Yeah I agree - without any evidence I would expect it to be neutral. But I think that there is a pretty well documented tendency for people to be much more aggressive and extreme on online forums than there are in real life. (Similar to road rage) Back in the day I remember reading littlegreenfootballs and being shocked at some of the hateful rhetoric which was in the comments (of course left leaning sites have this too)
That's what I mean by short-term rage. As much as you think people accept you for who you are and what you think, when you express yourself online you realize that most people are awful and immature in a handful of ways. But past that point you develop some self-consciousness and, more often than not, come out of the social parts of the Internet a lot smarter, wittier, and more savvy than you used to be. I can't wait to see that happen on a mass scale.
