Today I was reading a couple of new stories on a few different websites, some of which I may not consider arbiters of true journalism, but they dispense the information culled from other sources. Generally, I don't frequent these sites, but a Google search sent me to one of them, and I got caught up there.
In the comment section.
Now, I know many of you are shaking your heads knowingly, but this was uncharted territory for me. And it was scary. I did not know that A) there were that many intensely stupid people in the world B)They have computers and know nominally how to type/spell C)They congregate together on these sites egging each other on.
One site I was on was for a local newspaper, and the comment section there is extremely important. I really believe it gives a good insight into what our neighbors are thinking, and let me just say, it doesn't bode well.
I think the anonymity of the internet lends itself to people being both brash, outre, and just generally over the top in their comments, when it is not something they would necessarily have the courage to say in a face to face conversation with hundreds or thousands of strangers.
The most striking thing to me, is how quickly religion devolves into fighting between divergent beliefs, and also within its own ranks. An excellent and very entertaining blog I read was recently subject to this on one post. There was a fairly innocuous post, wherein a reader raised a concern in the comment section. Another commenter took this as an opportunity to go on a diatribe against a few segments, of what seem to be his own religious group, while hypocritically in the same breath defending someone else. (truly, it made no sense)
Kind of like when a kid is walking down the hallway minding his own business, and someone punches him in the arm for no reason, and then the puncher yells at the another bully for tripping a kid.
I guess I just don't understand, especially when writing, where there's time before you hit submit, or type your name or anonymous, or log in, to actually take a step back. That's the beauty of the written word, there's time to edit. Of course that feeling of furiously typing and pounding at the keyboard in an "I'll tell them!" kind of way can feel rather cathartic, but once done, once the words are on the page, maybe, just maybe it needs to be reread a few times. I'm not talking about not writing well, and I'm not talking about late night posting, where sometimes the grammar is wrong. I'm talking about arguments which make no sense, or exist in what I like to call "an alternate universe" (a whole different post, for sure).
Do not engage the stupid, it just encourages them.
1 comment:
The people who used to call in to talk radio have now found another medium and this hasn't done much for the average IQ of the average poster or caller.
The posts are really worse than the calls because they can be read and reread and the stupidity becomes mre defined with the rereading.
The spelling, grammar, and misuse of words and concepts should give one insight into the education level of most of these posters. It certainly puts the lie to the defense of these blockheads that goes something like this:
Just because he's uneducated, doesn't mean he's stupid.
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