orthonormal comments on That other kind of status - Less Wrong

72 Post author: Yvain 29 December 2009 02:45AM

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Comment author: djcb 30 December 2009 12:17:22AM *  1 point [-]

That's an interesting way to look at it, but aren't trolls usually (semi-)anonymous? It's hard to gain status that way. People with highly controversial opinions that aren't anonymous usually consider themselves to be contrarians rather than trolls,or?

Using the Wikipedia definition of (social) status:

the honor or prestige attached to one's position in society (one's social position).

I think we'd need a different word for the thing trolls and other pyromaniacs are seeking.

(edit: s/Wiki/Wikipedia/, small clarification in third line)

Comment author: orthonormal 30 December 2009 02:43:27AM 1 point [-]

ISTM that people feel "freedom from retribution" on a visceral level, but not the "pseudonymous status doesn't count" concept. It's outside the scope of the ancestral environment, so we shouldn't expect our emotions to be fully coherent here.