Hobby Internet Troll: Uwe Ostertag provokes quarrels in the net

• 2014

1. He is also called the troll
2. Uwe Ostertag is not alone
3. In the beginning, the troll was still harmless

He is also called the troll

Early retiree Uwe Ostertag is in his spare time what Internet specialists call a troll. He intentionally causes trouble on the net and provokes quarrels where he can.

Hard to believe, but true: For Uwe Ostertag, there is no better job than to provoke other people on the net. On one day, the 55-year-old retiree writes more than 200 comments in order to express his opinion on various Internet sites.

In an interview with the Frankfurter Allgemeine, Uwe Ostertag says quite openly: "Provoke, that's like an orgasm." If he posts something and then someone gets excited about it, then this is the "ejaculate" for Easter day. The early retiree spends more than twelve hours a day in front of his PC - his apparently most valuable possession. When his 18-year-old son leaves the house to go to school, Uwe Ostertag begins his 'work' routine as an internet provocateur. He has not done any actual work since 1999. Due to a broken cross and an artificial hip Uwe Ostertag is early retiree.

Uwe Ostertag is not alone

The 55-year-old is by no means an isolated phenomenon. Ostertag has built up a solid catching maelstrom in recent years, and through its offensive and aggressive posts, met many other people, such as themselves. They are also called trolls.

Trolls are people who intentionally sabotage posts on the web or interfere with conversations. They want to attract attention and create tension. Nothing is better for them than an escalation. That's what they think is amusing.

In the beginning, the troll was still harmless

At Ostertag, everything started quite differently. He told the FAZ that his first comments on forums were always very nice and nice. But when nobody paid attention to this, he struck a different tone. Meanwhile, Easter Day is no longer ignored. He has his own homepage, where he gives his commentary on a variety of topics. On Twitter, the troll is followed by over 2, 500 people. Of course, Facebook is also one of the platforms on which Ostertag likes to move.

But the hobby as a troll also has its downsides. Deleted comments and warnings are part of the everyday life of a passionate provocateur. Once even the police were at Ostertag and confiscated his computer. With a discriminating post on disabled people, he had clearly exaggerated it. With regard to his own physical disability, however, Ostertag escaped punishment.

For Ostertag the intervention of the police has changed nothing. He spends his days on the couch, his laptop always close by on his lap. The next comment of the troll leaves only a few minutes in coming. Every day he chases after his greatest wish: a full-blown shitstorm.