@thorninmud When someone says “so-and-so nailed it,” it has the opposite effect on me. I hate that term (nailed it), and so I am much less likely to go look at it with an endorsement of such a simpering sort.
With applause, I tend to use that as a meter of how biased the audience is. I make my judgement of the politician’s comments, and then based on audience response, I can tell how jingoistic they are. Laughter on sitcoms leaves me similarly cold. I very rarely find things funny, so when I do laugh, I know something is really funny. Usually, when I’m in an audience, I’ll laugh half a beat before everyone else or I won’t laugh at all. This is not on purpose (how could it be?). It’s just the way my mind works.
Sometimes I am laughing alone, but not often. Usually I’m the one who starts the laughter. I pretty much follow my own opinion these days. All this practice on fluther has helped me stop worrying about whether people agree with me or not.
If people are influenced by applause, then it seems to me it won’t help them think for themselves by taking applause away. They are still going to go out and find out what others tell them to do before they slit their wrists vote for Gingrich. In the overall scheme of things, I don’t think it will matter whether applause is allowed or not.