Ya need to get outta here wit all dat noise!

"All of our different ideas can come together here."

The other day I was on Facebook when I noticed a status update post from someone who is on my “Friends” list. Basically the post said that while she appreciated, nay admired, other people’s political insights she must unfortunately inform us that she will de-friend people who continue posting politically motivated or opinionated pieces because “life is hard enough.” She also reminds us that she would hate for anyone she knows to fall into this terrible category, which basically means it would be in those people’s best interest (and totally up to them *wink) to stop posting political pieces.

I believe Stalin used the same tactic to get the press and people to think more like him but instead of losing friends on Facebook he just killed people. (I know that is a huge leap in significance but the idea behind it is still the same: “Don’t talk about things I do not like or be punished!”)

Nevertheless, it is a wonderfully simple statement. A statement so simple that I bet a great majority of people might find it innocuous and even agree with the basic idea. Yet it says so much about who a person is and where they stand.

Just think about these words; “life is hard enough w/o politi-facebook.”

Yes, I would agree with her there; life is hard with or without politically motivated Facebook posts. I would take her case further and say that life is hard, in general, a good bit of the time without fail or exception. However, it is also true that we cannot avoid those difficulties and hide from them.

The post made me wonder where she, or anyone else for that matter, got the idea that not being reminded of difficulties makes them easier. I guess maybe she feels that living behind a veil, or a shroud of ignorance makes those difficulties easier to deal with. Is she a living embodiment of the cliché, “ignorance is bliss?”

I cannot speak for her so we will never know, unless she would care to come on here and discuss what she meant by that. Until that happens, let it be widely known that I am firmly against this type of runaway and hide from problems rationale that persists in this world. It is a backwards, immature way of processing and dealing with the world around us.

It makes more sense to learn all you can about the various problems and ills in the world. It makes more sense to be knowledgeable and certain in your ways so that you can address as many problems as human possible in a real world way.

Pretending that these things do not exist helps no one. Shielding yourself from reality does more harm than good. It keeps you uneducated and uninvolved. It makes you a shell of a person: someone who is all for show with no internal mechanisms and knowledge guiding your hand.

To me, it is like people who complain about the violence and crime of a certain community or city and then move away or do absolutely nothing to better the environment around them. We have all heard or know people who have done exactly this. But what does it accomplish in the long run?

Running from reality does not send it away or put it on hiatus. Running from reality delays the inevitable.

You might be thinking that I am reading into this one statement too far, but I would ask you to seriously think about what she was really saying in her “innocuous” post.

She asked people to limit their speech or dissemination of ideas because it made her uncomfortable to think about them. Then, she gave those posters an ultimatum stating that you will lose her “friendship” on Facebook if you fail to adhere to her rules on the dissemination of ideas.

It is seriously the most outlandish thing I have ever heard of in my life. It is the most preposterous, self-righteous bunch of horse poop I have ever had the misfortune of reading. It is also extremely dangerous.

Facebook and all forms of speech and socialization are about disseminating ideas that are important to you and discussing those with mature voices that care to learn and respect others. It would appear that this person cares for none of that. 

My ultimate goal in posting any article idea on Facebook, on this blog, or just discussing the issue the old fashioned way with my mouth is not to rile someone up and make them upset about how life is tough and my mom doesn't warm my milk for me anymore. It is to get people to learn about an issue or idea and then discuss it with me and others. I want to see if we feel the same way about it or if we disagree, respectfully. I do not want to get into a yelling match with a bunch of ignorant zealots.

I also do not want to associate with someone who is unable to discuss important and, sometimes, dangerous or decisive topics in a mature and respectful way. I do not want to associate with people who are so closed minded they cannot even look at what other people believe is important with a critical and discerning eye.

"We worked it all out through open and reasonable discussion."

One of the first and most important aspects of friendship for me is being able to respectfully discuss, disagree, and analyze issues and ideas from all points of view. I want to learn from my friends and be a teacher to them as well. I want to broaden the horizons of the people I care about and make them think and learn and talk about different ideas and philosophies in totally different ways.

Discussing and carrying on about the various aspects of our lives, good or bad, is the only way that we truly come to understand one another. It is only the first step to ridding ourselves of the ills and negatives in society and the first step towards true and real human connection.