Social Media is both a curse and a gift. I refuse to argue on Facebook or on any other social media platform. If I disagree with someone’s opinion on any topic, especially if it’s political, I don’t comment. If I agree, I give it a LIKE and may comment, but once the aggressive, nasty commenters emerge, and they do, I’m out of there. I won’t and don’t respond. It isn’t worth the time and effort. I don’t want to make the world worse than it already is.
Polite conversation, even when you disagree, is possible, at least it used to be, but tolerance seems to be in short supply these days. Many people think the ability to be anonymous in the world of social media gives them a free ticket to insult, condemn, criticize, and spit out nasty name calling without consequence. But there are consequences, maybe not easily apparent, but with so many people feeling free to go down a nasty road they are making the world a less hospitable place than it already is. Maybe they don’t care, but I do, and I sure others care too. Life is too short. I rather use my time doing more constructive and creative endeavors than arguing over every little thing.
What I like about Facebook and other social media is how I have connected with many new online friends and reconnected with older friends and relatives. I think that’s important. It’s important to connect with people, especially in this time of the COVID virus where many of us, including me, can feel isolated. Over the past few weeks, I have connected with a couple of cousins I have not spoken to in years, first through Facebook and soon after with telephone conversations. We live far apart and our lives have taken different paths, but we’re still the same and we are still connected. It pays to be nice in many ways.
John Greco Author/Photographer 