That Time We Took The "Social" Out Of "Media"

So about my Facebook page. It's a bit barmy, a bit random, and sometimes a bit inflammatory. I don't typically pick my words too carefully, and there's a reason for this. For me Facebook is a repository for where I'm at "In the moment" so to speak. It isn't meant to be a finely crafted thing, or a taut analysis of everything that's happening. It's how I'm feeling and thinking there and then. Amused, incensed, befuddled. It isn't about you. It's not me trying to educate you. I'm not your parent so fuck off and do that yourself. If you read some of the articles I post then fine. If you don't then why would I care? What Facebook isn't, or what it was never intended to be for me was a finely crafted PR excercise. It isn't meant to be that because I'm not that. Are you beginning to understand? Sometimes I get private messages from people who've been triggered by something I have posted, or prompted to come at things at a different angle. OK fine, but again, your response, visceral or otherwise, is not my motivation. I like to capture my impulses and virtually bottle them so I can, if I want, revisit them. I can see where my thinking has evolved, how my views have ebbed. As you'll note I have flurries of attention. So do you, by the way, but you're likely less overt. I never wanted to create art here; I just wanted to chart my own travels. It isn't meant to be tidy, or considered, or polished so none of the cracks show. My positions have flaws; you really think I'm ignorant about that? Wow, you probably wanted to check your propensity for self elevation. If I make you laugh then good. If I make you think then better. If I irk you or make you grumble or shake your head in disbelief all fine. Oh, and if I "Offend" you, then be aware that your capacity to be offended is your own concern. I'm aware "Offence" has now become weaponised; something used to silence and surpress, which is why I consider it all the more important to speak as plainly as I can. I'm fortunate insofar that I have a good understanding of where the line is in terms of what I can and cannot say. I have had cause to explain it to others in the past. I find it a bit awkward being in a room when somebody challenges something I have posted or said, bacause then I have to talk them through principles of free speech, which normally deconstructs their concerns but can leave both of us feeling a bit odd. Nobody likes having error pointed out to them, but it is the case that many who are critical actually lack a core understanding. Abbreviated version; Facts do not care about your feelings. They just don't. So if I post data that dissolves a position you hold dear then you claiming "Offence" is not the smartest card to play. Get better facts. If was ever openly racist or homophobic or indulging in hate speech that would be a very different thing, and there are good laws already in place to protect us. For what it's worth I'm none of those things, but this is where my contrary nature can often confuse. I'm quick to go after positions I think are flawed. For example, when movedments like #Metoo or Black Lives Matter morph from wonderful concepts into battering rams that cause harm to the innocent. I wonder how many good and decent Law enorcement officers feels bullied and belittled right now? How many good and decent men caught up in the overblown claims of rape culture or systematic abuse of women? Just to drive it home, there is no evidence of systemic racism, and not all men are rape machines. That said, we all need to create a fair and just society and root out genuine racism and predatory behaviour where we see it. The fewer racists and sexual predators in the world, the better, right? These movements have good motivations, but how many times have they been hijacked by bad actors? That's perhaps one of the saddest aspects for me. How we take something good and then turn it into something cancerous. It's almost as if there's some force that seeks to pull us away from being the noblest, kindest, wisest versions of ourselves. But now to the crunch, that's a trait inside the vast majority of humans who have ever walked and talked and dribbled. Do yourself a favour and don't project it. It isn't the Devil, or your upbringing, it's IN you and it is FOR you to address.