To My Fellow Writers

Astounded by Your Toxic Comments

You scared me off, but I'm back with a message

Somehow I managed to get to age 60 without giving a crap about politics. Happy in my bubble, let's say.

But it burst, and like a leaky basement, I couldn't ignore it anymore.

So I wrote a story.

Unfortunately, that story reopened my eyes to a level of hate and disrespect I hoped I'd never experience again.

It messed with my head enough to stop me in my tracks here on Medium.

“Learn to use criticism as fuel, and you’ll never run out of energy.” — Orrin Woodward

Well, I'm back with a new story… and a message for you.

My country, hell, our world, is dripping in corruption, misinformation and lies. We're being torn apart and pitted against one another by our governments like never before.

We see the evidence:

• in every headline
• at our borders and airports
• at the grocery store
• the gas pump
• when I do my taxes
• chat with a neighbour
• at the hospital
• in the bank
• watching TV
• and trying to buy a home… it's everywhere!

It also slapped me in the face on Medium

So much for feeling safe to express myself and share my thoughts when life gets overwhelming.

This pandemic managed to infect me with something I’d become adept at avoiding like the plague — politics! How ironic.

So ya, a few months back, I snapped and wrote on the topic of Canadian politics — mainly about our embarrassment of a leader.

Big mistake.

How it went down

Like most of you, I've had to spend the last 2.5 years monitoring my life through the daily news.

• Are we still locked down? How long do I have to quarantine?
• Will people be forced to take the vaccine?
• Work from home — fantastic — I think?
• Can we travel? Vaccine passports — really?
• Can I see my Mom in another province or my sister in the USA?
• Do I need to wear a mask today? Can more than two people be in the bank at once?
• Can I go to the hospital to say goodbye to my dying Aunt?
• Am I allowed in Emergency at the hospital to be with my sick hubby?
• Have the rules all changed again today?

Hey, I love roller coasters, but I want the hell off this puppy!

So what does a writer do when they're obsessed with a topic and need to sort out their thoughts?

Yup…write about it!

What a colossal F — Up that was!

I was by no means prepared for the wrath.

Although it's outside my wheelhouse, I dared share my truth and political opinions on Medium because I'd been tuned in to a new reality.

I discussed the conflicts I saw in the media and with Canada's insanely childish/narcissistic, and I'll say it, scary dictatorial Prime Minister.

The injustice and outright insanity of what he's getting away with in Canada exasperate me…NO, it terrifies me.

I can barely look at him, forget listening to him speak anymore. He belongs in theatre, but not on a political stage. So I thought venting about it would be the healthy thing to do; you know, get it off my chest.

Boy, I was wrong.

I don't lean hard left (or right, for that matter), but I found out quickly where many people on this platform stand — well, at least the vocal ones.

Worse… there's zero tolerance for any difference of opinion.

What's happened to common decency and respect?

It seems while I was hanging out in that safe bubble of mine, differing political views became outrageous, toxic and extreme.

What a terrible experience. I had to take my story off the platform to stop the abuse. I've also had second thoughts about writing on Medium at all.

I was shocked by the toxicity of your comments.

Sure, tempers flare when discussing hot topics, but there used to be some level of civility. There was a day when we could diffuse those conversations with a simple, "no politics or religion at the table."

But no more.

You're labelled an extremist if you contradict anything our Liberal government is churning out.

Families, long-term friendships and marriages are being ripped apart should there be a disagreement about who you vote for or your vaccination status.

If nothing else, can we agree that's a red flag?

Regardless of our political stance, we used to find common ground in the agreement that all politicians are corrupt on some level. But somehow, our politicians have intervened and twisted things to divide us on a whole new level.

They've changed the narrative away from their bullshit agendas and pitted us against one another like we're the bad guys.

And we've fallen for it!

Politicians have taken the focus off themselves and all the garbage they chuck our way and instead have us fighting amongst ourselves. They probably sit back and laugh while we do their dirty work for them.

I'm not an extremist by any stretch, but I do lean moderately right.

That used to be OK — you could share that difference of opinion.

I'm open-minded enough to see the positives and negatives on both sides. I'm also wise enough to know that we can't believe everything the media states as fact, especially in Canada when Trudeau owns our legacy news outlets.

That's a fact, not an opinion.

Propaganda is real, and it's not just found in communist countries.

I keep hoping that common sense will lead folks back around to the fact that "common sense" must prevail.

We can still think for ourselves, can't we?

Surely we'll come back together and fight for the democracy so many brave men and women died for. We must protect and remember how precious our freedoms and civil liberties are.

So here's what threw me off in a big way…

Keyboard Cowards

We live in a world where "hate" is a four-letter word.

“I will permit no man to narrow and degrade my soul, by making me hate him.” — Brooker T. Washington

We fight for equality and agree that everyone "matters," — so when did it become OK to spew pure venom in the direction of anyone who disagrees with one's interpretation of the truth?

How are you any better than those you condemn?

I felt hate on Medium like I'd never felt in my life. I was insulted, demeaned, called horrible names and thrown out as trash. Not to mention unfollowed and blocked.

Interesting, considering there's always the option of not reading an article you dislike and moving on. I do it all the time.

Why was I compared to Trump — sworn at and belittled for suggesting there could be more to the story than what's on TV?

I had no idea people could be so hateful, and I'm an abuse survivor! That toxic 10-year relationship paled compared to the acid spilled on my comment page in a matter of days.

I can handle an intelligent, mature debate, but not the raw sewage people were flushing without regard to their fellow writer.

As a good friend pointed out;

“I refer to people who do that as keyboard cowards, those same people would never have the nerve to say those things to your face.”

And that got through to me. He's right.

There's no real accountability or consequence when hiding behind your anonymous keyboard.

“Keep writing Liz, you’re good at it. Don’t let those hateful cowards hold you back.”

He wasn't the only one I got that advice from, and I suppose the sting has worn off enough for me to hear it.

Please try to remember before you lash out in haste in the comment section that it's not a screen you're "hating on" but another living, breathing fellow writer that does have the right to express their opinions.

I'm confident I'm not alone here on Medium, so let's stand firm and push back on the haters — keep calm and write on!

My Unfortunate Conclusion

The horrible, toxic comments my story attracted prove that while we talk about inclusion, we exclude one another on a whole new level these days.

We must unite, fight for our fundamental human rights, use our common sense and remember all the people who fought for our freedoms.

We won't recognize our free world if we allow this political toxicity to continue unchecked. This article isn't about swinging left or right.

It's about freedom of speech, of choice, of thought!

It's about common decency and respect for one another.

We need to elect healthy-minded individuals to our government that work for and support the well-being of our great nation, not for the twisted agendas of "whoever" is leading the party of your choice.

Be kind to one another, and respect our differences, even when it comes to politics.

And remember what our parents taught us…

“ If the have nothing nice to say, say nothing at all.”

Before you run…If you like my work, you can follow me or get an email notification when I publish something new. Here’s my bio, and have a peek at my new publication to help you gain “the Advantage” on Medium.

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