In light of the recent banning of Andybc from AT and Mary K. Greer leaving the study group at facebook, as well as the constant PM’s I get from people who have perfectly harmless questions but seem loathe to post them publicly, I’ve come to the conclusion that the “intuitive” Lenormand “readers” are simply attempting a troll.
First, lets look at what a troll is, and isn’t:
First off, some will label anyone who disagrees with the majority view of the site as a troll. Others will consider anyone who acts outside of a perceived standard of behavior as a troll. This is incorrect. A troll is someone who deliberately stirs up trouble, for its own sake.
This, in itself, isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Westboro Baptist and Stormfront-type hate sites should be trolled hard and often, and the results are often hilarious. Trolling sites where people are simply trying to learn a skill doesn’t fall in this category, though. It makes you an asshole, IOW, Fail Troll.
Let’s look at a couple of common bush-league trolling techniques commonly deployed by “intuitives”:
The Noob Troll: This is done by pretending to be an innocent slow person, and questioning everything. Of course, it’s perfectly fine and expected for new people to ask questions, that’s one of the functions of a Lenormand group. But if a person has been around for a year or more and they’re still asking noob questions, aren’t aware of traditional card meanings even though it’s all been spelled out repeatedly, and appear otherwise functional and not learning disabled, it’s pretty safe to assume that their intent is to annoy and provoke.
The Landmine Troll/Flame Baiting: Any good-sized group that’s been around for awhile has issues and animosities between some members, and tired old debates that only cause problems whenever they surface. The trick is to play the unaware noob role, then detonate the mine and the arguments. Many of these will be directed at the troll of course, which is exactly what they want. It allows them to play the wounded party, raise an army, cry to mods, and get people banned.
Word to the FAIL trolls: A lot of us are on to you, and as time goes on, there will be more.
