Why Do We Argue Online?

Did pounding out that exacting and scandalous personal attack, er, I mean deep revelation as to the complete ineptitude and downright idiotic nature of the A-hole at the other end of your monitor help at all? Did it feel good?

Did you then visualize some 10 year old punk kid sitting in his bed room rolling about in fits of laughter with a few cackling drones he calls mates joining in in the ruckus? And them maybe realize that you had been baited? Your well thought out insult, ah I mean well intentioned attempt to educate the person, is being laughed at, all that wonderful insight lost, to a couple of dense kids who obviously need to be educated by someone!

So, wait, what was I talking about?

Oh, yeah! Why do we argue online? I honestly don't know. I do it and no I never post well thought out insults, my insults are always poorly thought out psudo-insults that probably don't even get laughed at by teenage kids cause they can't work out what the heck it is I am on about. I somehow wonder if you are currently wondering what it is I am on about!

On the up side, I don't get myself banned from the forums even tho there have been a few times when I fully expected to be. I wonder if maybe I am just not very good at being insulting? Like no one notices because they just don't believe it? Who knows? and I am rambling, again!

So back to the topic, why do we argue online? There are possibly many reasons, wanna argue about it? Just leave your argument in the comment box below!

I can only really speak for myself but I tend to choose my arguments out of a belief that I can actually open a mind or influence positive change. I even managed to get through to somebody once! In the online world I think we all can all agree that that is one major accomplishment.

More often then not tho I don't get anywhere with the people I argue with online. They, sadly, remain idiots (they know who they are!). I bet they think the same of me too. I would have to agree on that score. Arguing online is for idiots. I have, myself, pounded out some forum post that I in the end deleted (because it would get me banned, and really is not representative of the sort of person I really want to be). What was the point?! My poor keyboard just had its life span reduced by, a bit anyway.

I sometimes fool myself into thinking that it is good practice for being a writer, being able to formulate a good counter argument to prove whatever it is I am proving. The best outcome I get is that the other person stops posting (does that mean they are less of an idiot then me, for stopping before they get worked up? hmmm, gonna have to think about that one!). I guess it's nice to make them run? *scratches head*

I would love to know, and maybe even argue with you about why we argue online (doesn't that sound like fun?!?). I must assume here that you do in fact argue online (otherwise, why are you here?). If you are one of those fancy pants enlightened people who don't ever get sucked into an online argument, can we examine you please? Perhaps we could pin down the 'never argues online' gene and one day we could develop a cure! Or at least a vaccination against arguing online!

If you would like to write your own hub to argue with my hub (or write about something else) feel free to sign up now.  I would love to invite you to share your thoughts as to why we argue online, and maybe take part in a poll? Lets see how many people think they don't argue online!