two-faced: a comparative analysis of the language styles and psychological cues present in the writings of 77truthseeker and jesus_is_god810

i. case history

on monday, march 28, 2005, a weblog located at url http://www.livejournal.com/~77truthseeker was created by an anonymous male user with email address truthseeker7770@webtv.net [hereinafter referred to as "truthseeker"]. truthseeker gained notoriety by posting comments on random weblogs, in the name of christian evangelization. he claimed to be from the assemblies of god [aog], the primary church of the pentecostal movement. on tuesday, april 26, 2005, the weblog was brought to the researcher's attention by one yaps estagle. by saturday, april 30, 2005, after 19 comments as 3finger_salute and eight comments as godjesus_amen, truthseeker had stopped responding to the arguments and queries posed by the researcher and others of similarly sanguine temperaments.

on saturday, may 7, 2005, a comment was posted under the entry "excuses and facts 'bible' page", dated thursday, april 28, 2005 [this particular entry produced the most heated discussion, accumulating 138 comments as of today, tuesday, may 10, 2005]. said comment was by an anonymous user of unknown gender with no displayed email address, but with a weblog at url http://www.livejournal.com/~jesus_is_god810 [hereinafter referred to as "jesus_is_god"]. the comment was of an affirmative vein, leading the researcher to question the veracity of this new user as a separate entity from truthseeker.

ii. hypotheses

this paper poses four unique scenarios defining the relationship between truthseeker and jesus_is_god: the first, and most probable, scenario is that the two are one and the same, operating two weblog accounts; the second is that while jesus_is_god is not truthseeker, the two are not strangers to each other; the third is that the journal was created with the sole intent to mock truthseeker through sarcasm; and the fourth, least likely, scenario is that, as insisted upon by both parties, the two have had no previous acquaintance.

the researcher believes that the first scenario presented is most reflective of the actual truth. this paper, therefore, aims to present neutral truths inferred by the researcher from literary and psychological analyses of both personas' weblogs, in order to find evidence supporting said theory. the researcher hopes that the data gathered will be enough to suggest a final understanding of this interesting duality.

iii. discussion of the latter three hypotheses

in order to fully concentrate on the proofs for the primary hypothesis, the researcher must first demonstrate the relative improbabilities of other possible scenarios:

a. truthseeker and jesus_is_god are not strangers to each other

the immediate suspect for a weblog of such a similar nature is truthseeker's "wonderful godly filipina wife", mentioned in the entry "excuses and facts 'bible' page". the researcher does not believe this is so, based on the the assumption that truthseeker is caucasian [inferred from word choice, particular grammar problems, and minimal knowledge of the filipino language]. and if truthseeker, then, is caucasian, it is unlikely that the aforementioned wife will possess enough technological knowledge to set up and operate a weblog. history typifies the breed of 'exotic' woman favored by caucasians as either being a maria clara or the equivalent of a blonde cheerleader.

with the wife scenario ruled out, it is unlikely that another person exists with whom truthseeker would have proximity to the degree necessary to influence thought and style. a child would have neither the biblical familiarity nor a desire for independence; if jesus_is_god was truthseeker's progeny, the entries would focus on defending his or her father, rather than embarking on his or her own mission of evangelization.

b. the journal is a mock-up

only one entry is present on jesus_is_god's weblog, which is a reasonable effort for a feint. however, his lengthy and surprisingly coherent responses to his readers' comments are not. as well, if the aforementioned entry and comments are viewed in a fraudulent light [which in itself is a difficult task], the sarcasm is too subtle to be effective. in totality, jesus_is_god puts too much into the weblog for it to be anything but sincere.

c. truthseeker and jesus_is_god really are two different people

the only evidence supporting this theory is the following statement by jesus_is_god: I am another person; 77truthseeker and I are different people and im so glad while im searching a username here I've found a christian just like me. statistics and observation dictate otherwise.

iv. linguistics

readers of a simpler nature may find it difficult to think of truthseeker and jesus_is_god as one and the same, due to the difference in their narrative approach. truthseeker is of a more assertive, domineering nature, to the point of threatening readers with "fire and brimestone" [sic]. jesus_is_god, one the other hand, presents entries appealing to the readers' aesthetics, and elaborates on his ideas in a calmer, more logical, manner. and yet, there are linguistic mannerisms indigenous to both writers' posts, which are too consistent to be coincidental:

a. capitalization of 'important' words

weblog entries written by both users feature words of religious significance fully capitalized, i.e.: god, jesus, hell, amen, salvation, repent, and word. other words or statements may be enclosed in quotation marks, possibly for clarification or emphasis, i.e.: For whosoever shall call upon the name of the LORD"JESUS" shall be saved"from HELL" [truthseeker], He cannot stay where there is "SIN" [jesus_is_god].

b. similar syntax of grammatical errors

most grammatical errors are due to incorrect verb tense, i.e.: You see I am concern for the lost people [truthseeker], A friend who never leave you [jesus_is_god].

c. terms of endearment

truthseeker refers to jesus_is_god as "my sweet friend", and jesus_is_god refers to truthseeker as "my good friend". the researcher felt that he should mention such.

v. profiling

this actually the facet which presents the more convincing arguments. the researcher here attempts to reconstruct the creation of jesus_is_god's weblog, based on the assumption that he is indeed truthseeker. if a logical and probable chain of events can be formed, this can then be considered as proof of the hypothesis' veracity.

a. dates

from saturday, april 30, 2005 to wednesday, may 3, 2005, truthseeker neither updated his weblog nor replied to the many comments his entries attracted. jesus_is_god's weblog was created at 8pm on april 30, 2005 and the first entry was posted sunday, may 1, 2005. this first entry reveals that jesus_is_god is already aware of truthseeker's online presence. comments started appearing on post on wednesday, may 4, 2005. on saturday, may 7, 2005, jesus_is_god first made contact with truthseeker at 2am, and truthseeker responded twice between 11am and 11:15am, once in his own journal and once in jesus_is_god's. on monday, may 9, 2005, truthseeker posted a new entry detailing "a change in direction for this journal".

b. logistics

it is interesting to note that the weblog belonging to jesus_is_god is rather sparse, compared to truthseeker's. focusing on the user information, jesus_is_god does not even have an email address. the researcher feels that he goes to great lengths to maintain his anonymity.

birthdates provide another interesting insight. truthseeker has his birthday listed as july 7, 1970, or 07-07-70. this is an obvious reference to god's number, seven, which also appears in truthseeker's username, 77truthseeker, and in his email address truthseeker7770@webtv.net. jesus_is_god, on the other hand has his birthdate listed as august 10, 1980, or 08-10-80. the researcher believes that this number is a thinly-veiled follow-up to truthseeker's personal information. since the first birthdate is obviously contrived, it is reasonable to believe that the second is, as well. thus we have 888 to follow 777. the middle digit was increased to a 10 to diminish suspicion, then appended to jesus_is_god's username, jesus_is_god810, in the same vein as truthseeker.

the two accounts also have the websites yourgoingtohell.com and answersingenesis.com or answeringenesis.com [both dead links] as common interests.

and finally, the username jesus_is_god chose reflects a specific motivation, which is forceful compared to the manner in which his entries play themselves out. this may stem from an account created in haste, or under emotional stress, but with entries created at leisure, or at a time of emotional calm.

vi. conclusion

having systematically gone through commonalities and disparities, the researcher takes as his final conclusion that truthseeker and jesus_is_god are one person with two weblog accounts. the idea that two separate, independent weblogs with the same writing style and severe verbal tics exist as such defy probability. the fact that truthseeker had nobody to back him up may have inspired him to fabricate an ally, who would not only serve as a second, positive, opinion, but by handling a different set of disgruntled readers, the damage is halved, and the offense is doubled. case closed.

amen.

sige ingat.ü 
posted by stani at 8:36 AM