Yesterday one of the greatest voices of our time and a musical influence to many artists passed away. Twitter was immediately flooded with the news of Whitney Houston‘s passing and the media clamored to post the details. It’s what we expect and the media accommodates by trying to find the most salacious headlines. If it bleeds…it leads. We live in a society that is titillated by the misery of others.
The cause of her death is still unknown, but reading through some of the comments on CNN and other media sites, I am again absolutely astounded at the lack of self control and the utter depravity of some who feel that because their identity is unknown, it is acceptable to post some of the most disparaging and downright disgusting comments that have been posted. Has the internet given permission for people to behave like this? Surely they do not say these things in front of their family and friends? What about Whitney’s daughter who may see the comments?
The commentary is bothersome because (1) it is disrespectful and very hurtful to those who loved Whitney, and (2) when people continue to behave in this manner, it becomes second nature. The tools that we have traditionally relied on to communicate become obsolete. Tools such as acknowledging and comprehending social cues from others, or knowing that certain social behaviors are just unacceptable. These social tools seem not to exist on the internet and the communicator is essentially at their liberty to behave in the most vile manner possible, and much of the time without repercussion. I cannot help but wonder how this medium of communication affects the psychological state of mind long-term.
This behavior is not reserved just for celebrities. All you have to do is take a peek at some of the Twitter activity recently coming from some of the true crime groupies. There are no social boundaries and the internet is like the Wild West…there are no sheriffs there. No one wants to enforce cyberstalking laws because of the jurisdictional issues and law enforcement thinks that you should just turn off your computer and it will go away. Individuals can say anything they want and have no punishment for doing so. They can post outright lies just because they feel threatened or jealous of another. Would they do this face to face? Doubtful. Their social boundaries are skewed, and in their minds they are entitled to “freedom of speech” even if it means being viewed as a total dirtbag. They just don’t get it, and if you point out their obvious lack of social decorum and bad behavior, you are then accused of being a bully.
Freedom of speech is one thing, but being a social derelict is another.
The Right do a thing and do a Right thing are not the same. Sadly such delineations are lost thanks in large part to schools that no longer value critical thought but regurgitation of THIER facts and a liberal media that tells us to “judge” the actions or words of another is prejudice, ignorant and closed minded. Judgement is the mark of the informed while blind adherence to sentiment is the mark of the blissfully ignorant and the truly closed minded.
Kids are not socializing like we used to. They text and use the internet to communicate and I have to wonder if this doesn’t inhibit them from being able to comprehend social cues. The adults…there’s no excuse other than poor social skills, and that is something that we can all change with a few behavioral modifications.
Here is an example of a tweet on twitter that one of the warriors posted:
Atom Felony @1827346382 Reply Retweet Favorite · Open
@julioxml5g @aprilmaariee @titlecharacter @reexvidal @littlewingedpig Go fuck yourself you piece of shit cunt spammer.
Isn’t this a nice post to send to someone just because you do not like that person’s comment or view on something?
I’ve only been able to look at the Cayleewarriors on two occasions, as it is so heartbreaking to see that sweet two year old’s name and memory vandalized so profoundly. I do understand why teens and younger children born into an electronic age, and missing those social cues because of lax or ignorant parents do some awful things, but these women are all old enough to know better. They are adults, and they don’t realize every time they post their bile they desecrate that poor little dead girl? They feed off each other, giving each other the social permission to act this way. What was meant to honor only defiles.