Iron Bru › Forums › Non Football › Olive Trees › Reply To: Olive Trees
Yeah, I agree on the solution. There have been times where I wished I’d held back and the time to edit a post has passed, so I am stuck with something I would have worded differently later on. I also thinking of not always assuming the worst angle from those you’re debating with, and I am thinking of myself here too. Not just with this, but with how I have debated with Bucks or JI previously on divisive issues.
On twitter, it can be hugely frustrating to see tribalism dominate, but behind that, there can be some joy in finding people who hold views which make you think and articles from more obscure places that you wouldn’t have come across otherwise (I wouldn’t have come across Ahmed Alkhatib’s work otherwise). I found Oz Katerji (https://twitter.com/OzKaterji) through this and he is one of my most respected journalists reporting on issues abroad. It can cause you to feel less isolated when you meet people of similar mindsets and I did meet up with a couple of tweeters last year in London, who are both of a similar political persuasion. This can be comforting, but it’s important not to fall down into it too much so the only people you are amicable with are those of the same mindset, because that breeds echo chambers, tribalism and a feeling that anyone who thinks differently must be working against you. It can be done though if you’re careful. The site can also provide a chance to laugh at the silliness too whenever something ridiculous trends. Be it ‘bean dad’ (https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/bean-dad) or when Jolyon Maugham boasted about going out in his wife’s kimono to bash a fox to death with a baseball bat (https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/dec/26/prominent-lawyer-jolyon-maugham-tweets-about-clubbing-a-fox-to-death)