If you’ve ever been in the midst of a situation that left you wondering if you were the a**hole, or if you were in the right, we’ve got an online destination where you can find out.
REDDIT’S online subreddit AITA is full of such situations, where you can vote, respond, and even post your own.
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What does AITA mean?
AITA stands for “Am I the a**hole?” and is a subreddit on the website Reddit.
While it has also become an acronym on other social media sites, AITA has been a Reddit staple since the community was first formed on June 8, 2013, and has amassed 3.7million members since.
If you’re not familiar with Reddit, a subreddit is kind of like a themed chat room, where you can sort threads (think: specific conversations), by popularity, relevance, timeliness, and other filters.
Essentially, the AITA community is a place where users can go to post their grievances amongst strangers and find out whether they are the situation’s protagonist, antagonist, or if neither party (or both!) is to blame.
The community’s “about” section reads that it is: “A catharsis for the frustrated moral philosopher in all of us, and a place to finally find out if you were wrong in an argument that’s been bothering you.”
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What kinds of posts can go on AITA?
Basically, anything that’s non-violent in nature, and that you can describe from both sides.
In a piece on the subreddit for WIRED, the writer said: “Queries range from the gloriously petty (AITA for ordering jalapenos on my pizza intentionally to stop my wife eating it?) to the seriously heavy (AITA for firing an employee after his parents died?).”
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There are, however, a few rules to keep in mind.
The fastest way to get banned from the subreddit forever is by writing about violence.
Other no-no topics include: asking for advice (there are lots of forums for that), posts asking about relationships (like “AITA for ghosting so-and-so?”), and anything related to COVID.
What other abbreviations should I know on AITA?
If you plan on posting to AITA, you might want to know these abbreviations as well:
- WIBTA: Would I be the a**hole; is another common way to title a thread on Reddit, and makes your situation more hypothetical
- NTA: Not the a**hole; meaning that a commenter has found you not guilty of being the perputator in the specific thread that you started
- YTA: You’re the a**hole; meaning that a commenter has found you to be wrong in the situation
- NAH: No a**holes here; meaning that based on your story, a commenter has decided that neither side was in the wrong
- ESH: Everyone sucks here; meaning that the commenter found all sides to be in the wrong
- INFO: More information is needed; the commenter doesn’t think there’s enough information to rule for or against anyone unless the original poster updates the post with more information
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