Unclear on the Offensive

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I’m sure you’ve seen this on social media.  It’s usually in giant font and it reads “I saw something online that I was offended by and I just scrolled by” followed by something snarky.

There are two possible explanations why someone who share this, and neither are very good.

The first is that this person shares things that really are offensive.  i.e. racist, anti-LGBT+, misogynistic, promoting violence, etc.  You should report the HELL out of this person!  You should also ask yourself why you are friends with someone so awful.

The second, and more likely reason, is that person doesn’t know what the word offensive means.  They think it means “something you disagree with”.  Which, of course, it does not.

If you post things are are factually inaccurate you can’t get mad when people point that out.  No, vaccines don’t cause autism. No, Trump didn’t really win the 2020 election.  No, children aren’t using litter boxes instead of toilets in first grade classrooms.  No, lizard people are not ruling the world.  Just because you read it online doesn’t make it true.

And no it’s not “just your opinion”  Opinions are things like liking country music instead of pop music.  Preferring to shower in the morning vs. showering at night.  You can have an opinion on facts, sure, but you can’t just decide that something isn’t true because you don’t want it to be.  That is a sign of mental illness, not a sign of being a good Christian or American or whatever you think that makes you.

The moral of the story is simple:  Don’t post stupid shit, and if you do, don’t get butthurt when people point that out to you!

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