𒀭Aco on Nostr: A manipulative psychopath in a large forum like this has to contend with the fact ...

A manipulative psychopath in a large forum like this has to contend with the fact that many people can see their posts.

This poses the problem of not being able to say things strongly without making as many people dislike them as they make like them. But they can mitigate these problems and even use them to their advantage.

A manipulative psychopath in a space like this would:

- Help people in small, friendly ways requiring only simple words/minimal thought on their part (talk is cheap)

- Avoid any big or meaningful contributions to helping people in public. Those build resentment in others, as people are petty and get envious of any obvious positive status you give yourself. Besides, those take energy and time. Only do meaningful gestures like that in private with key individuals.

- Focus on key interests: People who have power/influence, and those close to your enemies, or who are at risk of being swayed by them. Interact to convince them you’re not so bad! Again—talk is cheap. You don’t have to actually believe anything you say, as long as you’re consistent enough to not be called a liar.

- When making posts publicly, don’t seem too emotionally invested. Remain practical, and make your points in vague, almost nuanced-sounding ways to make you seem non-commital. Those who already like you will shrug even if they disagree (if you’re in a position of power this also tends to happen by default), choosing to give you the benefit of the doubt, while those who agree will like you a bit more. While the effect on the individual is small, the sheer number of people who see it will be massive, and net you a ton of “social credit” across the community.

- Don’t get into an engagement unless you can get something out of it. Ignore anything that you know you’re likely to come off as bad in. Ignoring something could cause damage, but sometimes it’s best to cut your losses, as interacting will do even more damage.

- In arguments where you are obviously in the wrong, speak in ways that are confusing, introduce tons of variables that onlookers can neither confirm nor deny; use plausible deniability to make as many people shrug as possible. You want to make it so the only eyes on the conversation are ones you don’t care about/are already lost causes. Reinforce this by making simpler, easier to understand posts casually dismissing allegations. People will actually read this, and you will have successfully influenced the narrative

- You don’t have to pull everyone to your side—you just have to make enough people non-committal to keep getting away with what you want to.