[javajosh]

I agree. And yet many people in positions of power look at twitter as a kind of real-time polling tool. They look at twitter reactions and think they know what people in general are feeling and doing. Then they make real decisions based on this false belief. And they do this because they are starved for information of this kind, and even though it's terrible, twitter is the only signal they have.

This desire to shape public discourse, and the decisions of the powerful, are the real stakes that drive twitter gladiators. You're right though, it's not discourse - it's "zealous advocacy" as interpreted by a peurile and distracted public.