I am astonished by the proportion of people on social media who take issue with innocuous posts. It’s almost as if people are losing their sense of humor and assuming the worst about others. I am tired of bullies verbally attacking me via private message on Facebook, telling me they were offended by a post I shared. Case in point: I recently shared a post which used the analogy of a Ferrari to describe a person’s body, and a bumper sticker as a reference to a tattoo. It was written in first person with no attacks against people who had tattoos. Approximately 8 hours after I had shared the post, a man (and I use that term loosely in light of how hostile he was) private messaged me, telling me how offended he was by my post and that he had lost considerable respect for me. He took personal issue where none existed, and on top of that, he attacked Ferrari owners. I attempted to calm him down by stating that there was no offense meant, and that there was nothing negative directed against people who had tattoos. Instead of calming him down, I apparently raised his ire because I had shared a screenshot of this particularly annoying message stream so that people could see how much I get bullied by people who have no business starting an argument. He blasted me again, stating that I posted derogatory remarks and that what I did was “typically American”.

Here are the message streams:

I have come to the realization that bullies like this are full of self-loathing, so much so that they feel compelled to lash out at others and perpetuate hostility instead of seeing the levity in a social media post. I have seen posts which have poked fun at bodybuilders, doctors, people over 40, and models, and as long as the posts are funny and aren’t overly derogatory and are playful, I can see the amusement and laugh at myself. I certainly wouldn’t want to twist the meaning around, take issue, and private message someone. That is what haters do. I lack the time, the anger, or the general energy to verbally attack someone who has posted something on a social media platform. If I see something offensive, I merely MOVE ON without getting a bee in my bonnet and attacking the person who posted the item. The only exception would be if someone specifically mentions me and directly attacks me in a hostile way. Life is too short to start arguments and fret over minor things, especially when they are meant to be amusing.