a few accounts here on DU that really stood out to me as obvious agitators. There have likely been many more, but moderators and admins do a pretty good job here.

Now there are plenty of folks here who post divisive comments and don't seem to be interested in debate about specific topics. They aren't all trolls, though. As they also have more "normal" conversations about other topics too, but for some reason there are certain topics in which they are very stubborn.

I dunno, trying to figure out who is real and who is a shit-stirrer is an interesting area of study. Lots of people out there trying to build accurate systems that can automatically help determine the likelihood of someone being a bot or troll.

[Dave Starsky]

58. It's kind of like a Turing test for Nazi douchebags.

But it takes A LOT of effort to impersonate one genuine human being, let alone hundreds or thousands. At a certain level, that level of effort is no longer cost-effective, and so the Russian trolls and bot farms become more reliant on quantity of message, not quality. This dilutes the actual information contained in their posts, overall.

This becomes pretty obvious when one looks over a "person's" posting history. The Russians don't really have much to say, just a great many hypotheticals and "concerns" about stuff going on within the Democratic party.

[xor]

61. hehe yeah. Good way of putting it.

Although, it would probably be a lot easier if it was just detecting nazi assholes. The Russians (and whoever else) seem to be approaching it from all sides to see what sticks. I become even more annoyed when someone who seems to be pushing something which I believe, but they do so in a way that seems to be counter productive, or in a way that is far more divisive than it should be.

I worry about how this is going to play out in the long run. While the Russian may have been the big players this times, these tactics will continue to be used by others too. I figure our own intelligence agencies will be or most likely already have been using similar concepts. Then there are also non-state actors who can organize similar campaigns for whatever goals they have. Stupid internet.

[Pacifist Patriot]

38. I can't either.

And I'm also really bad at connecting user names to patterns of posting. There are people I have posted with on here for well over a decade and I couldn't tell you what their posting behavior is like. LOL!

[emulatorloo]

55. Slanders Democrats constantly, never says anything negative about Republicans

[Dave Starsky]

57. Basically, lots of "concern trolling" and hypothetical questions...

without any genuine opinions or solutions offered.

All of the content is exclusively targeted at Democrats. There is NO criticism of Republicans or Russians (but, then, I repeat myself).

If you check the suspect's post history, you find that ALL of their posts are like that, with an occasional simple, innocuous one-or-two liner thrown in every now and then to grind their post count. When you see all that, it becomes pretty obvious that the ONLY thing the suspect is trying to do is stir up shit.

[bathroommonkey76]

3. They are doing everything to deflect from Roy Moore and Mueller

In a way it's kind of amusing. LOL

[Dream Girl]

5. Yep. They are here. If I didnt have a life

I’d start tracking them.

[Kingofalldems]

9. Kick this just one more time.

[Stand and Fight]

10. Here's a kick and recommend! They're so obvious.

[C Moon]

11. I have to re-read them, and then re-read again. The sentence structure is mind boggling.

Some of them must be using translator apps.

[kentuck]

15. Sometimes they smell...

..with just the stench and one will have his suspicions...

[Kirk Lover]

17. Since you seem to know for a fact that there is an influx of trolls and Rw's today rather

than perhaps different points of view...you care to name names then on who you are calling a troll.

[Botany]

20. clunky sentence structure is good tip off.

поймите?

[moriah]

21. Then I am glad to know you're not talking about me. ;)

I strongly disapprove of the use of social media for news during a breaking news event, so I've spoken pretty fiercely about not taking unsourced Tweets as gospel truth.

And yeah, I do want more reason to doubt someone than their party affiliation, because it would certainly suck for any liberal women Moore may have harassed to get doubted just because they are liberal.

I have to wonder if there *are* registered Democratic women Moore harassed who feel it's better to let Beverly Young Nelson speak for them, since their political affiliations might be targeted but she is claiming to be a conservative. I might not speak out if I thought enough others were and being liberal would potentially discredit me.

I don't think it's good for us to put anyone on pedestals. Every person we admire and respect is still a person -- still human, still fallible. Moore's pedestal is why Evangelical support went up after the accusations... they refuse to even consider their idol has feet of clay.

I want us to be better than that. That's all, really. I think Mr. Franken is handling this perfectly -- and the fact that despite disputing her account of the rehearsal she isn't wanting a hearing says something. Mrs. Nelson still wants to go under oath.

[bagelsforbreakfast]

30. Well, let's see. Is kissing an adult woman the same as putting your hands

down a 14-year olds pants?

[JonLP24]

18. I know someone isn't a troll at all say this is bad for Franken

I tend to agree but I don't know enough either way.

[rockfordfile]

19. You can tell.

[Puzzledtraveller]

22. Franken-gate

[stonecutter357]

23. K&R

[guillaumeb]

26. Stop looking at me!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Freethinker65]

28. It sure seems that way. Tax Bill. Tax Bill. Tax Bill. Tax Bill. Focus. Tax Bill.

[FreepFryer]

29. K/R.

[flamingdem]

32. They had a field day and too many real DUers fell hook, line and sinker

for their bullshit.

Feminism, any ism should not be used as a hammer to pound every nail without discrimination.

Some are just addicted to outrage. What about a little analytical thinking, just a tad?

[cwydro]

48. Exactly.

What you said.

[Greywing]

33. They sure were successful in diverting attention away from the GOP

House tax bill that passed today. I wish I saw more outrage about what the GOP is trying to us with their rushed through tax "reform" which is really a gift to the wealthy and corporations.

[L. Coyote]

34. Hey Trolls, shouldn't you go back to stealing a TRILLION $$$ a year for the billionaires.

And then we can all can pay interest on the deficit for 20 years before your children have to pay it back.

[bagelsforbreakfast]

36. But...but...but AL FRANKEN! Remember Al Franken! Al Franken!

[SunSeeker]

37. K & R

[orangecrush]

40. K&R

[FreeStateDemocrat]

41. Thanks for calling them out, puke provocateurs that are so obviously pushing an agenda of hate and

divisiveness.

[Tavarious Jackson]

42. Thank you. This is just one reason I love DU nt

[Botany]

44. for your viewing pleasure

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=1915684

[panader0]

43. I've seen quite a few.

"I really like Al, BUT....."

[Botany]

45. for your viewing pleasure

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=1915684

[Kingofalldems]

47. Where did they go? Anyone?

Did they see this?

[dalton99a]

49. +1

[Kingofalldems]

52. Looks like they fled the scene.

[Vogon_Glory]

59. I have a little sympathy for the Russian trolls

After all, they’re busy doing a job for the Rodina and the red, white, and blue (Their red, white, and blue, not ours). [Some other DU’er can provide a link to the Russian Federation’s national anthem)

However, I’ve got a news flash for those Amurrican right-wingers bleating out the talking points put out from the Lubyanka: it’s still uncool to be a willing stooge of the Kremlin just like your right-wing Grandpa used to say as back in Joe McCarthy’s heyday.

Just say “Nyet!” To spreading Russian government propaganda!