Flame wars online - a new form of abuse?

We've all heard of them.

Many of us have seen them.

Some of us have gotten suckered in to participating in them...

I hope none of us have really started any.

I'm talking about flame wars - the heated exchanges online that can devolve into insult-fests, personal slam-sessions and can even lead to suicide, as in the cases of two different students who took their internet chatting and newsgroup post replies to the point of their deaths.

IS flame-warring a new form of abuse? Are there ways of dealing with flame wars so that they do not escalate? And what of the individuals who like to start, drive and escalate flame ward, themselves - the so-called "trolls," who troll for the hot-blooded response and who seem to live for the flash-point, knee-jerk counter-strike online? How does one deal with them?

Gentlebeings - I open the floor for discussion. As I said, when challenged to an on-the-air debate by one troll - "Bring it on!" ;)