Just last night, alone (in the course of ONE single evening, mind you), I encountered the following “acts of anything but kindness” –
- A guy on Twitter making jokes about domestic abuse – like it’s a laughing matter.
- Girls calling other girls fat.
- People making ugly (and I mean UGLY) comments about a celebrity… right on her Instagram, ensuring that she sees it.
- Someone making fun of a newscaster with a speech impediment.
- Countless people arguing back and forth over things that don’t amount to half a hill of beans – and lacing their arguments with endless insults and profanity.
Fortunately all of this ugliness was witnessed online and not in my own home.
Social media is, in many ways, a wonderful thing. However, in many ways it’s also one of the worst things that ever happened. People seem to think it’s their own personal platform to spread anger, meanness, and ugliness. After all, they’re able to do so without anyone looking them in the eye.
You want to talk about an athlete being “too short with no talent” – do it online.
You want to bash a particular celebrity – calling her fat, untalented, ugly, and “the worst mother in the world” – do it through social media and… by all means… mention her in a way she’s sure to see it. After all, hurting someone is just so much fun, right?
Knocking them down makes you a bigger person, doesn’t it?
Oooh, and what if someone in their family sees your hate-filled words and you’re able to hurt them as well?! Bonus points?
Okay. I’m getting preachy. I’m fully aware that one animal-loving, chocoholic, baseball-obsessed blogger in Kentucky isn’t going to be able to change things. Some days I don’t have the power to open a jar of pickles, I certainly don’t have the power to make the world a kinder place.
BUT if enough people set their mind to at least make a difference in their own little corner of the world…. Then they might be able to inspire other people to also try to make a difference… and so on and so on..
Who knows? Maybe one day people will approach their daily lives – as well as Social Media – with the mindset of reaching out and touching others with kindness rather than cruelty. Maybe they’ll think, “Who might need a lift right now?” instead of “Who can I take down a few notches?”
I don’t know if such a world is possible, this side of Heaven, but it sure is cool to think about.
You can never be too kind!
~ Joi
