The Russian playbook in 2016 wasn't just to get Trump elected. It was to divide America. Now, we seem to be doing pretty well at that all on our own, but I wonder if some of their work would be to divide online communities, especially one where people from different tribes could talk reasonably with each other.
And, reading the article, it seems like this could easily have been an orchestrated campaign disguised to look like a bunch of people just self-organizing to yell at something they didn't like because it allowed "them" to speak. (Or, it could in fact have been just a bunch of people self-organizing to yell.)
Americans hating Americans is part of our culture. There were people who didn't want to leave England. 100 years later, half the country up and split off and both sides went and killed each other trying to decide who was right. Then 100 years after that, half the country freaked out about the mere concept of equal rights for all and the North-South/Dem-Rep/urban-rural divide became solidified once more and hasn't really changed to this day.
I find it hard to blame it all on a few paid Russians commenting on twitter or reddit. If a few guys can get paid to completely divide a nation of 300+million through internet comments, either they're the most persuasive people to ever exist, or the divide was already there. It's not even hard just to read some American news and see how literally every single site that covers mainstream events or political topics makes every single thing into an us vs. them situation. There's no escaping it, and it drives clicks, so there's no motivation to stop.
And it's absolutely bizarre how certain parts of the internet are absolutely flooded with hatred for Russians as a whole, with someone always coming in to scream about them. It reminds me of hearing people's ramblings after 9/11, except this time it's primarily "young and informed" individuals.
Oh, absolutely the divide was already there. But, well, let me put it this way: We know that the Russians' goal was not just a Trump win, but American division. They'd be idiots if they weren't trying to exacerbate these divisions.
I don't think we need to invoke the Russians - I think an easier explanation is that some people just love being volunteer morality police. It cuts across political or religious ideologies. The justification is always prevention of harm, even though it's not at all clear to other people what specific harm is being prevented.
The Russian playbook in 2016 wasn't just to get Trump elected. It was to divide America. Now, we seem to be doing pretty well at that all on our own, but I wonder if some of their work would be to divide online communities, especially one where people from different tribes could talk reasonably with each other.
And, reading the article, it seems like this could easily have been an orchestrated campaign disguised to look like a bunch of people just self-organizing to yell at something they didn't like because it allowed "them" to speak. (Or, it could in fact have been just a bunch of people self-organizing to yell.)