Blogger Glenn Reynolds, creator of “Instapundit“, used to have a tag-line: “If you’ve got a modem, I’ve got an opinion.” He doesn’t use it any more. I’m not sure why. Perhaps because he realized that’s not really true. While Reynolds does cover a wide range of interests in his blog, he generally tends to limit himself to things that are, well, important.
My wife has been following the adventures of Esther the Wonder Pig, a rescue pig in Canada whose owners recently bought a small farm with the intent of opening an animal sanctuary. Facebook fans are presented with several daily photo and video updates from Esther. In some pictures you can see parts of their new house, which is understandably outdated. But the number of commentors who cannot resist complaining about the wallpaper or the carpets is truly surprising. They look past the adorable pig (and that’s not easy to do) and notice things to nitpick in the background. If they’re really fans of Esther they’re missing the point entirely.
Then of course there’s the recent revelation by an Australian television host that he has worn the same suit on air for the past year–and no one noticed. He did so in order to call attention to the fact that his female co-host regularly gets all sorts of nasty criticisms of her hair, make-up, and clothes.
It’s not exactly news that people have opinions about things that really are none of their business. What is perhaps new, at least over the last decade or so, is that people have come to believe that just because they have an opinion they should not only get that opinion out onto the Internet, but that they should do so directly to the target. It’s as if people feel an obligation to be critical.
Granted, there are quite a few (read “far too many”) people out there who have garnered some measure of fame/notoriety for being viciously critical of others, sometimes disguised as humor. It seems one of the quickest way to grab your fifteen minutes of fame is to find a particularly clever or shocking way of insulting another person.
But the result seems to be an increasingly negative world. We have women posting videos about all the times they were verbally assaulted (in at least some cases through compliments) in a ten-hour period, while people who say nasty things about people are held up as heroes. Something seems to be flipping backward in society, and I can’t imagine it will lead to sunshine and puppies for anyone. We will reap what we sow, and we’d better all start finding recipes for thistles and crabgrass.
It’s no wonder that graffiti is so rampant in many parts of the world. People just can’t resist the urge to make their mark on something someone else did, no matter how repulsive that mark may be. People evidently get some thrill from seeing their negativity plastered on someone else’s blog or website comments. It’s really rather childish. It’s like standing on the street corner belching for attention.
I’m not saying we should never disagree with one another online, or that we should never discuss anything negative. But if what we have to say is entirely off-topic and benefits no one, why not just keep it to ourselves. Anyone who has been following Esther and her owners’ page have to know that they’re extremely busy getting the farm set up, under control, and ready for winter. It shouldn’t be hard to guess that, having just bought a farm and moved into a new house, that they probably aren’t flush with cash right now. Chances are, even if they had the time and money, replacing the carpet and wallpaper is not high on their list of priorities. The continual criticism, however amusing for the critic, benefits no one. If they really want to make a difference in the world, why not start up a “Save Esther From That Terrible Wallpaper” fundraiser and help out rather than just gripe about it?
It’s always been easier to destroy than to build, but now, thanks to the Internet, we can destroy anyone, anywhere, within seconds, with very little effort on our part.
If that’s progress, consider me retro.