Relevant XKCD: https://xkcd.com/386/
You don't have to engage with people on the Internet
51–60 of 226 posts
Re: You don't have to engage with people on the Internet
#52Reddit is great because someone can says 1 + 1 = 3, get fifty upvotes, you can point out that it's actually 2, get downvoted into oblivion, and then some other idiot will come along and say it's 4
It is 4 for infinitely large values of 1.
Re: You don't have to engage with people on the Internet
#53> Sometimes people will engage in performative angst in comments about companies as a way to signal they are part of the "in-crowd" that totally hates everything corporations have "ruined". These views are not representative of the larger world. It is just them trying to get upvoted because they care about the internet point number.
I feel like this is close to another point that has been hard to learn for me too: often, when talking about something, people care more about the talking than the something, or at least they care more about the talking and less about the something than me. This is not a value judgement, I don't think one way is "better" than the other, it's just one of those things that can cause a lot of trouble when you don't know about it.
It also helps not engaging with people. What usually attracts me when I engage with people that I don't know very well is that they're talking about something that I know, and thus I feel in a way involved in the conversation, I can contribute something. But when I see it through the lens of a group of people that know each others and just happen to talk about something that I know, it's easier to let it go.
As a more general comment, I really appreciate this blog. There's some variety in the subjects, the writing is engaging, sometimes there are cool technical tricks, sometimes interesting insights.
Re: You don't have to engage with people on the Internet
#54Eh, I tried to take that view but then I started hearing those wrong pithy responses reflected back at me via my real life friends, which showed that their campaign worked.
Now I don't argue to try to change the person's mind, but rather to plant the seed of critical thinking that may help an onlooker find the truth.
Re: You don't have to engage with people on the Internet
#55I was fortunate to learn this from pointless internet flamewars early in my life. Understand why you're in an argument and what you hope to accomplish by being in an argument. On the internet, it is usually very clear that you will accomplish nothing except maybe introduce receptive onlookers to a new idea, so the choice to minimize engagement is easy. I think applying this has generally made me more successful outsi…
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Re: You don't have to engage with people on the Internet
#56[deleted]
Re: You don't have to engage with people on the Internet
#57There's also a chance that you're not even engaging with a person at all, but with a bot, so even less reason.
Re: You don't have to engage with people on the Internet
#58Someone is wrong on the internet!
Come to bed, honey.
No can do. Someone has to correct them.
It's getting better as I age but there are times when the pressure has to be released
Re: You don't have to engage with people on the Internet
#59Eh, I tried to take that view but then I started hearing those wrong pithy responses reflected back at me via my real life friends, which showed that their campaign worked. Now I don't argue to try to change the person's mind, but rather to plant the seed of critical thinking that may help an onlooker find the truth.
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Re: You don't have to engage with people on the Internet
#60It's not worth the psychic damage
There’s no damage if you don’t take it or don’t look at it (in case of a toxic auditory).
My rule of thumb is: I’m not lazy to write a constructive-ish comment and there’s a good chance it could change, extend or represent some opinions and there’s still something left unsaid either itt or in general.
E.g. if I’m lazy, or it’s unlikely someone could benefit from reading it, or everything was already said in that thread or is assumed to be well-known, then I don’t engage.