Twitter and Trolls

It would seem to be a rite of passage to experience trolling on Twitter.  It comes in certain forms and there does seem to be a gender divide.  Male exchanges seem to go straight to insults, although the whole radical vs intersectional feminist brawls are changing that.  Male to female seems to start with being told to shut up or are stupid and end in the inevitable claim that you are ugly.  Because obviously a sad stranger's opinion on what you look like is what motivates all women.  A few years ago, two hysterically funny* tweeters sent me abusive tweets after I dared suggest that bulldozing a travellers site wasn't the best use of public funds.  Tweet after tweet failed to make an articulate case, but focused on the fact I have ginger hair.  Comparisons with Bianca (Jackson, not Jagger obv) as well as the inevitable collar and cuffs remark were clearly intended to make me shrink away. Unfortunately as I was away from home and without mobile signal I didn't even see them.  Like playground bullies after school they slunk away.

But now I have a proper troll.  One so intent on passive aggressive behaviour he has set up six successive accounts to send hostile tweets, after each one was blocked.  First came @azadibani.  I didn't even notice at first.  A tweet calling me a dimwit after excessive limoncello drinking.  Fair enough actually.  Then another telling me I was against men and older men after I tweeted about middle aged white men talking about "New Politics".  But his use of "knowing you" irritated me, so I blocked.  And didn't even think twice. So along came @alibani8 tutting at my blocking and telling me if I wanted to keep my account private I should protect my tweets.  I don't want to keep my account private.  I just want to use the block button for its intended purpose - to block. His response was that there was no point and we would 'talk soon'.  @johncoh15663163 was next to appear.  His "I enjoy reading your tweets" was rather ruined by his use of identical tweets to a previous incarnation.  Blocked again.  But then something rather sinister happened.  Checking my daughter's Twitter account, I noticed that @azadibani was following her.  She only had six followers.  I was genuinely outraged and when I checked @azadinbani's account, he had started following UNISON accounts, Iranian accounts and Higher Ed accounts, but then followed my daughter, my son, my daughter's friends, my son's bassoon teacher and bloggers I engage with over feminism and health issues.  A whole list of people followed for what reason? Randomly, or because each one of them had recently followed or tweeted me.  I advised people to block.  Further denials and self justification from troll boy, including the incredible demand that I send him the evidence ie the screenshots of which accounts were my daughter and son and their friends.  Because obviously I'd want this lowlife to know which ones were my kids.  Anyone who tweeted me about this would be challenged by him as if he lurked over my accounts. A blog appeared.  All about me.  How sweet

@jccooperj followed.  This time pretending to be a cat.  Blocked.  The next day @mary89775227 turned up, claiming my tweet comparing turning the Royal Mail to the markets to turning kids over to Jimmy Savile was offensive. Blocked again.  Once again, aggressive, whiny tweets to someone who offered support.  It's not him, it's me apparently. @juliejo46952686 is the latest attempt.  Six accounts, all of which need new email accounts, all set up to send aggressive tweets to a woman on the Internet. Who does this?  Really?

So why don't I protect my account?  Actually why do I use Twitter at all?  And if I use it, why not stick to politics, rather than posting personal stuff?  First of all, I use Twitter because I enjoy it.  I like the fast flow of information, the witticisms about current events, especially when watched in conjunction with #bbcqt as much as #gbbo.  I have had fascinating discussions about feminism, socialism, union organising as much as group chatter about contestants on X Factor.  I tweet about politics and personal stuff, because I am political and also, well, a person.  I don't feel that because I have a certain job or work for a certain organisation (neither of which are mentioned in my bio). That this means I have to give the impression of a clone, a representative with no hinterland of family, of likes and dislikes, of humour or friends.  Ed Balls tweets pictures of cakes he made and Harriet Harman tweets about the X Factor and appear to survive regardless.  I could of course protect my account.  But this is the equivalent of covering up in public to avoid sexual assault or harassment.  If I don't want abuse, I should shut up.  Actually, the issue is the pathetic figure who sets up account after account to troll some woman he doesn't like, hiding behind anonymity every time, even though there are obvious giveaways to who he is.  And yes, he is a he.  Apparently I think this due to my feminist bias.

  I'm proud of my feminist bias.  It makes me believe rape victims over rapists.  I understand the Everyday Sexism experiences.  I know that when someone says Grow Up, Woman, from an anonymous account, that they're a man.  And it means I recognise that someone who has time to set up six accounts to abuse a woman on the Internet is either a saddo in stained underpants living alone or has someone else doing all the work. 
My feminist bias means I shout back.  Unless of course I choose not to.  That's the whole thing about feminism.  It means some delusional misfit, who can't get over the fact that he doesn't get to tell me what do do, doesn't get me to do what he wants me to do.  To cover up on Twitter.  To tell him he's right.  Because I'm right about this one and loser troll boy is the one who needs to grow up and realise  his own deep inadequacy. I'm sure he'll feel better for it

*Beavis and Butthead, without the irony.  Or the good writing.