Tolerate them, for they know not what they do
Trolls are idiots, no second guessing that. If they weren’t idiots, they wouldn’t be called trolls – it is as simple as that. A troll is an online idiot, while an offline idiot would be just a good old idiot. It doesn’t take burning of the midnight oil to become one; all it requires is a myopic and insecure state of mind. Willingness to listen to the other person’s argument and then answer it with a marginally intelligent and coherent counter-argument is all that it takes to become a “non-troll”. So it is both easy to be a troll as well as a non-troll.
Trollism is universal. It has no specific caste or creed. The behaviour is not a domain of any one religion, region, or natonality. Like a disease, it is everywhere. If the term “troll” did not require being online, Newt Gingrich would qualify as one, so would Jean-Marie Le Pen, and our very own Qibla Zaid Hamid Sahib.
While Trollism may be universal, the way it has been associated with only one political party in Pakistan, Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) by the left-leaning intellectuals (some of them have questionable and arguable leftist credentials though) of our country is indeed unfortunate. It is not that on Imran Khan’s prodding they abuse you online! That you classify every abusive tweet as typed with the blessings of the “Kaptaan” is indeed wrong. It is certainly not the policy of PTI to have a cadre of trolls. No party does (although some parties have cadres of heavily armed men, but then a pen is mightier than a sword or in modern parlance a tweet mightier than Uzi!).
However, I suspect a bit of foul-play on behalf of the ‘victims’ of these ‘PTI trolls’. They were inherently biased against “King Khan” and his anti-West policies even before the first troll signed up with Twitter. The idiots however provided them with a common platform to get together and denounce the Khan of Zaman Park and his party’s policies. A closer look at some of “victim tweets” and it becomes abundantly clear that Khan’s policies are being denied as naïve simply because these idiots are supporters of these policies.
As far as naiveté of PTI’s policies are concerned, I’ll be the first brave PTI supporter to admit that some of them indeed make no sense at all (my biggest fear is what if the Patwari refuses to issue a fard in my favour by saying Khan sahib nay rishvat na lenay ka hukam diya hey, fard denay ka nahi). But to belittle PTI policies simply because some online “genius” follows and supports them, smells of premeditated bias.
Our left-leaning liberal intellectuals, most of them associated with leading English-language newspapers, often point towards Jemima Goldsmith’s former husband and try to make a case that since he is reckless in his speech while referring to other political leaders that is why his online followers send abusive tweets. I beg to differ. If his mannerisms had been contagious, then there should have been “PML(N) trolls” as well as “PPP trolls”, since both parties have been at each others throat ever since the 1980’s. The ‘flowery language’ that they have used to refer to the opposite party’s main leader especially during the 1990’s and before the signing of CoD, is still not forgotten, at least not by me. More recently President Zardari declaring Nawaz Sharif as “Maulvi Nawaz Sharif”, or his talented younger bro’s rant against the president should have released a volley of abusive tweets from both ends (Yes I am assuming that both the PPP and PML(N) trolls have internet access, and enough education to type abuse).
In submission, even if there had been no Imran Khan there would still have been trolls, period. A troll is a troll. He (and yes to date they are all “he”) is neither PTI, nor PPP or PML(N) troll. He is in a world of his own which is easily shattered by one marginally intelligent tweet. He is insecure because he either does not know the facts or has the stomach to digest them; he is someone who has never had time to read books, etc. Either try to “un-troll” him by supporting a party that advocates a more egalitarian, uniform, and universal education policy, or stop stamping him as “PTI troll”! All it takes is an underdeveloped brain, and an access to moderately good internet connection to be a troll, not Imran Khan.
Why apologize?? we express our views (sometimes aggresively) but always on solid arguments and not empty slogans
forget it man you are soar writer who have no courage to face critics sometimes
what is the point to write all this….. Freedom of speech is right for everyone….At least expressing aggression through words not like other parties who prefer bullet then words
freedom of speech or freedom of abuse
and you are right leaning genius….or right leaning idiot…!
lolsss..gud one buddy:P
You sound like a racist & seem to have nothing to say otherwise, better hire some scholl teacher to polish your rusty writing skills!
now that is a pri troll
and you might want to hire a teacher to teach you how to spell.
Point well made 🙂 i hope some one fwds. This to all the media anchors who seem to think pti should be accountable for badly behaving boys. It was thoroghly entertaining….
Looks can be deceiving but in this case certainly not so.The author with his picture has written his own short biography which is enough to move every one with sympathies for such sick minds.This man is a straight jacket case.
An excellent column Taimoor Sahib.
the only issue with alot of reaction from PTI supporter is that PTI has more educated supporter than any other party ,,so they have their presence over social networks so they write and disagree with columns or any thing paste against PTI …you should be thanksful to God that PPP & PML supporters are not much on social networks other wise you could hear Nangi Gallian rather than current arguments by PTI supporters as most of supporting clan for PPP are illetrate species ( as if you hear Zardari or Bilawal stupid speech and you are still a supporter of them then you def a illetrate bunch )
U certainly r a PTi troll
Well done Imtiaz, at least you got the spelling right this time, now go back to sleep and follow your Noora leaders.
At this time, you will get price for only PTI or Anti-PTI content, and Mr. Taimoor Ashraf played a good move to gain the readership by criticizing the PTI, but please make some solid point next time !
Seriously! You didnt even get it! duh!
Stay away from PTI and PTI supporters, Otherwise you will be soon in hell!!!!!! You are just a worm of shit.
What about the weapon troll of MQM or Financial troll of PML-N, remember Jang newspaper who shrinked to 4 pages, remember!!
Too true man.. word for word! Well written!
I just have to laugh at these rubbish arguments of this writer and his naive and very small mindset, who i bet has never even ventured as far as the next street, yet pretends to know PTI supporters and it's policies. Most of what he has written has been copied from the internet on the aspect of trolls.He claims to be a PTI supporter yet shows no understanding of it's policies (rofl) and he has the nerve to call others idiots.
If referring to thiefs as crooks and looters is abuse then what about the abuse they they have given the nation for the last 30 years, i suppose to someone like you, that is acceptable as long as your children go to an english medium and you get to write rubbish against one party that can make a difference to our nation.
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