Photo courtesy of Comic Vine
Sports trolling is on the rise!
Like another certain element of society, lately these people, like cockroaches, are coming out of the woodworks more than ever. The usual suspect of Social Media is only part of the reason why. The simple thing is to dismiss them. That can be done at one’s own peril, which is why the word “beware” precedes my thoughts on this matter. But first, we need to be able to recognize the traits of these people, so in no particular order, here they are:
- THE INVOLUNTARILY CELIBATE: This is the sanitized trendy way of saying, “they ain’t getting none”. People who have the company and intimacy of a significant other to look forward to do not spend their time lurking in the weeds of cyberspace for the specific purpose of arguing. Only those with a significant void in their lives would engage in such activity;
- THE GOD AGREES WITH ME MENTALITY: Being right is not merely preferred, after all, we all want to be right, it is life and death to the sports troll. Therefore, it is the ultimate validation of one’s position. The ironic thing about this trait is that one need not be religious. In fact, I know several atheists who cling to this mentality as well as or stronger than so-called believers. The common trait is not religious ideology but being obsessively argumentative for the objective of being right. Coming to a better collective understanding is not a sought-after objective;
- ATTACK TO DISTRACT: A very common tactic by these types. If one does not recognize when it is happening, you can end up being put on the defensive for something that the troll himself is guilty of. He also is prone to dismiss or trivialize the issue with false equivalencies expressed as, “that happens on both sides”;
- BAIT POST SPECIALIST: A ridiculous and provocative post is made…in some cases one that even the troll himself doesn’t believe, just to get your goat; and
- SOCIAL MISFITS: This type often struggles in basic human relations and is therefore often emboldened behind a laptop via the internet. Simply put, he will engage in ways in these venues that he never would consider face to face.
Another irony of the sports troll is that he really is not even a core sports fan. He merely uses the sports platform to promote larger society ideas, much like the comedian and drunk does. In either scenario, one can default to “I was just joking” or “I was drunk” or “it’s just sports”.
While I have used only the “he” pronoun, by no means are these types restricted to the male gender. There are a number of women with deep-seeded anger and mistrust of men, likely a result of traumatic experiences at the hands of men, who lie in wait to debate as well. Then there is the drama addict element, which has no gender boundaries.
How best is it to deal with a sports troll? That can be tricky, so first let’s discuss what does not work.
Engaging them with the objective of having a rational discussion is a complete waste of time and even somewhat hubris to think that you are going to make any headway. The sports troll has little to no interest in facts or truth.
There is a reason I used the term “beware”.
These people are not well.
This does not necessarily mean from a mental health standpoint, which has become the default explanation to dismiss the obviously increasing level of toxicity in society.
It does mean that there is an imbalance in their humanity, be it psychological, spiritual, or emotional. They lack the minimal emotional maturity to effectively engage people as adults. They closely overlap personality types that resort to the most extreme actions when the world does not stop to revolve around them or whenever anyone has the audacity to disagree with them. Therefore, our reactions to them should certainly not exacerbate those tendencies.
This personality type is easily identified beyond the sports world. It is highly likely to endorse misogynistic, homophobic, xenophobic, and/or racist attitudes. It is equally as likely to engage in class bashing.
I wish I had suggestions for how best to deal with such types, short of the unsustainable tactic of merely validating their ego and delusional notions of themselves and the world.
But I don’t.
In the larger scheme of things, the only effective response that comes to mind is to give some serious thought to the root toxicity in the world that produces such types.
They are not created overnight, and thus, nor will a remedy for their ailment.
In the meantime, until we can establish a “Troll Patrol” to summon, the next time you find yourself confronted by this type, I can only come up with two suggestions, both totally counter to our instincts in the sports debate culture: Either ignore them or respond with a smile to whatever they propose with a simple: “You are right!” 
