AI Is Trolling Us
Are we prepared to tell it to go away?
Recently, someone attempted to troll me in the comments of one of my articles.
Actually, I’m not sure if it was a “someone” or a “something.” It came from the comment box.
I’m pleased to say, though, that I won an argument with a robot. It was a non-argument. The robot wanted me to argue, and I won on my terms by declining to participate.
[Content warning: This article contains an image of a neo-Nazi bookstore.]
This Comment May Be ‘Written Entirely By AI’
An account I didn’t recognize left a comment on my article. It began by observing a face-off between “far-left” and “far-right” politics in the US and referring to USAmericans as “you guys” who “just shout each other down” rather than have real discussions. This led to a “both sides…are…bad” complaint. The commenter claimed to be concerned about the situation, saying “the people of America” had to get their house in order. The commenter also declared they lived in a different country and were figuratively munching popcorn while watching the U.S. game, implying that they enjoyed the spectacle.
This comment was odd. My article had primarily focused on conversations in an academic environment in a non-US country, and I…
