Online Bullying - A Dev request for a response and discussion

[Malakhim]

As for the Duty Finder, I've had nothing but positive experiences with it thus far aside from some rather gung ho DDs and tanks on occasion who I have to learn a thing or three, but I usually do it in a non-abrasive, friendly way that keeps group cohesion high. A hard task, because I'm usually the only person actually talking!

I really think a lot of you are missing the point of what some other people have been saying. The people telling you all to "grow a thicker skin" and what not aren't doing it to be "internet tough guys" or to be dismissive; they're saying it for your own good and well-being. Hell, even Jesus Christ told everyone to "turn the other cheek".

In both the on- and off-line realities, there are assholes. There will always be assholes. Hell, just a few weeks ago, some dude told me to blow it out my ass while I was driving, and I heard some other guy just straight up flip out on an older gentleman in front of his(the antagonist's) family. That's not even a fraction of the "assholery" present in the real-world. As a side note, several of you seem to be UK posters. Correct me if I'm wrong(and my information is outdated), but wasn't the house of lords or commons full of grown men screeching at each other at times?

Add the face of anonymity, and you get a whole buffet of asshats who want nothing more than to see the world burn. But then, are all of them really that bad? Maybe they were having a really bad day, and someone who didn't know their role in a game they're playing(everyone is paying a sub to have fun after all) messed up badly, and that was the last straw for that person. We don't know these things. Obviously this is just a hypothetical, and who knows how often it occurs, but the point still stands. Maybe the person just really needs some help with anger management.

I won't take a stance on whether or not we're coddling people far too much(this coming from a guy who was bullied for a period in his life), mostly because I know that like the "internet asshole", many of you are afraid of acknowledging things about yourselves or others that may or may not be true, but I will say this: The best thing you can do, as others have said, is black list 'em, report 'em, and move on with your life. It takes two to tango; don't be their dance partner. And on the internet, EVERY hole has a festering pile of toxic, bile-spewing hate mongers just waiting for a chance to see you squirm, and this is a problem that regardless of how we want to "change the world", will NEVER go away. Many of you cite the law, but the law can't be everywhere all the time.

And really, why are some of you letting your kids online, let alone playing an online game whose ToS ALSO states that you need to be above a certain age to even be playing? That's about as irresponsible as taking them to the theater to see an R-rated movie. I really don't see where you get off complaining that someone else is violating the EULA. It's unfortunate, but sometimes, you gotta say "no", but that's just a side note to the discussion.