Bullying, Rudeness And The Internet

In spite of all the wonderful tools the internet offers, from education to communicating ideas, there is a growing downside to the world wide web-rudeness.

Almost anywhere on the internet that you can find groups of people exchanging ideas, you find simply outrageous behaviors. It's almost as if, by being hidden by distance and a degree of anonymity, people are freed from the normal constraints of a civilized society. It's tough enough dealing with all of the truly complex issues, we as a society grapple with daily, polarized as we are by many of them. Many of us join online communities looking to share ideas and participate in reasoned discourse, and find ourselves routinely insulted and ignored by those who disagree with us.

Then, if that isn't bad enough, you find trolls who enter a thread discussing politics, cooking or even discussing books, and inserting profane and foul language for no apparent reason. I have seen whole forums, communities and even sites disappear because the venomous or obscene attacks demoralized everyone.

To me, anyone who misuses a forum or site this way should be banned. Most sites and forums should use the 3 strikes rule. If you are reported, and it is proven that you have caused disruption by inserting inappropriate remarks or attacked someone for their point of view, you're out. Why should we tolerate discourteous and boorish behaviors online, when we don't in "real" life??

Nowhere else would such behavior be tolerated for very long, and I don't see why it should be tolerated online. Gather.com has been very warm and welcoming to me personally, but I can already see the polarization, the snide comments and attacks, not to mention outright obscenities inserted into supposedly civil dialogue. Which is sad, as this site has such huge potential for everyone's viewpoint to be expressed.

We all lose when these things are allowed to grow unchecked. I only hope the CEO of Gather pays some heed to what is happening there, and puts a stop to it. There are some fine writers and great minds online. Why should a few obviously dysfunctional people ruin it for everyone else?

As a writer, I well understand the power of words to impact others. It appears to me that the 'net desensitizes people to the impact of how things are worded. I've heard so many times, someone online state "but they're just keystrokes, they can't hurt anyone." That's pure bollox and they well know it. Words hurt, whether spoken or written, if that's what they're meant.

In order for behaviors such as this to stop, people need to begin refusing to accept it. That means being mature enough to do something other than run away from it or buy into it. It means reporting it to whomever is responsible for the site, and insisting something be done. This form of internet bullying shouldn't be tolerated, yet it continues to spread, because people seemingly refuse to recognize it for what it is.

Civil, responsible and courteous people have every right to express an opinion or simply chat without being run off by what amounts to a faceless, cowardly set of schoolyard bullies. It's time to take back the internet from sick and twisted minds that think themselves better because they hide behind keyboards, where they can hurt others with impunity. If not, then we'll get what we will deserve-more of the same, or much worse.

Cyberbullying on the Internet
The Internet provides the perfect forum for cyberbullies, individuals whose aim is to gain gratification from the distress caused by provoking and tormenting others.