So lots of talk has been going around over the past few months regarding a new take on propaganda. I'm talking, of course, about individuals who are paid to promote a certain point of view (or, as we like to call them, "shills"). When I first heard of these money-grabbing opportunists, I was outraged, seeing as how the act of spreading an opinion that may not even be your own and getting paid for it might be one of the slimiest moves you could pull on the internet. The intentional spread of misinformation at the hands of these morons has flipped social media upside-down to a point where you can't even get on Facebook without mindless spewing of politicrap memes. Shame. But it's even worse when these shills get up-close and personal with the people of the internet, hiding in forums and youtube comment threads, waiting for a chance to discredit information that opposes their employers. You may be thinking, "well, there are MANY differing opinions on the web, y u so paranoid about people arguing on the internet?" Well don't worry, I'm not absent-minded enough to overgeneralize like that; there's a certain type of attitude that comes with a suspected shill. Now stay with me here, but the best way I can describe it, is that know-it-all, sarcastic, if-you-disagree-with-me-you're-a-dumbass demeanor; their arguments littered with 4chan lingo (using green text layout, acronyms, etc.) These individuals attempt to make themselves look intelligent, tech-savvy, and in-the-know, giving the "untrained-eye" a sense of credibility for the individual. These individuals will use sarcasm and internet "inside-jokes" to make sensitive information seem invaluable. It's hard to explain the attitude I'm speaking of without providing an example (it's really just something you have to see for yourself, because even believing someone to be a shill is speculation in itself), but I'm sure many of you will know what I'm talking about. There are people out there, just like us, who have been using the Internet for as long as us, who have shared these forums with us, and are now using their ability to fit in online to grab some quick, dirty cash. So let's talk about this. How do we deal with these degenerates? Is it even reasonable to be suspicious of other forum users?