I don’t know how to start this really and, to be be honest, by the nature of what I am about to say, many have already lost interest!

Is it a modern thing I wonder?

More and more recently I see some in society less and less interested in anything outside of their small interest zone. Attention spans seem very short too.

I am aware of ‘cancel culture’ and I know what it is and, how I generally feel now is like that. Others feel an entitlement to shut up anyone who says anything at all that they personally have no interest in or, which makes them think even if they agree with the conclusion. Now, that said, anything more than two lines and the self same people have stopped reading and, that’s fine, leave it there, not interested, turn away, subject closed but no!

Not only do they not read the piece but without completing it they then feel compelled to make it public they’ve not read it. it’s the same ‘boring rubbish’ and they don’t feel it has any place showing up in their lives.

Now, we are talking ‘online’ here, most of these same people wouldn’t dream of being so rude face to face or so brazen but, online, anything apparently goes and is acceptable.

Back in the early web we had these people, back then they were called ‘trolls’ and their only aim online was to pretend to play devils advocate or to put an opposing opinion whether they had any interested in the subject or not, no comment about anything no matter how mundane would be left unchallenged by them. The objective, in truth, was to shut down online discussion for or by certain people they had decided shouldn’t have an online persona.

One of the scary parts now is this … if we are told to ‘shut up (because we’re boring)’ we are not permitted to complain about that in any shape or form else it’ll only get worse. Those people take it as a personal affront should someone dare challenge their right to say ‘we’ are boring.

Example at the moment would be the virus. Discussion on it has become a big no go area it seems. So controversial is any opinion on the subject. I’ve been told I best shut up commenting that anyone is breaking the lockdown because ‘no one wants to hear you go on and on about it. let other people live their lives how they want’ (the irony).

Politics, they’re not interested because ‘it makes no difference who is in power so, why bother?’ and as such, any political conversation is slammed as boring or a waste of their time.

My view all along is, the more they say we should shut up because they’re not interested, the more we shouldn’t. I have some historical precedent there in that so many in the Jewish community in the 1930’s didn’t want to complain, didn’t want to rock the boat they turned a blind eye and it came back and slapped them in the face.

In the USA just now, so many sat by not wanting to get involved that they very nearly got themselves a dictatorship out of it, one of the most democratic countries in the world almost lost their way because of their culture of not getting involved.

You see, and this is just my opinion, those telling others to shut up are the very ones who create the conditions for disaster either to cover their own wrong doing (in the case of the far right) or, to a smaller extent, to not wear a mask. I’ve even been slammed down for being critical of cannabis and I’d be forgiven for believing that anyone and everyone reading believes that we should all be wanting to spend our entire lives with cannabis use being everywhere and legal whereas the truth, most likely, is they just don’t want to get involved so, when it comes down to it, what is likely to happen with cannabis use? Of course, those with the loudest voice, the users, will win through because the others who don’t want it legal just didn’t want to upset anyone, didn’t want to get involved.

Anyway, the decision I have made, reluctantly, is to shut up, not get involved, leave them to it. My age is rapidly making me irrelevant anyway so, few will notice. My one personal decision won’t change anything for anyone, it’ll just give me an easier life as I take less and less interest in the world around me other than those things which directly affect me because ‘me’ is what society is now, all about ‘me’ and ‘they & them’ are the ones to blame for everything but no one knows who ‘they or them’ are so they just stick with ‘me’.

Well, good luck with that, let me know how that works for you long term!

Actually don’t. I’m not interested!