I don’t think it’s this….
Nothing like witnessing firsthand the devolution of civil discourse to give a glimpse into the minds of people.
There was no pretense at exchange of ideas or curiosity about why someone might hold a differing opinion. When not being overtly rude and dismissive, they used derisive names for others who are suffering from mental health issues without remorse or concern.
Stunning.
These people graduated from my high school after I did and until I witnessed this online I thought the commonality of our experience (and knowing the teachers) that there would be a modicum of courtesy maintained.
Not even close.
In school we had debates, disagreements, arguments but were not allowed to wallow in the cesspool of simplistic hateful words. Effective communication is a skill, and one these people have apparently chosen not to hone or even learn.
I was further surprised when I read their profiles; one described himself as a “born-again Christian” and the other said he was a “child of Jesus”.
Do these people attend a church where this behavior is condoned? Is this how they talk in their families? To those less fortunate than themselves? The waitstaff in a restaurant?
Ugh.
An abhorrent way to be in the world. I want no part of those churches that espouse this whilst hiding behind the name of Jesus and will have none of the poison they are spewing in my life.
“We’ve got a whole new class of opiates
To blunt the stench of discontent
In the corporation nation-states
Where the loudest live to trample on the least” — Don Henley
