People's usual negative reactions are getting nastier, and people are quicker to pile on. But more notable are the people who have never gotten involved with any of it who are suddenly coming out and making snide comments, or questioning the meaning/implication of every little statement, and expecting clarifications or apologies. It's the same, but worse, and growing. And the mask Nazis - holy cow! So I've been avoiding a lot of that because, as little civil discourse as there was before in FB land, it seems to be disappearing altogether. Either I agree with you or you hate me, seems to be the mood.
During one particular exchange, I had a thought about it all that might be significant - I don't know. It concerns those people we have been associating with for years - people who have learned to see through a lot of the lies - who suddenly seem to be questioning themselves, and their knowledge.
My thought was that this is a test of our faith - faith in ourselves. We've learned to trust our own eyes, our own instincts, and our own brains. We need to keep trusting ourselves. But right now, trying to share our worldview with the masses, is being perceived more and more, by them, like we're looking for a fight, or worse. Not an argument, certainly not a conversation - an all-out, no holds barred fight. I've been avoiding that, and maybe that's a good thing.
I agree with the first bolded paragraph because there have been a few at work who display this behavior. Then there are a few more who are questioning more now and opening up about what's going on in their mind. And lastly, there are the many in between who keep their head down, avoid eye contact while wearing the mask and seem like they are disconnecting from every human that comes close.
The second bolded part is harder for me not because I don't see, but because I get worried that I'm not as understanding of them as I could be. I'm not looking for a fight for sure but I am sarcastic about it all to often.
That's exactly it. We've been preparing for this for 26 years, some of us. (I guess we are the hard cases!) And I sure hope it has all been helpful for others to enable them to cope with what is out there and what may be yet to come. I am eternally grateful for the Cs and their guidance even if they made me work darn hard for it. I also hope that my efforts to put it all together and make it available to others has been of service. There aren't many of us, but we are all we've got as far as I can see. Let's make the most of it.
Laura you have made such an impact on so many others from what I've read and most certainly me. Honesty can be so painful for some to hear even within this network, but it is the thing I admire the most. I remember fighting useless battles over many years and after finding this forum, I found out they might not have been totally useless with the lessons that were learned. It was many other small details like it that gave my life a new meaning and I am forever grateful for that!