Nothing drives me nuts faster than looking at the "comments section" below an internet news story.

[Curtland1015]

Seriously. Is there anything more mindless and ignorant and insulting and INSANE?

This most recent tragic shooting is a quick example, but really ANY news story will do. Just the most ignorant, racist, bigoted garbage. Probably helped quite a bit by the anonymous aspect of it all.

An example on a story about North Korea. Note that President Obama had nothing to do with the story:

"Can we send O'Blammer as our next ambassador?? We can even let them keep him!!!! Then we can see him screw up something else!!! He did a "great" job here!!"

Uh huh... makes sense to me.

This "chestnut" is in regards to the Air Force instructor convicted of raping a recruit:

Quick! Call Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton! From the looks of his picture he may have some black in him.

Hilarious, right?

I could go on posting quotes all day, and pretty much about anything. Hell, even the celebrity gossip stories usually seem to end up about Obama, or racist jokes, or SOMETHING ridiculously inappropriate and irrelevant to the story.

I know nothing can really be done to change this, and it's my own fault for looking, but even an accidental glimpse at the first stupid comment makes me mental.

[Newsjock]

1. Many of those 'well-informed' comments are astroturf

People are paid to post such drivel, mainly to make it seem like stupid people rule ... and to make civic debate so toxic that the rest of us give up in disgust.

[Laurian]

3. Once I became aware of the paid trolls, I stopped reading comments.

They are truly hateful and glaringly obvious, now.

[Curtland1015]

5. Wow, seriously? I honestly never heard about this.

It would certainly explain some things though.

[flamingdem]

7. Yes - the comments are too similar with Obummer and O this and that nt

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

2. I've given up reading those things.

It made me despair for the sanity and decency of my fellow citizens.

[Fumesucker]

4. I got a major case of the stupidity aimed at me at a kid's birthday party yesterday..

Of course I was the one that got "shushed" and told I was "creating a scene" when someone else came into a private conversation and started loudly trumpeting wingnut talking points..

Ticked me off enough to put up an OP just to vent..

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1002989233

[coalition_unwilling]

8. Oh, please. Stop being so friggin'

argumentative!

[Curtland1015]

10. Nice. Nothing like proving you're right to get someone mad. (nt)

[RedStateLiberal]

6. Avoid them like the plague!

People who post unbelievable bullshit are just using the anonymity of the internet as an excuse to be a total asshole.

Check out comments at al.com if you want thousands of examples of blatant racism and wingnut idiocy. I was once banned from their forums simply for giving factual information to refute false RW talking points.

I wish they'd hide comments on news stories by default so I wouldn't have to be afraid to scroll down in fear of seeing that crap. Every time I do I'm assaulted by the worst of humanity.

[HopeHoops]

9. Then don't look. Most of it's total bullshit anyway. Why waste the time and get angry?