Why are members of the Newgrounds forums so inexplicably cruel to each other, and why is it that they will stop at nothing to see other users disparaged?
The answer is complex: As the largely-accurate stereotype of the Newgrounds demographic persists -- a masculine, somewhat detached, slightly insular mid-late teenager, who is often a frequent user of drugs and often only semi-conscious in his decisionmaking abilities -- the ability of these users to form themselves into a collective is based on a hierarchy of forum experience, which is taken as the singular ideal to be lived-up to. Because of his detachment with reality, the user invests more time and effort to stoke his online persona, until he reaches a tipping point, when he has invested more in this virtual society than he has in actual society. When that point occurs, all possible threats to his continued usership and superiority are taken in the most serious light; all new users are spat-upon to discourage their continued membership; all stupid questions are pounced-upon to exploit the temporary weaknesses of others.
The heavy investment in personal glory is partially a result of the "level system" in which users compete to be the highest-leveled, and the very visible post count, which users seek to pad, as it increases their legitimacy and brings them closer to the tipping point already discussed. Any opening, any ammunition provided to users is immediately fleshed out and exploited due to the existence of that competitive hierarchy, and even the humblest of users must be utterly annihilated in order to prove one's worth to other similarly-ruthless regulars of the forum. The aforementioned frequent abuse of drugs may also contribute to the ruthlessness as it may cause a dearth of active dopamine receptors in the brain, and may significantly reduce the ability of regulars to experience pleasure, thus solidifying their hatred as a permanent fixture of their souls.
