Seduction of the Internet

[cathschaffstump]

Surfacing again for a moment just to say this...

ie: Recent racial hubbub on line.

There are really some things that you shouldn't discuss on-line if you want to hold a civil discussion. The internet is a wonderful tool for many things, and it is a handy way to both reach a wide audience and communicate with those you want to from far away.

But if you want to be rightly understood and minimize your chances for being misconstrued, it's probably not a good place to put your philosophies. If you want to communicate, sometimes there's just no good substitute for a face-to-face conversation.

Unless, you have a skin of asbestos, and you really and truly aren't impacted by what others might say about you or your issue, not taking the issue into account.

I see it this way: some of these issues are too important to me to have them bandied about with internet drama and over reaction. If you matter enough to me that I want you to understand what I think in more than a cursory fashion, I'm going to meet you, or at the very least call you.

If you throw an issue out there, and you get blasted, debated, and dissected, what did you expect, given the communication medium you chose? Next time, choose more wisely, and if your emotions matter to you, keep your opinions closer to your vest. You see, no one conceives of you as a person here, but rather a persona, try as they might.

Cynical? Nah. Cautious and personal.

Catherine

Originally published at Writer Tamago. You can comment here or there.

Comments

Interesting that you should say that.

[dakiwiboid.livejournal.com]

I was stuck at the laundromat last night, and found a short story by a vocal participant in the debates queued up among my podcasts.

In spite of the fact that I used to enjoy this writer's fiction quite a lot and that the story was probably both paid for and scheduled well before all this started, I simply could not bring myself to listen to it.

I am simply soured on her writing now and cannot bring myself to read or listen to it. This author has built some very artful fictional worlds, but for now, anyway, she's locked me out of them.

Re: Interesting that you should say that.

[cathschaffstump.livejournal.com]

The way we represent ourselves publicly has direct impact on how we are perceived. I think we all have to learn the lesson, ultimately, that the internet is not a place to air our personal views and beliefs, and we also have to be careful to not alienate anyone.

My general rule of thumb these days is to not write anything I would find it difficult to say face-to-face, and to treat people with that same kind of courtesy.

And then I just believe from experience, that there are some things you just shouldn't talk about on-line unless you are very sure of your footing with your intended audience, like you're writing to your mother or something.

Catherine