Any way of reporting someone for harassment?

1. 75

   jlparkposted 9 years ago

   There is a hubber (or two) who seems to follow particular questions, and posts incessently about the Bible, every comment, every answer, PARTICULARLY on questions that may pertain to something their faith disagrees with, or in questions that may question their faith's beliefs - but not just answering, commenting and leaving others to it - continuously posting barely intelligible (they are difficult to read due to abbreviations and close to "word salad" type speech) stuff that only semi relates to the question at hand.
   
   Most ignore these, and one other hubber even goes to the trouble of deleting every single answer these people post on their own questions (unless of course they actually pertain to the question...) as they have warned them more than once about what they are doing.
   
   I've reported several times - for harassment. Seems to follow me and a few others around, commenting incessantly on questions, taking over the whole thing.
   
   One example is an answer that does not pertain to the question - What do you believe causes homosexuality? - the answer provided goes on about "it doesn't matter what its caused by, it's wrong in Gods eyes" and more verses - completely missing the question.  I have warned that I will give them a chance to actually answer it, or I'll delete it as it doesn't answer the question.
   
   To note - several of these type of hubbers (one in particular) has a grand total of ZERO hubs, and only seems to participate to use HP as a pulpit - basically using HPs for their own gain. I've reported this along with the harassment.
   
   But I'm really tired of the harassment type behaviours. Why won't HP do anything?

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      lawrence01posted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Jaqui
      At the risk of causing even more hassle I think some questions are 'Loaded' and simply should not be asked!
      That question is one where there simply is no answer and people will come up with all kinds of theories!
      Sorry it doesn't help with your question but the best way is not to go there in the first place.

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         jlparkposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         Lawrence - that particular question - I know it's loaded - it's supposed to be. I wanted to know what beliefs were out there on the causes. Getting all kinds of theories was the entire point! But I know what you mean.
         
         Being a gay woman, I'm secure in my knowledge of what caused me to be gay - nothing, I was born this way. BUT as a writer, and genuinely curious person - I wanted to see what interesting ideas those who aren't (and are - several answers are from other LGBT folk) gay had as to what may cause homosexuality.
         
         I mentioned that question - I'm plagued by one hubber in particular over several questions (all of which are my attempts at getting information for hubs on opinions...) - because it's the most recent one and the most obvious act on their behalf - their answer does NOT pertain to the question at all (nothing about opinion on cause), but about what God thinks of the matter, and why one should repent or 'bear that cross' etc. IF they had answered the question (even slightly), I wouldn't be too bothered aside from the constant comments harassing both myself and others.

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            lawrence01posted 9 years agoin reply to this

            Jaqui
            Thanks for the reply and explanation. Sorry if I overstepped a mark as I often write on stuff other hubbers think controversial. What I meant is that with some subjects some folks ( and I'm saying this as a believer who takes the Bible literally) will always revert to the Bible as a first line of defence instead of tackling the issue from other angles.
            Personally I'd find that question too much of a minefield to even try to answer because no matter which way I argue I'm gonna upset someone!

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               jlparkposted 9 years agoin reply to this

               Lawrence, no worries - no overstepping to be had - I wasn't worried by your comments. I also understand what you mean with the reverting to the Bible - and I usually don't mind, if they also actually answer the question. Using a place such as HP as one's personal pulpit without adding to the place - not having hubs (regardless of content - I'm not worried if they want to write solely on religion and their personal views - great!), not contributing in any other way.
               If you look at the question in mind, I've got a number of slightly religiously based answers - and thats fine by me. Because they answered the question, and if disagreed with by another answer from someone else, they were ok with that - not hijacking comments.
               
               Hey - if you ever feel that way when looking at one of my questions - I very very rarely delete anything from anyone, so answer it if it takes your fancy! Possibly because I'm beyond being offended by someone's personal opinion on my sexual orientation, there's no point. So, you won't upset me (I wouldn't have followed you otherwise! hhe)

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      2. 0

         jonnycomelatelyposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         Lawrence, with respect, I feel your response is a bit unfair. 
         
         The hubber(s) that seem not able to answer such questions as Jacqui has posted persist in presenting particular religiously-loaded answers.  Any reference to sexual orientation is always couched in the guilt-ridden, judgmental concepts of one christian point of view.  The only intention seems to show that us gay people are destined for "eternal judgment" and Hell.
         
         Personally I don't aim to deprive anyone of their personal beliefs.  I am generally very tolerant   provided my sexual orientation is not brought into question and condemned out of hand.
         
         A fair deal surely?
         
         Jacqui's questions are legitimate.  Other persons with serious questions about their own worth and attractions to those of their own gender hopefully will be given encouragement and signposts which they can follow in trying to "sort out their lives."   Equally, there may be persons who are also looking at matters of "faith" that could help them towards resolution.   So the religious point of view needs to be put - but not in absolute, condemnatory terms, because there is - must be - room for all points of view.   Especially within HubPages, where we try to respect all points of view....at least I do personally.  I draw the line at judgment in the name of someone's belief.
         
         Jacqui's opinions and her way of life are no secret.  She is (I presume) living a happy and integrated social and family life.  Such a life can be a great value to her community as well as her self and her partner. 
         
         To my mind, there is absolutely no reason she should not ask pertinent questions here.  In doing so, she is not trying tostop those opposing from retaining their beliefs.  Therefore any bullying tactics against her are, in my opinion, right out of line and should ideally be rejected.  If there was consistent fairness displayed, such rejection would not be necessary.
         
         (And having read the posts since starting this reply, I withdraw the idea that you were unfair, Lawrence.   Explanation is sufficient.  Fair enough.)

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            lawrence01posted 9 years agoin reply to this

            Point taken and I apologize

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      gmwilliamsposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Jacqui, tried reporting said hubber with zero hubs to no avail.  Just delete hubber's posts & comments.  Also place comments on moderation alert which means only comments & posts you approve will be allowed in the answer section.

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      1. 75

         jlparkposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         Yeah, but I am in a different time zone, and not prone to deleting things (not really into censorship at all.) anyway. I'm just over the constant harassment of others by said hubber, along with no contribution to HP.

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   3. 93

      Kylyssaposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I think I see where you're coming from and that it's not the religious nature of the comments but the frequency and unintelligibility of them that drives you bonkers. Am I right? They just never seem to stop and three quarters of them are in some kind of shorthand that I can't make heads or tails of aside from the Bible verse numbers in them.
      
      I'd suggest you just ignore or delete the comments that go too far off topic or can't be reasonably understood by average native English speakers.
      
      I'm a liberal bisexual atheist and homelessness activist who agrees with the vast majority of conclusions modern science makes and that's a combination of things that get a lot of foul and/or negative religious comments. The practice of leaving a vast litter of confusing religion-flavored comments written in text speak approaching gibberish isn't something I find delightful or something I approve of, but I think it's important to not let it get under your skin. I keep my cool in response to gibberish dumps by remembering some of the really foul and nasty things people have said in comments on similar subjects on my content and on the content of others. I'm sure you have a few of those you can think about to put this into perspective.
      
      There's also the fact that the controversial and ambiguous religious comments increase your rating in the Q&A section both by giving your questions more comments from the gibberish dumper and by causing others who comment to engage in discussions they normally wouldn't get drawn into. Without confusing or adversarial disagreement, your questions won't be on the best questions or hot questions boards unless they are on some unique and interesting topic that people find absolutely irresistible.
      
      You know people have strong negative thoughts about you and your beliefs and that most of those thoughts come from religious doctrines, so why not embrace this non-violent and non-obscene expression of them and the popularity it brings to your questions?

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      Matthew Meyerposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      You can report a post, user, etc. as violating site terms. Each and every one of these reports is reviewed by a moderator. You can email us at team@hubpages.com as well.

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      1. 75

         jlparkposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         Matthew - apparently her behaviour doesn't violate TOS - or at least that's what I assume as myself an several others who've experienced the same have reported her numerous times.
         
         I must be clear - I'm not bothered by the fact her opinions differ - I enjoy a good difference of opinion. The following, constant harassment / posting on unintelligible verses that offend others, taking over entire questions to preach Bothers me.
         
         Oh, and that she's not contributing to HP at all - no hubs, no questions of her own. Merely trolling.
         I will be screenshoting and deleting her stuff shortly - I just wanted to know if harassment was agains TOS...

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         1. 0

            calculus-geometryposted 9 years agoin reply to this

            Even if Norine gets banned she will come back under different usernames because she knows she has an audience.  The only aspect of the situation that you can control is how much attention you give her, and  lucky for you that is her weakness.

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               Kylyssaposted 9 years agoin reply to this

               This says it all. You have all the power in this situation. There's no reason to give it to someone trolling you.

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            Jean Bakulaposted 8 years agoin reply to this

            Jacqui,
            This has always been a problem on HP for the 5 years I've been here. I actually see less religious fanatics on here than there used to be. I always complained because they are copying scripture word for word out of the Bible, and that's duplicate content in my eyes. Or plagiarism.
            
            I'm not a believer either, so don't appreciate being preached to by people who believe in fairy tales. Try to moderate your comments so you have to approve them before they show up on your pages. I once called this place Jesuspages.com, and I love it here. But the Bible thumpers do get annoying, always judging everyone else. Aren't good Christians supposed to not judge others? The fact so many are such hypocrites is annoying as well.
            
            Don't lose sleep over them. Take care.

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            1. 75

               jlparkposted 8 years agoin reply to this

               I've wandered away from hubpages for a few months as it annoyed me. I've been here 5yrs now and you're right - there aren't as many. Though she is/was annoying!
               
               Lose sleep? Nah. More important things to do....was just trying to get it to stop. Ignoring her (and hubpages for that matter) seems to have worked!

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   5. 72

      ptosisposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      I'm having my own censorship from Trolls asking loaded questions only to have my answer deleted.  It's a way to self massage the ego because can't delete or mute a person in real life - unless have the power to do so my force. Make me wonder what type of conversations these people have at home with friends and family - assuming they have any.
      
      Why does bradmasterOCcal ask questions only to delete answers he doesn't agree with?
      
      My answer to " Isn't there really only 2 real Genders for humans?' DELETED. This if coming from the same person who a couples times baited for me to delete his answers to my questions. Hey: bradmasterOCcal don't ask if you don't want to hear the truth. bradmasterOCcal asked about XY, XX sexes and I answered from http://www.joshuakennon.com/the-six-com … in-humans/ where I suggested that perhaps Brad was a YY to answer the question http://hubpages.com/relationships/answe … for-humans
      

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      1. 75

         jlparkposted 8 years agoin reply to this

         I stopped answering his questions for that reason.
         Given his argument re: genders being only two....I've had that conversation with him before - before he was banned as another user name. (Very similar to the one he has....check out my 'how my same.sex marriage affects yours' for the conversation. He was banned for other reasons I think, but from memory he wasn't pleasant near the end.
         
         I agree tho - why ask if you only want people who agree with you to answer.

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2. 72

   LeanManposted 9 years ago

   Why do you care what other people say or think?
   
   We all have our own opinions and view points - just because someone posts an opinion that it is opposed to yours does not make it harassment..
   
   If they are not threatening you or abusing you then they are just expressing freely their own opinion..
   
   If you don't want their comments on your hubs you can delete them and only allow comments that 100% agree with you.......
   
   If you write on the internet and you write about areas that people are going to disagree about you have to have a thick skin....
   
   I write about Saudi Arabia and believe me some of the comments I get can be very personal indeed... Some I allow to be published, but if they contain profanities or are out and out abusive or threatening then I don't.. If someone has a different view point to mine then they are entitled to it and I am happy for it to sit there in the comments even if they politely call me names or tell me how wrong or how stupid I am.....
   
   This is the internet, not the school playground - there is little point crying to teacher... Just delete and get over it or publish and ignore it...

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      Kiss andTalesposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Good comment , I think people lose sight that they control the buttons on their computer devises. Like you do with televisions , radios,  phones.
      Nobody is paralyzed in changing the page of subject, but they may very well be irritated of a personal view that is not their own which they would like the person to vanish.
      They may feel an insult from a simple comment
      But people may just be sensitive to topics from  bad experiences.  How can anyone know all your likes and dislikes on the enternet behind a computer device.
      
      Here is an example of the buggy before the horse.
      Because a person gets to know your sexuality
      before they know you the person from the heart, and your unique gifts as a neighbor and friend . Then you have the problem of people judging humans by their scales of morals, which works fine for them. Because people should  know and love you the personality thats more important
      I say that because sex is a private choice.  You can or wish not to engage. But you are you rather you perticpate or not.

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   2. 0

      snapcracklepopposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      I absolutely agree with you....I appreciate it when others express their views in a respectful manner, however when the responders to my posts or comments become abusive, sarcastic,  and antagonistic I use the delete option. My posts are mostly religious and I will accept someone else's religious views but name calling is out.

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   3. 75

      jlparkposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Funnily enough I don't mind her opinions differ or that she has negative opinion on people like myself.
      
      What was getting beyond a joke was that she will not leave it alone - Comes in on such a question, answers it without actually answring it but more regurg scripture then proceeds to comment on everyone else's answer who disagrees with her until the question is taken over by her stuff. It happened numerous times in questions of mine..

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3. 0

   calculus-geometryposted 9 years ago

   If they are making personal attacks or being profane you can report them.  It's not against the TOS for another hubber to be interested in the same questions you are interested in and answer them with a different opinion, so you need to have something more concrete than just "follows me around."
   
   As in most situations in life, when you ignore an annoying person, they get bored eventually and go away. You're only feeding his/her need for attention.

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      sockiiposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      +1
      
      There are certain topics that are just going to bring out the trolls, the zealots, those who will argue their point of view to death and have no interest in an actual debate - they just want to repeat their beliefs over and over again to try to always have the last word. Pretty much any debate involving religion, abortion, and homosexuality...and especially how any of these topics may overlap is just asking for such a situation.
      
      So if you open up a question/debate on such a topic, you simply have to expect such people are going to respond. And you can choose to either ignore them or engage, but if you engage you can't call it "harassment" unless they are carrying the issue elsewhere, actually threatening you in some fashion and making your life difficult beyond being a troll on a messageboard forum.

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         jlparkposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         The question I used as example is one I posted in an area that they do not frequent - I didn't post in a religious area for a reason.
         
         So, it appears they are following.
         
         Blaming the person asking a question of other hubbers for the behaviour of another hubber is...odd.
         
         Being me happens to be controversial but I should be able to ask a question without my question being turned into a personal pulpit for someone else to jump on both me and other people. The troll in question takes over the thread, as well as name calls etc.
         
         It's not me I care about - it's others

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         1. 0

            jonnycomelatelyposted 9 years agoin reply to this

            Jacqui, you did ask relevant questions.  You do convey a sense of respect and personal responsibility.  Others don't, in my opinion. 
            There is only so much stirring you can do in a saucepan of custard.  There comes a point where the custard is "finished," and you can remove it from the heat.  Some would just love to continue stirring, leave them to it; they will not be invited to the table to eat. 
            Let's have a party, bon appétit

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               Kylyssaposted 9 years agoin reply to this

               +1

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4. 86

   Austinstarposted 9 years ago

   Jacqui - I know who you are referring to and HubPages doesn't seem to be interested in getting rid of the riff-raff around here, so we have no alternative other than to delete and ignore her and others like her.
   I really get upset over the "blame the victim" mentality by the other commenters. They act as if we are the ones being whiners and complainers instead of legitimately reporting an unacceptable hubber and her behavior.
   Yes, we can delete and ignore these people, but they are bringing down the overall quality of HubPages for ALL of us.

   replyreport
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      gmwilliamsposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      +1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000!

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      jlparkposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Yeah, the fixation seems to be on the question I asked rather than the harassment - she follows you, me, Alan.
      There was NO need for her to answer the question I posed and used as an example, as from memory I posted it in a section she wouldn't usually go to as ts not religion.
      
      Apparently harassment is not a violation of the TOS or so it seems.

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      Kylyssaposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Making a fuss encourages the behavior.
      
      Don't feed the trolls. Getting publicly upset over it online is like putting gravy on top of the troll chow. Why should we encourage you to encourage the trolling behavior or be considered bullies?
      
      When you encourage the behavior so much by reacting visibly upset, they take it as their "truth" getting to you and you just being too afraid to admit you're wrong. If you don't engage or at least don't take it personally if you choose to, the person will either quit or make you look like a bloody genius by becoming more and more irrational.
      
      All this activity makes your questions more popular. And each of us can delete comments that make HubPages look like a bunch of junk. There's no need to give an individual speaking gibberish the power to upset you.
      
      Imagine what would happen if we all just ignored and deleted. How long do you think a person who never sees their inappropriate comments published will keep trying to make them?
      
      Threads like this only serve to draw more trolls to your questions because they identify people who will feed trolls a huge buffet by bringing in more troll feeders to help them out. They might help your traffic but I don't think questions earn much anyway.

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5. 85

   Marisa Wrightposted 9 years ago

   Some people are trolls.  They write answers which are deliberately provocative because they enjoy causing annoyance and distress.
   
   If you simply delete or deny those answers/comments without comment, you deprive them of satisfaction.  Obviously you should report them as well - but NOT reacting to them is the only way to deal with them.

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      Thomas Swanposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      This is absolutely correct. Trolls want attention. They're like children. Ignoring them (deleting their baits) either makes them stop or causes them to throw their toys out of the pram and get so nasty that any moderator seeing it has no choice but to take out the trash. Either way, it should be over fairly quickly.

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   krillcoposted 9 years ago

   As a an experienced Licensed Professional Counselor, I have seen this kind of thing before; it sometimes indicates genuine mental health illness.

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      jonnycomelatelyposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Thank you.  I had wondered if this were the problem in several cases we have witnessed here in HubPages over the past few years.
      It is for that reason I often feel reluctant to reject the individuals concerned without giving adequate opportunity for him or her to reconsider their answers.
      Also, I have wondered if these defensive (sometime offensive) reactions are manifestations of an old animal instinct.....i.e., a spontaneous reaction from a survival instinct.  When we are in any way threatened by someone, something, in such a way that our survival is at stake, then the old trio of Fright, Fight or Flight kick in.  Sticking around and arguing might be a part of the Fight bit.

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7. 75

   jlparkposted 9 years ago

   Thanks guys for your answers.
   
   Am unfollowing now as I have the answers I needed, and am unable to close the forum thread (unless someone can tell me how!?).
   
   Thanks

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8. 60

   Sgt Prepperposted 8 years ago

   In Orwell's "1984" unpleasant and politically incorrect speech was censored even if it was indeed the truth.  The truth hurts sometimes and those hurts could be avoided if Big Brother would just step in and do his part.  Ephesians 6:12

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   Austinstarposted 8 years ago

   Brad asks the same questions over and over expecting a different answer i guess. New definition of insanity?

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    Sgt Prepperposted 8 years ago

    In the movie "Kindergarten Cop" a little boy sums everything up very nicely "Boys have penises and girls have vaginas." Any questions?

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       jlparkposted 8 years agoin reply to this

       Exactly what does that have to do with this forum question?

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