People...

[arachniabat]

We all have the power to hurt someone. To lower someone's self-esteem, their self-worth, to say something to have them questioning themselves. The internet makes this even easier. It's a much greater power, however, to choose not to say petty, vehement or negative things and greater still to take that energy and redirect it in the form of a

Comments

[faeryhideout]

The internet seems to have become more a source of negativity than most high schools.

*agreed* sad as it is...

[arachniabat]

It is pretty sad. And actually pretty amusing, too. Most of us didn't particularly like high school at best and yet we've gone and re-created it! lol.

[evil_joseph]

I tend to agree about the net, but it's also certain bars downtown with their 'sewing circles' that project the vehement and petty. When it comes to these people, I say to their faces; "want to know what I'm up to? Just make something up and attach my name to it...." Makes my uneventful and pathetic life more interesting than it is and takes the wind out of their sails.

evil joseph

[arachniabat]

Oh I know. I hear the most ridiculous hearsay sometimes, too. Silliness.

[randwulf]

It takes even greater power still to realize that no one has the power to hurt you with their words, unless you let them.

http://randwulf.livejournal.com/406864.html

Seriously, no one has power to hurt you with what they say, only you do.

[arachniabat]

Oh, I know. There were two things that prompted this entry. One was the amount of nastiness on lj communities and not just ratings communities where you expect it but the ljsecret type communities, too. Someone (usually kids) type something they want to get off their chests anonymously, silly as it may be, and I keep seeing comments attacking people over the most ridiculous things. For example something like "My dad died. I wish he were back in my life" would be replied to with "I wish it was MY dad that died, you're lucky" or some other horrible thing, sometimes outwardly hurtful. I'm old enough to know better than to take anything like that seriously but these kids? I don't know why it bothers me really, it just does

[zigsternenstaub]

True. I believe people are more likely to say hurtful things on the interenet because they do not consider it to be "real," per say, and of course it is always easier to insult or hurt someone when you cannot see their face. Hence the phenomenon of breaking up over the telephone. I wonder how many people break up in e-mails now..?

[arachniabat]

True! I bet there are tons of break up emails floating around cyberspace right now. Some relationships are formed, lived out and die all over the internet without ever experiencing human contact. That's a little scary to me...

[zigsternenstaub]

In one fashion, it is a real advance, because one is able to make acquaintance with people of like mind whom one in any other time would never have met. On the other hand, it is a bit dehumanising.