Wednesday, February 29, 2012

No Politics and/or Religion

I hang out on Facebook.  Mainly I do this because most of my extended family hangs out there, and that's really the only way we keep in touch.  I have a lot of cousins.  Even before I was born, they were working on my second cousins, and now it's as though the entire state of Ohio is related to me. I try to keep up with as many as I can.  It's nice to get to virtually visit without having to remember to send a Christmas card.
 
I read everyone's status and look at everyone's pictures.  What I don't do is post any comment about politics or religion on anyone else's status.  If someone's status is something like "Obama sux!"  I'll ignore it.  Why?  Because that is their opinion.  I may or may not agree with their opinion, and I may find their opinions offensive, but I respect their right to have an opinion.   I don't respond to their comment in a nasty way, because I'm not a troll.   I also know that if someone has an opinion that strong, my making a comment about it isn't going to change a thing.

Not. A. Darn. Thing.

If one of my FB friends is convinced that the government is trying to take away his AK-47 so he can't use it to hunt tiny mammals, nothing I say is going to convince him otherwise, no matter how reasonable my comment might be.  In the past, when I've prefaced my comment with something along the lines of 'maybe you don't have all the facts' or 'maybe there's more to the story',  the conflagration from the flame war is hot enough to roast weinies.  I don't go on Facebook to read negative crap or to argue about negative crap, so I learned to just not even bother.

Not everyone gives me the same consideration, and it annoys the bejeebers out of me.  If I post a funny picture, I don't want a comment about how that picture is offensive to Jesus.  (Have you ever noticed that nobody ever thinks that Jesus ever laughed or told jokes?)  I don't want a comment about how this or that particular internet meme just goes to show that the liberals own the media.  When I read tripe like that, it makes me want to scream loudly while I hit the delete button.

But I don't.  I ignore it.  Most of the people I associate with on FB are pretty smart, well-read, and educated people.  Educated people tend to get the funny.  Well-read people tend to get the funny.   Smart people tend to get the funny.  Those same people are also going to understand that the person making the intolerant comment did not get the funny. It becomes a sort of in-joke among those of us who did get the funny.  Maybe that makes me a snob in some way.  Or an elitest.

But if I didn't laugh about it, I'd cry about the intolerance of people, and the hatred, and the general tendency to troll everything, even the funny stuff.  That's not funny, and I wish it would stop.  What can be solved by insulting people who disagree with you?  Maybe if such comments were automatically met with a blank stare and the sound of crickets, eventually even the most ignorant sorts would get the message.  Maybe.  It's a tricky thing with ignorance.   Sometimes the light bulb burns itself out with the intensity of the epiphany. 

Still, we should make an effort.

7 comments:

  1. My thoughts exactly. And why is it all of our relatives are on Ohio?

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    Replies
    1. The people of Ohio take the 'be fruitful and multiply' thing seriously!

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  2. This is a "funny", well written post and I absolutely agree with your feelings about FB and I will include mass emailings of pol stuff.

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  3. Get this, I'm sharing this post on Facebook. Not so I can feed the trolls, but because I know someone who stated her opinion this morning and they're coming out in full force both at her and at her opinions. Oy vey. Politics and religion. Don't like to touch either with a 10 foot pole.

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  4. I think many people get caught in the trap of assuming most people are like them. I can't tell you how many times I've been caught in that trap. Your Facebook policy is good common sense. We aren't always going to agree with everyone we know, even if they friend us on Facebook!

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  5. I'm not yet on FB, but am planning to set up soon - looks like I've got a lot to look forward to!!!

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