Ecclesiastes 10:13
The words of his mouth begin with foolishness, and the end of his talk is raving madness.
Twit: (verb) to taunt, tease, ridicule, etc., with reference to anything embarrassing; gibe at. Synonyms: jeer at; mock; insult, deride.
How many of you use Twitter regularly? For what seems like ages, I haven't, except to tweet some of my favorite Christian bloggers' posts. But I never make a habit of checking my Twitter feed because my "Silver Bird" connection has always crashed and burned, or chose not to show up at all when I bring my computer online.
What makes it suddenly "fix" itself, flashing irritating alerts on the right-hand side of my computer screen, I can't fathom. But it does not make me a happy camper. Honestly, I don't want the interruption, nor do I wish to be distracted when composing a post on Facebook, penning an email, or just browsing the internet.
And I've yet to figure out how to disable it without completely dismantling my Twitter link. Any advice you all could give me on this would be greatly appreciated!
What I've noticed as my wandering eyes are tempted to peruse the invasive banner of news flashes and announcements is that I will see an article that piques my interest. I visit. I read. Then I make a huge (my word for the year) mistake.
I comment.
Man, oh, man! What I say, no matter how innocuous I perceive it to be, is regarded as an attack more often than not. It's a free-for-all, body slam, face in the dirt, cataclysmic KO. The stinging words leave me reeling and wondering, what has happened to civil discourse in our country? What has happened to respect and common decency?
Twitter is, with a few exceptional exceptions, a cesspool. Tweets have morphed into twits! And the last thing I desire is one more ounce of negativity in my otherwise positive outlook.
Too many mouths filled with foolishness, bordering on the verge of raving madness. Intolerant. Angry. Hateful.
The anonymity that Twitter fosters, I believe, makes such vicious attacks on others not only possible, but preys upon our human frailty to judge others. That's God's job, not ours.
So this week, I've made a pledge to the Lord and to myself. I will only tweet Christian inspiration, and will not be sucked into the vortex of vitriol Twitter enables. I need not, and neither do you, have to put up with the foolish and frenzied insanity of others; but there is something positive we can do.
Pray!
Pray for all those lost souls out there who would rather twit than tweet.
Amen!
Martha - I don't know what may be causing your technical problem - I haven't heard of this one before. Are you talking about the Silver Board app?
ReplyDeleteMy personal experience with Twitter has been generally a positive one. That said, the company I worked for had a very different, and far more negative, experience. I think I've seen everything imaginable, including death threats (which Twitter decided wasn't a violation of their terms of service until Jack Dorsey, Twitter's founder, starting receiving them).
Like on Facebook, what kind of experience you have is largely a function of your followers and what they contribute to your newsfeed. When I see personal attacks, threats, profanity - I unfollow them. Lately it's been the incessant political stuff, but I see that more on Facebook, surprisingly enough.
Glynn, it must be the Silver Bird app, but I'm not sure how to dismantle it. Time to call on my computer geeks here at the house, I guess.
DeleteI'm glad to know your Twitter experience has been mostly positive. I do follow some news outlets and commentators, one in particular who just reports what is going on with absolutely no bias attached (Jamie Dupree). His observations are the last one you'd think folks would attack, but they do, and also go after anyone else who dares voice an opinion. I don't know how this guy stands it, but he perseveres.
Thanks so much for sharing your experience with me and all the readers. It's so helpful!
Love and blessings!
I have never had Twitter, so I can't relate to that particular problem...but I learned a long time ago about stating my opinion re: anything political or even close to it on Facebook. Sadly, what I've discovered is that "free speech" only applies to those on the far left of anything at all conservative. If we dare to speak up we are slammed immediately by such vitriol that it makes one want to crawl under a rock and hide for awhile. So, yes, like you, I post my positive statements/Bible verses, etc., without any direct comment on any particular current "topic", and let God's Words do the work He intended...and so far that seems to be working! Praise God!
ReplyDeleteAmen, Pamela! That's truly the only way to go - posting positives and refusing to become embroiled in the negative. And what you've stated here is so sadly true. Free speech on social media is only allowed by one group of people; they don't have any interest in dialogue. Their only purpose is to shut others down who happen to have a different opinion. Oh, how I pray this will not get any worse!
DeleteLove and blessings!
I don't see the same problems you do. Perhaps that's because I don't have the Twit-In-Chief on my follow list (or his minions). I get a wonderful list of ideas. (admittedly, I only read them thrice daily...)
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you see so many great ideas on Twitter, Roy, and that it is a positive experience for you. To be fair, I have had some good exchanges on Twitter, but almost exclusively with friends I know from Facebook or blogging. Thanks for your comment!
DeleteLove and blessings!
I have never tweeted, at least on purpose. I think I signed up for an account a couple years ago but have no intent to ever use it. It sounds more like a war with words than meaningful communication. Besides, I want to know something about the folks I communicate with (yes, I check profiles and news feeds) before I invite them into my life.
ReplyDeleteAs I said to Roy in the previous reply, good exchanges are possible on Twitter if you stick with folks you know. When you "dare" to make a comment on a news article or a news anchor/reporter, that's when the demons come out of the woodwork. You don't know who they are, and you don't know them, but they think putting you down and being rude is acceptable, ergo the anonymity factor.
DeleteMy advice, Ed? If you haven't started tweeting, don't bother!
Love and blessings!
Martha, you're are correct. The incivility is horrible, especially when your view differ from another person. Social media seems to breed really ugly behavior. I try to simply avoid certain people/topics for some degree of self protection. I hope one of your resident tech experts can help you silence the Twitter notifications!
ReplyDeleteLove and blessings!
Like you, Kim, I've tried to avoid it, to go into hiding, because the incivility is inexcusable. I'm trying to remember, at this juncture, that Jesus landed right in the center of correcting political correctness, and set the nerves of the Pharisees and Sadducees on edge. Is that what we are called to do? We can only pray and ask for God's guidance in all of this mess.
DeleteLove and blessings!
Thus I will never tweet. Some people are twits (to borrow Dr. Steve Brown's word). I prefer to remain quiet and anonymous and not be wrapped up in a war of words with anyone.
ReplyDeleteAmen, Bill! Except for tweeting beautiful posts from inspiring friends, this venue has turned into a massive disappointment. As I've said above, I have had some positive connections, but I'm praying for those who seem to have forgotten that God controls the universe, not them, and certainly, not me.
DeleteLove and blessings!
Sounds like a good policy for Twitter. It's long been one of my least favorites among social media. But then, not super crazy about what any social media can stir up in general. My goal is to share useful and uplifting info, and not to be drawn into the fray. I cannot see Jesus bothering with Twitter at all, and I am certain we don't need to be on it to gain eternal life. :)
ReplyDeleteI'm with you, Karen. I don't think Jesus would be in the least impressed by social media, especially Twitter, although I can imagine Him doing great things through it, if He so chose. Looks more to me that all of the social thing is devil-driven tool to take our focus off of God, and onto ourselves. Not good! If we can use social media to His great love and glory, more power to that!
DeleteLove and blessings!
Tweets have morphed into twits! - oh so true. You make me both think and smile today
ReplyDeleteIndeed, they have, Jean! The good news is, Danny got rid of that pesky Silver Bird, so no more distractions.
DeleteLove and blessings!
I'm not on Twitter, but I feel the same way about FB.
ReplyDeleteI hear you about that, too, Galen. What a sewer it became, especially those months leading up to the election. I took time off Facebook for Lent, and though I'm back on here and there, I've REALLY cut back on time spent there each day. It's been kind of a relief, actually.
DeleteLove and blessings!
I'm pretty much with you. I used Twitter quite a bit way back when because I had online friends and a blogging community that supported my using it, but like you, I now mostly use it to share posts I like. Too much baggage with almost everything else. And always, thank you, thank you for sharing my posts. It's a great encouragement to me. :)
ReplyDeleteJason, I share your posts because each one is always well-written and such an encouragement and inspiration to me. So glad to know that you are encouraged by that. Count on me to keep on doing so!
DeleteLove and blessings!