Do you assume the best or the worst of people on the internet?

[RedMercury]

With the internet being what it is, we're all just a bunch of complete strangers offering our thoughts and opinions on various topics. With everyone being strangers, it can be easy to ascribe personalities or intent to someone based on a very small subset of information. In the instance someone has a relatively bad take, is your immediate assumption that they are maybe not smart, or flawed in some way? Do you find it as a decent representation of their overall character? Alternatively, if someone has a good take do you think you lean towards thinking better of them as a person?

Obviously, there are some things that spell out who a person is based on what they post, like if they are defending nazis for example, I think most people would for good reason say "this is not a good person". Beyond the extremes however, do you think you make a decent effort to be charitable to people on the internet and assume good intention?

 

[Captain Tuttle]

I try to be open minded, the assholes eventually make themselves known

 

[skeezx]

as somebody who's seen it all (going back the A/S/L? days) it's a wash with me. i generally give people benefit of a doubt, if somebody rubs me the wrong way i'd like to think things aren't getting across on both our ends

 

[Cenauru]

Worst. I used to trust people more often and take things seriously and in good faith, and I've been burned for it. Some people just want to treat you like a pile of shit just for who you are.

 

[Rosebud]

Wow at this poll results

 

[bionic77]

I try to be open minded, the assholes eventually make themselves known

Click to shrink...

If someone is an asshole I don't get why anyone would continue to interact with them. Even if you win an argument you just wasted your free time interacting with a stupid asshole.

I almost always just shut down and lose interest in people who are acting shitty.

And I agree it becomes apparent really quickly.

 

[J75]

Worst. I used to trust people more often and take things seriously and in good faith, and I've been burned for it. Some people just want to treat you like a pile of shit just for who you are.

Click to shrink...

Too true, spot on.

 

[GamerJM]

I try to be neutral, sometimes I even err towards being positive, but the poll responses don't surprise me. I've noticed people assume the worst of others far too often, most likely because of how bad people can be. And I don't blame them with how rampant online harassment has been.

There was a period of time for a few years where basically all of my social interactions were online, and when I started regularly talking to people "IRL" again I was surprised at how much more likely people were to be friendly to me as a default. Too bad I much prefer text communication as a means of meeting others.

 

[TheMerv]

This seems ill-advised.

 

[lvl 99 Pixel]

People typically aren't trustworthy irl, doubly so online. Don't trust people who say they give a shit about your wellbeing, its not worth it.

 

[Gyro Zeppeli]

More often than not, people are stuck to their beliefs and can be stubborn. It takes a certain amount of humility and humbleness to admit when one was misguided or incorrect in their views. I find myself on the defensive most of the time on Resetera because of the constant strife.

 

[phranc]

Worst. Sometimes the people you've known for the longest time have the worst takes. Online however. I have no trust anymore.

 

[Musubi]

I'm willing to give anybody I meet a neutral starting ground.

 

[MinerArcaniner]

I really don't see how anyone can be neutral about dealing with people online, let alone assume the best.

IRL is a different story, but on the web? Forget it.

 

[smurfx]

growing up i always just assumed most people were weirdos and that mentality kind of stuck. grew up during the aol era and chat rooms didn't exactly make me think different. to be honest there are a lot of shitty people online these days as well. other than a few times i've never really interacted in real life with people i met online.

 

[El Bombastico]

Always assume the worst, without exception.

 

[RedMercury]

Wow at this poll results

Click to shrink...

Wow in what way?

 

[Punchline]

I generally try to assume the best, but sometimes you misread people, you know?

 

[Zeliard]

Neutral tending towards worst

Too many people argue in bad faith. Too many people are completely incapable of articulating their own opinions or even attempting to, instead cribbing them from articles and youtubers and the like.

A lot of online discourse has become truly dire, and this isn't just (relatively) old man ranting. Forget the right-wing assholes who just have heinous opinions about everything. They've always existed and always will. I'm talking about ostensibly well-meaning people who just seem entirely incapable of thinking for themselves and just parrot goofy shit they heard someone else say.

 

[The Albatross]

I probably assume the worst but I'm trying more to try to assume the best or better. Hard, the reward mechanisms and incentives of the internet bring out our worst so often.

 

[Ghostfacedon]

Worst, 100% of the time. Humans gonna human.

 

[Bjomesphat]

I always assume people have the best intentions. Definitely not surprised by the results though. You make an honest mistake, or even get misinterpreted, be prepared to be crucified.

Can't imagine living a life assuming the worst of people.

 

[Parch]

Anonymity on the internet makes people bad. Keyboard warriors trolling, baiting, and dogpiling is the worst.

 

[Rosebud]

Wow in what way?

Click to shrink...

I thought more people would assume the best

 

[Hollywood Duo]

On here it's a bit different but in general I assume the worst

 

[lunarworks]

I try to be open minded, the assholes eventually make themselves known

Click to shrink...

This. You'll find out their nature soon enough.

 

[RedMercury]

I thought more people would assume the best

Click to shrink...

Oh, hell naw haha I thought you were surprised at how many are neutral! I assume the best as well so seeing the numbers how they are is definitely a little bit of a wake up call.

I can understand assuming the worst I guess, there's lots of scams and stuff like that so caution is good, I think as long as you try to treat people okay it doesn't matter too much which camp you fall into.

 

[Lari]

I think the word assume is maybe a bit too strong, I try not to assume anything about anyone.
I do expect the best even though I'm very careful online based on past experience.

 

[Conditional-Pancakes]

Neutral trending toward best.

This outlook usually works very well for me.

 

[Blackie]

Depends on the website, topic, and their response to being challenged.

For Resetera I generally, 90% of the time, assume people are real live humans who only occasionally troll for fun/weekendEra/honest frustration, and as long as the topic is not too "political" things are usually civil enough (for some topics anger and incivility seem justified but that's a whole 'nother nuanced discussion). For sites like Reddit I assume 50% bots/bad actors, 50% legit people being honest enough. I kind of love Reddit anyway tho lol. For Youtube comments, new sites and the like I assume 99% bots and bad faith actors, roflmao ><

I think I'm a pretty good read of people offline or online. I'm very rarely surprised. I stay open minded, yeah... but my eyes stay squinty watching out for sus/shifty behavior :p

 

[Milennia]

I try to be neutral but so many people are instigating assholes for their entire miserable day online that it's hard to be positive about it

Era is alright in this regard

 

[Milky Way]

Worst. 100%

 

[clmartin]

You're all just anonymous pixels on a screen to me. If we're shooting the shit on a message board then of course I'll assume the best of people. Why the fuck would I want the toxicity of constantly assuming everyone is an asshole?

 

[Deleted member 24052]

I tend to assume the best in people. Afterall they're usually quick to give you a reason not to trust/like them if they're shitty anyway, so let them out themselves as shitty.

 

[Danby]

I assume better out of ERA, but I'm mostly positive overall. There definitely are some terrible people on the internet. I've met them.

 

[Eugene's Axe]

I know lots people in person (some are my relatives) who are gigantic pieces of shit but to my surprise when I get to, or better yet, have the misfortune to see their social media profiles they put themselves as warriors for social causes and all that shit. To me these kinds of people are worse than trolls or even bigots because at that latter don't pretend to be what they're not.
So yeah, my opinion on people on the internet is not too positive.

 

[meowdi gras]

Expect the worst, hope for the best.

 

[Baphomet]

I assume the worst of people anywhere.

 

[nogoodnamesleft]

as a youth-best
as a young adult-neutral
as an older adult-worst

 

[Necromanti]

I guess it depends on how they come across. Obviously, some people are easy to read when they pull the same shit over and over, so assuming the worst is just seeing them for who they are and how they present themselves. Otherwise, it's on a case-by-case basis.

 

[Deleted member 25721]

I used to be neutral, but on the internet and even in every day life, seeing how people are has changed my perception of humanity. I expect the worst of every human being in existence these days. It seems like the shitbags outnumber genuinely good people by like 100 to 1, and that's probably a very conservative number...

 

[Cipher Peon]

I generally try to assume the best in everyone, online or off

 

[Cenauru]

I thought more people would assume the best

Click to shrink...

It's also a result of society's impact on us, we're kind of veering straight into a dystopian hellscape, some parts of our lives already being dystopian as-is. Many horrible people are being emboldened more and more by the day and nothing is ever done about it.

 

[Ultimate Bear Cub]

I honestly try to make no assumptions at all and let the people I interact with determine how I feel about them. For the named consistent users anyway.

I don't know y'all, not really, but that doesn't stop me from thinking well of many of you based on your actions.

So I strive to be kind online, which matches how I am in person too. I have no desire to be truly spiteful or expect it. But I am prepared for basically anything. Burden of experience I guess.

 

[RedMercury]

You're all just anonymous pixels on a screen to me. If we're shooting the shit on a message board then of course I'll assume the best of people. Why the fuck would I want the toxicity of constantly assuming everyone is an asshole?

Click to shrink...

Yeah, I dunno. There are maybe some deeper questions around it, like for people who assume the worst about everyone full-stop, what is their opinion on themselves, would they expect others to think the worst of them, would they want others to think the worst of them, etc. I also wonder if assuming the worst being so pervasive if that informs the concept of "thread backfires" where at times it can seem like some people feel good by making someone else feel bad (though sometimes this is super warranted). I also wonder to what degree the poll would be the same on different sites or among groups of users, if it's a universal cultural thing on the internet.

 

[Lotto]

i only trust funny people on the internet

 

[TissueBox]

I assume the worst in people in general, but that's because I hung out with the worst kind of people back in the day, and loved them anyway. I see that as the default person. Anyone is capable of monstrosity.

You can either posit that everyone is an angel hiding their horns, or everyone is a demon hiding their halos. I've taken to the latter as a worldview all my life. Some people will hide their halos forever. Some people are genuinely evil. And then some are pleasant surprises. ^^'

IMO, it's easy to judge people on the internet when you only view them as a unit of measurement, be it in terms of demographic, ideology, random eccentricism, what have you. Hence why you'll find that in closer circles and community threads here on Era, for instance, there is a much more relaxed, friendly atmosphere. ;) Comes with the territory BABEH..!!

 

[YellowBara]

I try to assume the best as much as I can. I'd rather be disappointed with people than stew all day assuming everyone is speaking in bad faith at all times. Especially on ERA. That just seems corrosive and toxic.

The first post has it right though. Assholes do let you know fast what they're about. I just block/ignore and pay them dust when I can. No point dealing with bad faith posters who assume you're cut from the same cloth.

 

[TheMadTitan]

I assume everyone is an alt-right asshat until proven otherwise. It's the "I'm a black man on the internet" defense mechanism.

 

[geomon]

I assume the worst, not just on the internet.