Earlier today, my best friend sent me something one of her friend's had posted on Facebook.
It was a long-winded rant about how fat people needed to work on losing 100+ pounds instead of sitting around and eating junk food all day. This "friend" of my best friend wrote about how "pissed off" it made her to see fat people not taking pride in themselves.
If that is the narrow-minded view my bestie's "friend" wants to display then so be it. If that's the stigma she wants to perpetuate, then whatever. I'm done arguing with stupid people. I'm not going to let someone's ignorance bother me.
But my bestie said something about the rant that resonated deeply in me. She said: It must be exhausting to be that angry all of the time.
She's right; it is exhausting. It can be equally exhausting for the people who have to deal with such negative attitudes.
And yet we do it every day. On the internet.
Show of hands: How many of you have fired off a comment because some other anonymous nimrod on the internet offended you first?
Don't be shy. Both of my hands are raised. Very high. Because I apparently once thought it was necessary to defend my feelings, my beliefs, my actions, my words, my life to some stranger who doesn't know me from Adam and probably doesn't care either.
It's so easy to get wrapped up in the toxicity of public forums and social media especially during election year (when there must be some sort of contest to see who can post the most obnoxious drivel).
AND.IT.IS.SO.EXHAUSTING.
How do you remedy the problem?
1. Try an internet hiatus for a few days the next time you find yourself feeling overwhelmed by negativity.
2. If you can't avoid the internet, don't allow yourself to be goaded into an argument on a public forum. Ignorant people are tough. Your comment -- no matter how well thought out it may be -- most likely won't make a difference for those who have skull density issues.(a.k.a. thick skulls)
I hope you all have a great weekend! As always, I love comments, and I love chatting. Connect with me on Twitter, by email or in the box below.
1 comment:
It is just crazy how stirred up people can get. While she is fixating on other people's "problems" I think she is avoiding some kind of problem of her own. That kind of anger can be dangerous and toxic to everyone around.
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