Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Clips from a Facebook Cat Fight

Monday made me sad, but was pretty damn entertaining.  Is that possible? 

Let me see if I can explain. 

As a rule, I try to stay away from ANYTHING CLOSE TO POLITICAL on Facebook.  I think the most ‘out there’ thing that I’ve ever done is to stupidly post a clip from The Daily Show – which elicited comments from both sides of the ideological spectrum, condemning each other for the other's egregious misunderstanding of healthcare reform.  By the end of the day, I felt battered and bruised…and pissed off….and I wasn’t even involved in the discussion!  I really just thought Jon Stewart was funny.


It is this type of thing that has nudged me into a self-imposed Facebook ban.

I have been skipping along under the false impression that Facebook was supposed to be, I don’t know, fun?

Monday, I couldn’t resist.   I knew the healthcare bill was going to cause apoplectic fits.  I quietly logged in and assessed the war zone.

Following is a small sampling off of my friend’s FB page…

(Actual quotes edited for length and coherence…I seriously couldn’t make this shit up if I tried.)

Mary’s (FB Page Owner) Post: And the health care reform bill passes!!! (Sunday, 7:52 pm)

Bill:  “That is very bad....might as well plan your funeral...there will be a waiting list for treatment...most will die before treated...this is so bad :(“
Translation: YOU ARE GOING TO DIE (with a super sad frowny face).

Sally:  “I just pray that you or family has nothing seriously wrong.  Good luck getting the treatment that you properly need and quickly get it administered. Remember how happy you are today...because you and your daughter and daughter's children will be paying for this for years to come.”
Translation: YOU ARE GOING TO DIE, but I would like to express insincere concern for you and your family.

(Omitted - several Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire posts)

Bill: “What's next? Maybe take our guns away…that way the government can totally run us and we won't be able to make a stand. I guarantee that's coming...its a constitutional right, but the current administration doesn't care.  Its their way and no other way...I'll be waiting to say ‘I told ya so’"
Translation: YOU ARE GOING TO DIE BECAUSE OF HEALTHCARE REFORM AND IF YOU DON’T DIE FROM HEALTHCARE REFORM YOU WILL DIE BECAUSE THE GOVERNMENT WILL HUNT YOU DOWN AND TAKE YOUR GUN AWAY AND THEN SHOOT YOU.

Mary’s next post: Well Rush...can I send you any boxes?? (Monday, 3:10 am)

(Oh, no…sweetie…didn’t you learn from the last round?)

(This conversation starts with several anti-Rush sentiments, dissolves into the next logical chain of thought - WMDs and WHO STARTED ALL THE WAR-TYPE STUFF and ends with….)

Elly: “All lies! All lies! All lies!”

(Ok…catchy.  We’ll run with it.)

Mary’s third post: I am once again AMAZED at the venomous hateful comments directed towards our PRESIDENT! Not being in agreement with his choices is one thing and I can respect that, but there are so many disrespectful things being said that it's just ridiculous! The folks that refuse to call him by his TITLE (President) ...wow. (Monday, 5:06 am)

(Please stop.  Darlin’, I love ya, but omg.)

Terry:  “He is black, educated and the President.”

(uh oh)

Sally: “I can say the same thing for you and all of your friends about Bush. And quit being so racist Terry.  If anything, you voted for him because he is black...not because of issues!”

(Oh, no she di’int)

Elly: “All lies! All lies! All lies!”

(Not sure what Elly stands for, but I’m starting to like her.)

Mary:  “I said his being Black had NOTHING to do with why I voted for him. Yes, that was a plus, however my decision was based on my thoughts and feelings. I was not raised to have color issues, thank God. You're taking this to a whole other level with me. It does NOT have to be this way! I feel let down. TRY to have a nice day.”

Sally: “I don't like the man, his beliefs or what he stands for...PERIOD! Nothing to do with his color!”

Elly: “And I didn't like Bush because of his beliefs or what he stood for. Nothing to do with his color!”

Mary:  “I believe in etiquette...it's MY FB page, I can say what I want. I don't even have a problem with folks who disagree with my opinion. However, I DON'T agree with going to another person's page and causing drama because you don't agree with what they said. Again, healthy civil debate is fine, but otherwise, spew it elsewhere...But that's just my opinion.”

************

And THIS I believe is the crux of the issue.

When did it become ok to conduct comment drive-bys on other people’s FB pages?

I don’t give a rat’s ass what side of the issue you come down on.  I’m still gonna like you.  But PLEASE don’t feel you need to comment on my ideological stupidity EVERY time I post something.  If you want to post on your page in big sparkle letters that you hate the President, that’s between you and the Secret Service.  I don’t give a shit.

But if I write in big sparkle letters on my page that I like macaroni and cheese, don’t post 101 reasons on MY page why I’m a dumbfuck for liking macaroni and cheese.

I emailed Mary yesterday to check on her mental state.  Good news: she is doing just fine, thank you very much.  Bad news: the 20-year friendship between Mary and Sally is OVER (or maybe this is good news, depending on how you feel about it).

And Elly has started taking her meds again. 

13 comments:

  1. Like anything in life, Drama lives where Drama is created. FB is another platform for people to gain a certain heir of strength they wouldn't otherwise have outside the veil of the Internet.

    Roll with the entertainment. If not FB, it would be another site, right?

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  2. OK! Who says online life is boring? Peeps online are scary,.. they certainly scare the ish out of me.

    I agree with Christine, they are not only do it on FB, I have witnessed many online wars. None of them pretty.

    I am not big on FB and I don't care for Twitter either. Love blogging, for the rest, well,...

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  3. Ah, without Facebook, blogs and Twitter all of the idiots wouldn't have a public voice.

    I'm so tired of seeing people's political statuses and commentary on facebook. Most of the time people just end up looking completely misinformed. And I doubt any of these folks picked up the phone or wrote an email/letter to their representatives about the health care issue. Not that it would do anything, but at least it's being proactive. Then again, it's much easier to garner attention on Facebook.

    Facebook fights remind me of now defunct chat room brawls... :)

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  4. People are idiots on FB. My Mother included. That's why I had to hide her.

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  5. Don't you love people watching. I'm kind of over FB, however it seems to be the only way I can get in touch with one of my bestest friends who lives across the world from me. So, I check it every once in a while, and often find funny litte catfights...however, nothing like what you've highlighted here! It's too bad these ladies couldn't agree to disagree.

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  6. and that's the reason why I don't talk or post about politics. People are always trying to push THEIR opinion on you. It seems like 95% of people don't know what it is to "respect another person's opinion and leave it at that."

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  7. I finally joined FB about a month ago. I messed around on there for a few weeks and haven't been back since. The nostalga came and went pretty damn fast.

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  8. It always amazes me that people think online fights are worth it or appropriate.

    I heart Jon Stewart too and I am annoyed that they are off this week. I cannot wait to hear what he has to say about the bill!

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  9. Yankee Girl - I KNOW! WTF Jon!? What a week to pick for Spring Break.

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  10. It never ceases to amaze me the things people say on Facebook. Hiding behind a computer makes people a lot "braver," but a lot dumber too!

    Thanks for stopping by my blog! Glad you found me, and as a result, I found your blog. I have incredibly large amounts of respect for single moms...I was raised by one for years before my stepdad came into the picture.

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  11. if you need some irrelevance you can always go to

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47D9-U8hn5I

    xoxo

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  12. I love mac 'n cheese. Don't even think about dissing it.

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