Why do you think that?

Why did you call me a faggot?

Why did you say that thing that you would never say to me if we were in person?

And that's where really interesting conversations can happen.

What if we followed up with the people who posted online insults?

What if we ask them about their motivation?

Why they feel so strongly, strong enough to write about their hateful feelings publicly.

It's easy to forget that on the other side of a heinous Facebook post or a deeply rude

tweet, there's a human with emotions and the ability to reason.

That human you just heard at the beginning is my guest today.

I'm going to get to him in a sec.

He is a great guy.

Maybe the most patient person I know.

But before that, I want to start off this show by considering the relationship between

the troller and the trolley, if you will.

We know by now that people who troll others online aren't necessarily intending real harm.

Okay, maybe sometimes they are.

But most of them are just venting and they choose their target as sort of a proxy for whatever

is bothering them in the real world.

I mean, choose your fight, gun control, religion, sexual harassment, whatever.

What's rare though is when the target of the trolls sees that moment as an opportunity

for connection, human connection.

...