The blank page that is usenet

I have a friend who is a child psychologist. When she talks about the behavior of her more troubled patients, it inevitably reminds me of how most usenet trolls behave. There is definitely something deep seated and broken in people that must annoy or degrade other people to make themselves feel better. I prefer not to feed their psychosis and usually refrain from joining flame fests for that reason.

For me, usenet mainly offers an excuse to stay in practice as a writer. I've tried keeping a journal, but it always feels so pointless. I need to be writing for a specific purpose, to answer a question or defend an argument. Maybe it is lame, but usenet provides that.

Years ago, I was lucky enough to bump into Roger Zelazny at a sci-fi-writers convention in De-Moines, Iowa. We talked briefly about what it means to be a writer, how best to improve. He basically said, "write something every day, no matter how uninspired you feel. Don't worry about how bad it is. Just write. Make it an indispensable part of your daily routine. If you can learn to write even when it is the last thing on earth you want to do, your moments of inspiration will shine that much brighter."

Mr. Zelazny died a few months after that, but I've hung onto those words. I'll freely admit that most of what I write is crap, but perhaps my few moments of inspiration have been well served by his advice. I've often tested an article or a humorous essay in usenet before submitting it elsewhere, and I've generally found the feedback rewarding.

So why do trolls spew their bile onto the blank page of usenet? I doubt they do it for artistic reasons (though I've seen a few flame wars that approached the level of profane poetry). Ultimately, only the trolls can answer that question, though I suspect some don't really understand their compulsion and could not explain it even if they felt inclined to. They probably draw from that same pit of pain and self-loathing that drives most bullies... but I'm no psychologist and hesitate to stand in judgment of those I encounter in so ephemeral a forum. Easier to just ignore them.

Thad