c.
2017 Rod Ice
All
rights reserved
(6-17)
“Goodbye,
social media.”
I
often daydream about erasing my Internet presence. In particular,
when reading posts on Facebook. The thought that some have never used
such platforms for any sort of personal expression makes me glow with
awe. Most, I reckon, do so because of a Luddite distaste for
advancing technology. Yet there is appeal in the thought that easy
access to world communication has only revealed the thin veneer of
civility that covers a greater human bent toward de-evolution. What
DEVO called “The important sound of things falling apart.”
Silly
memes, kitties, life hacks, family recipes and funny videos get a
pass. They are the fodder that one would expect to exist in a realm
where common folk suddenly possess the kind of publishing tools that
would have humbled Herr Gutenberg.
More
distressing are posts of a sort intended to be serious, while sucking
out oxygen and daylight from human existence. The kind that have me
scrolling away in search of any kind of useful prose. For some
evidence that the long passage into night has not yet visited our
civilization. Such entries evoke a feeling that radio legend Phil
Hendrie would describe as “Drowning in a sea of dumb.”
All
hail the ‘Keyboard Warriors!’
What
follows here are examples of this tiresome, yet pervasive habit.
Reasons that many of us, in the future, might find cause to exit the
world of ‘connectivity’ for a return to traditional methods of
communication like actually talking to each other:
Trump
The
unexpected ascension of Donald J. Trump to our nation’s Oval Office
literally exploded every social media avenue known to mankind.
Twitter may be an obvious beneficiary, but all the sites have surged
with outrage or affection. Opinions about the ‘Cheeto in Chief’
are even more common than memes featuring Minions or Betty White.
Destroyer or savior? Nearly everyone, everywhere has a point of view
seeking expression. It is ironic that the ‘Fake News’
organizations he decries actually helped elevate him to the
presidency, by constantly offering free air time of a sort no one
else could garner.
Chevrolet/GM
Apparently
people who love products wearing the ‘bowtie’ logo have lots of
time to write posts on the Internet. (Competitors must be too busy
selling more vehicles.) Their comments can be found nearly
everywhere, despite the fact that only a government bailout with
billions of taxpayer dollars kept the company from disappearing
altogether. Each is a missive designed to convince readers that
buying a vehicle of any sort other than their own will encourage
crime, disease, national decline, communism, and sin, while
delivering America to the ugly despair of watching soccer and tennis,
with refreshment from fruity beverages.
Sports
Fans
of franchises like the New England Patriots or the Pittsburgh
Steelers are often lacking in genuine knowledge about the history and
traditions of of their sport. But they have been gifted with
brilliance when tapping away at the keyboard. Many who could not find
Pennsylvania on a map of the United States can still spiel out the
mantra of ‘Six Super Bowl Rings’ with gusto. Meanwhile, Tom Brady
has become a ‘GOAT’ of both kinds in cyberspace. ‘Greatest of
all time’ and the butt of jokes about ‘Deflategate.’ No
shortage of opinions exists over any NFL, NBA, MLB or NHL team. While
Lacrosse or Cricket may fail to inspire the soldiers of social media
into action, our major sports leagues dependably arouse the masses
to posting with abandon. And
often, without a great deal of forethought.
Confederate
Flag
For
many Americans, real knowledge about the ‘Civil War’ has long
ceased to exist. A pity because the period literally redefined and
shaped the nation as no other event in our post-revolutionary
history. Most could not accurately identify the origin of what is
commonly known as the ‘Confederate Flag.’ Indeed, it seems likely
that a large number of Americans are familiar with the symbol only
because of old episodes of ‘The Dukes of Hazard.’ So on social
media sites, the ‘stars & bars’ are ever present, in posts
about country music, religion, pickup trucks, history and the ethos
of rural communities. Racism,
fear of urban culture and hatred involve the flag for other reasons.
Some
seek to erase the symbol,
while others wave it as a talisman of their faith. That this emblem
of defeated secessionists endures at all is an oddity of our modern
world. It is a common sight in states that fought to tear it down,
along with the enemy it represented. But it will not go away. Nor
will the questions
about its meaning.
Caitlyn
Jenner/The Kardashians
“Nothing
to see here.” Literally nothing. Look away.
Religion
Perhaps
no choice
in human existence is more personal than the decision
to
have
faith, or a life free of the god concept. Certainly those who seek
knowledge of a higher power can be found in every society, around the
globe and throughout recorded history. Thinkers who prefer the march
of scientific study have also been with us since the dawn of
civilization. But on Facebook, this gentle push toward revelation of
some sort has become a lightning rod for division and disinformation.
Citizens who are sure that Satan has enslaved humanity cry out with
warnings of Armageddon. Others who have never opened a copy of the
Christian Bible,
or any holy book, suddenly post away with scholarly verbiage.
Politics has infected the debate, offering polarization of a kind not
in tune with the doctrine of a loving creator. At their keyboards,
the warriors warble away.
Pondering
these realities of the technology we have created, I often wish for
the kind of introspection that our forebears were able to enjoy. Time
to read and think. Not in soundbites or flashes of video, but with
careful pauses taken in the company of those we love and trust. Those
hammering the keyboard make much of their ability to speak, without
considering the consequence of this sacred right. Like a Twitter post
at three o’clock in the morning, their words may ignite fires that
burn brightly. But too soon, we are once again in the darkness. And
the black of our cultural night is deeper by far.
Comments
or questions about ‘Words on the Loose’ may be sent to:
icewritesforyou@gmail.com
Write
us at: P. O. Box 365 Chardon, OH 44024
Published
weekly in the Geauga Independent
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