An open letter:
Those who know me well know that I'm
one of the least confrontational people in the world. If a waiter
gets my order wrong, I'm the type of person who will eat whatever is
served and still leave a generous tip. That being said, if I get
pushed hard enough, I will speak out.
Facebook is a great service. I love
being able to keep in touch with friends and family who are living
far away from us. It's great to see how they are doing and share in
their lives. However, you are allowed to post pretty much anything
you want on there, and it shows up on other people's news feeds. The
freedom of speech that we are allowed in this country is a great
benefit, but we end up hearing everyone's opinion. This includes a
lot of hateful speech. My pastor's wife growing up used to say,
“garbage in, garbage out.” She wouldn't watch certain movies or
TV shows because once seen or heard, those ideas can affect your
behavior and thoughts.
With this election season, the
political banter that has been showing up on my news feed has really
started to affect me. I can drown out the cruel things that are said
in the media, but when it is repeated by my own loved ones, it sticks
in my brain. Whether people are pro-Obama or -Romney, their
emotional comments about the opponent are often full of bile. People
stating that if you are voting for the Republican candidate, you can
defriend them. Calling the President of the United States “Obummer”.
Where has the mutual respect gone? Since when is it appropriate to
put down anyone who thinks differently? I am more than happy to
discuss facts, political ideas, or challenges facing this country,
but not in a disrespectful manner. There is no reason to belittle
another person for their beliefs.
Will the world end if your candidate
loses? Probably not. There are many safeguards in place to ensure
that no one person can control the direction of this country. No
matter who wins we won't end up in a state where only the wealthy
elite have rights or where people are fornicating in the streets.
I believe that people are better than
they sometimes act on Facebook. People are complicated, wonderful
creatures. I am not about to end a relationship because someone
disagrees with me on abortion or gay rights. However, I refuse to
sit idly by and say it is ok to be disrespectful of other people. I
will therefore be unsubscribing from posts of those people on my news
feed who are saying cruel things about others in their posts. This
is the type of garbage that I will no longer allow into my life, as I
don't want it to come back out in my interactions with my family and
friends.
